Woods Bagot

Inside World Festival of Interiors shortlist announced! See the four global Woods Bagot projects shortlisted in this year’s Inside program: - Minthis for Bars & Restaurant, Health & Fitness, and Hotels - Smith & Mills for Bar & Restaurant - D.S. & Durga, Abbot Kinney for Retail - Hysan Commercial Precinct for Retail “Each project that we undertake is greeted with a holistic approach,” says Woods Bagot Global Design Director Domenic Alvaro. “We consider every aspect of the end user’s experience through thoughtful interiors and amenities, maintaining the focus on human-scale design in all our designs.” Read more: https://bit.ly/4cNFMSM World Architecture Festival #peoplearchitecture #worldarchitecturefestival #insidefestivalofinteriors #INSIDE24

World Architecture Festival (WAF) is the largest live awards event for architects and designers. Held annually, it is the only awards program where all finalists present their projects live to a panel of judges at the festival in Singapore. “Our shortlisted projects in this year's World Architecture Festival Awards underscore our contextual relevancy and commitment to sustainable design," says Global Design Director Domenic Alvaro. "By focusing on adaptive reuse and designs that respect their environment, this year’s diverse range of entries feature an innovative approach to contemporary architecture.” Six Woods Bagot projects have been shortlisted in this year’s WAF program: - The StandardX for Hotel & Leisure - Minthis for Mixed-Use - Mosman High School for School - University of Tasmania Forestry Building for Future Projects: Education - Synchro Yards for Future Projects: Residential - Minerva for Future Projects: Leisure Read more: https://bit.ly/3XVrDPj #woodsbagot #peoplearchitecture #WAF #WAF2024

Within an existing network of trees, the Meadowbank Schools have been organised into twinned, two-storey buildings framing a central hill of libraries covered by cascading gardens. Each teaching level opens directly to nature and a series of connected open-ended courtyards creates protected areas for collaboration, performance, and outdoor learning. Murals by community-endorsed multi-disciplinary artist and Dharug woman Jasmine Seymour also connect the Meadowbank Schools to Place and the ancient narratives of the local Dharug Country on which they stand – depicting local eels, fish, rivers, and birdlife. Woods Bagot Principal Ian Lomas says, “A school is an investment in the future of a community. We began by spending time both in schools with teachers and students, and with the government to understand their investment plans and the country’s demographics. We put forward an alternate teaching module based on the school community’s needs that was scalable from a single classroom to a new school and could be built using off-site construction employing local materials. At the heart of this project - and every project - is the sense of joy.” Meadowbank has received multiple awards, including the 2022 World Architecture Festival – Schools Winner and the 2023 Australian Good Design Awards – Architectural Design Winner. Read more on #ArchitectureLab: https://bit.ly/3W8gBUD #WoodsBagot #PeopleArchitecture #EducationalArchitecture #CommunityDesign

Blurring the boundaries between inside and outside, the China Merchants Tower Dome Renovation reinvents the glass dome crowing a 25-year-old tower in Beijing, repurposing the 700 square meter space into an agile, light-filled workspace across three levels. "Tasked with re-activating the glass dome that crowns the building, we focused on elements that would allow for flexibility and increase wellbeing," explains Principal Ray Yuen, "As a result, light has been considered a key element – with the team taking every opportunity to ensure the office, and its workers, have access to natural light without the workplace being so bright as to detract from the experience." Read the full #AdaptiveReuse in #China case study here: https://bit.ly/3VulDKF #ADAPT #peoplearchitecture #woodsbagot #architecture #mixeduse #retail

Today’s cities face two unignorable truths: the first is that our spatial needs are evolving more rapidly than our urban fabric, and the second is that our world is experiencing a climate crisis. At the same time, the urban vacancy rates for commercial buildings are high. Office attendance has stabilized at 30 percent below pre-pandemic level and retail foot traffic stands at 10 to 20 percent below1 – leaving a great deal of urban office, entertainment, and retail space empty. The majority of these vacant buildings are Grade B commercial stock, placing them between 70 and 30 years old with floorplates between 10000 and 300000 square feet. Tired and in need of repair, there are some 257,772 examples of this grade of commercial building in New York and Los Angeles alone. The process of weighing the question of what to do with these empty buildings against our need to respond to our expanding spatial needs more sustainably has yielded a common answer: Adaptive reuse. More specifically, that the oversupply of outdated commercial space and undersupply of housing can be easily balanced out by converting the former to the latter. But dare we investigate further, we find the realities of physical, financial, and regulatory constraints lurking just beneath our feet. Code, laws, and economic evaluations – on top of the case-by-case constraints of our buildings and cities – make navigating the complexities of adaptive reuse can threaten its real-world implementation. Read Into the Deep, Woods Bagot's latest #insight, on the Journal here: https://lnkd.in/etH-2rxP #woodsbagot #peoplearchitecture #adaptivereuse #deepfloorplates #architecture

