On Friday 31 May, the 16th annual Australian Interior Design Awards were presented at a gala celebration in Melbourne, with 550 of Australia’s most esteemed interior design and architecture practitioners and professionals in attendance.
This year’s awards boasts a stellar line-up of the country’s best interior design projects, with 12 overall category winners selected from a shortlist of over 200 projects.
The Premier Award for Australian Interior Design, considered the highest accolade of the awards program, was presented to Sydney-based designer George Livissianis for hair salon USFIN.
The way USFIN has reinvented the standard hair salon typology and given considerable thought to the customer experience and employee satisfaction was a key factor in it being awarded the Premier Award for Australian Interior Design, as well as the Award for Retail Design.
One juror described the project as sophisticated and “a bit sexy” – which is exactly how you want to feel after leaving a hairdressing salon. The jury unanimously agreed USFIN was very deserving of the Premier Award from a field of outstanding contenders.
“It stands out because it is so complete as a concept and interior, and has a real joyfulness to it, despite its futuristic laboratory aesthetic,” they said.
The Award for Interior Design Impact was presented to BVN for Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Primary School. An award that represents exceptional and transformative outcomes through rigorous design thinking, the jury noted that this year’s winner demonstrated an approach to genuine collaboration and experimentation and is an example of what can be achieved when a client and design team work together.
“Initially, the physical transformation is obvious – a dark, sombre 1970s Telstra training centre has been converted into an open, light, energetic primary school,” the jury commented.
Cox Architecture also received the Award for Public Design for the Waltzing Matilda Centre in Queensland. The Jury noted that the project has a clear narrative that has influenced the design’s colour palette and materiality, with the articulation of strong interior spaces as a result. This was particularly impressive due to Waltzing Matilda Centre’s many programmatic requirements – from exhibition space, reading room and gallery to retail outlet, tourist information hub and cafe.
“The layering of experiences throughout the different spaces is what facilitates the project’s storytelling, capturing the spirit of the centre’s namesake song through a variety of volumes and forms that evoke the Australian landscape,” the Jury said.
The awards named Victorian design practice, Pierce Widera, as the ones to watch, receiving the 2019 award for Emerging Interior Design Practice. The jurors praised the definite diversity of their portfolio and confident detailing and thoughtful use of materials across all their hospitality projects.
“Establishing the practice in 2017, co-directors Amy Piece and Nat Widera have a wealth of architecture and design experience across a variety of sectors. Completing six projects in their first year, they have a distinct creative approach and clear design identity, articulated through their strong aesthetic which evokes a particular mood and memorable experience for patrons.”
A full list of Awards and Commendations in the 2019 Australian Interior Design Awards:
Premier Award for Australian Interior Design
George Livissianis for USFIN, NSW
Award for Interior Design Impact
BVN for Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Primary School, NSW
Award for Sustainability Advancement
HASSELL partnered with Arup for Arup Melbourne, VIC
Emerging Interior Design Practice
Award:
Pierce Widera, VIC
Commendation:
Adele McNab Architect, NSW
Studio Esteta, VIC
Residential Design
Award:
Kennedy Nolan for Oak House, VIC (Joint Winner)
RITZ&GHOUGASSIAN for Edsall Street, VIC (Joint Winner)
Commendation:
Hogg&Lamb for B&B Residence, QLD
Renato D’Ettorre Architects for Italianate House, NSW
Retallack Thompson for Challis Avenue Apartment, NSW
Robert Simeoni Architects for Powell Street House, VIC
Residential Decoration
Award:
Arent&Pyke for Under the Tree, NSW
Commendation:
Alwill Interiors for Tribute House, NSW
Chelsea Hing for Yarra Valley House, VIC
GOLDEN for Wattle House, VIC
Hospitality Design
Award:
Carr for United Places Botanic Gardens South Yarra, VIC
Commendation:
Amber Road for Edition Roasters, NSW
Jackson Clements Burrows Architects for Sable Drop, VIC
Pierce Widera for Shinbashi, VIC
Retail Design
Award:
George Livissianis for USFIN, NSW
Commendation:
Carr for Gaggenau Melbourne, VIC
HASSELL for StylecraftHOME Melbourne, VIC
Herbert & Mason for Paramount Recreation Club, NSW
Mim Design for e&s Showroom, VIC
SJB for The UNSW Bookshop, NSW
Public Design
Award:
Cox Architecture for Waltzing Matilda Centre, QLD
Commendation:
Bates Smart for 161 Collins Street, VIC
JCY Architects and Urban Designers, Cox Architecture and Billard Leece Partnership with HKS Inc. for Perth Children’s Hospital, WA
Spowers for RMIT University School of Fashion and Textiles City Campus, VIC
Workplace Design
Award:
BVN for BVN Sydney Studio, NSW
Commendation:
Branch Studio Architects, Piazza Dell’Ufficio, VIC
Cox Architecture for Cox Architecture Brisbane Studio, QLD
HASSELL for Origin Workplace Brisbane, QLD
HASSELL partnered with Arup for Arup Melbourne, VIC
Installation Design
Award:
National Gallery of Victoria and nendo for Escher X nendo: Between Two Worlds, VIC
Commendation:
Anna Tregloan for ACMI for Wonderland, VIC
Liminal Spaces for Dust, QLD
Best of State Awards for Residential Design
New South Wales – Renato D’Ettorre Architects for Italianate House
Queensland – Hogg&Lamb for B&B Residence
South Australia – Williams Burton Leopardi for Malvern Residence
Victoria – Kennedy Nolan for Oak House and RITZ&GHOUGASSIAN for Edsall Street
Western Australia – Lahaus Studio for The Villa
Best of State Awards for Commercial Design
New South Wales – George Livissianis for USFIN
Queensland – Cox Architecture for Waltzing Matilda Centre
South Australia – Exhibition Studios for Birds and Bees Exhibition
Tasmania – Liminal Architecture for Freycinet Lodge Coastal Pavilions
Victoria – National Gallery of Victoria and nendo for Escher X nendo: Between Two Worlds
Western Australia – JCY Architects and Urban Designers, Cox Architecture and Billard Leece Partnership with HKS Inc. for Perth Children’s Hospital
Best International Design Award
Templewell Studio in collaboration with Rezen & Lahaus Studio via Design Stables Platform for Wanderlust, SG
Images and more information on award/commendation recipients can be found here.