Woods Bagot is pleased to announce the appointment of our new CEO, Sarah Kay. Sarah will lead the next step in Woods Bagot's journey towards total place design, with an emphasis on how place design can positively impact society. “As architects and place designers, we are perfectly positioned to have a positive influence on the world ahead of us," says Sarah, "it is in fact our responsibility to have a leading voice in shaping our cities and our places with a long term, sustainable and socially responsible outlook." Sarah takes the CEO reins from Nik Karalis, who was appointed CEO of Woods Bagot in 2015. Nik's nine-year tenure saw him lead with a clear, globally strategic vison - completing scores of impactful projects across multiple sectors. “This is an incredible moment in our history. Driven to reinforce our shared excellence by amplifying the power of design, Sarah’s global career, strategic mindset, business leadership, board experience, and focus on cultural inclusivity make her an incredible leader capable of driving the next chapter of Woods Bagot forward,” says Nik. Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/gJU5Uqrc #woodsbagot #peoplearchitecture

AURA by Aqualand Australia is now complete! Special guests and project stakeholders were invited to take part in the ribbon-cutting ceremony last Thursday, where participants were able to get the first peek into AURA's new precinct. Woods Bagot Principal and and Global Sector Leader – Residential, Jason Fraser says, “We have put an intense focus on the community benefit of the project – how we integrate into the public domain and create an environment that is inviting to the existing and the future community." At 28-storeys high, AURA features 386 luxury apartments, paired with a comprehensive suite of luxury amenities, including tiered concierge services and a state-of-the-art wellness center. Residents will also have private access to a pool, spa, and a stunning rooftop area with a sun deck, private dining spaces, and outdoor kitchen facilities for year-round entertaining. Read more at Aqualand Australia https://bit.ly/3zuCJAA #woodsbagot #peoplearchitecture #luxuryresidential #NorthSydney

"As with any trend, biophilic design continues to evolve," explained Principal Billy Ip in Travel Leisure India & South Asia's recent feature on Biophilic Hotels. As the industry moves away from manicured plantings and towards nature-driven design, Billy notes that designers and architects are looking to create eco-systems instead of gardens, "it’s not about making things look nice and green for the guests, it’s more holistic: creating habitats for insects and bees and butterflies. Using indigenous plants is also a form of cultural preservation—it highlights the unique character of the location, allowing luxury to feel restorative," he continues in the article. #peoplearchitecture #woodsbagot #biophilicdesign #hotels

The transformation of Beijing Aegean Square, a shopping mall, into Beijing Fusion Centre, a state-of-the-art workplace for upwards of 8000 employees, was an exercise in restrained continuity. "The unique nature of a retail to office conversion means the process comes with its own set of challenges. Underway immediately after the pandemic, the office needed to be hyper flexible in order to accommodate market change and adjust to the unique needs of any range of incoming tenants," says Associate Principal Hang Xu. "Agility was achieved with a layout that focused on circulation, light, and connection. Conceived of as a floating village, the office has been meticulously programmed – featuring a social floor on the second floor, a rooftop garden, as well as striking access to the atrium throughout," he continues. Read the full #AdaptiveReuse in our #China case study here: https://bit.ly/4cqpj70 #ADAPT #peoplearchitecture #woodsbagot #architecture #mixeduse #retail

“The introduction of AI in architecture is transformative, reshaping how architects work and offering new possibilities,” says Principal Alex Hall in Mix Interiors' industry insight on how AI is shaping the way architects and designers work. "AI presents an opportunity for us to innovate our services, and we are actively exploring its applications in several key areas such as optimizing the design process, advanced fabrication methodologies (DfMA), and the amplification of augmented reality and virtual reality technologies." Read the full story: https://lnkd.in/geJGC5mT #woodsbagot #peoplearchitecture #AI #architecture #design #DfMA