Feature in Habitus Living

The folks at Habitus took some time to talk to Stephen about his humble Sunshine Coast farmhouse recently. The house is a "living environment that, whilst being extremely compact, offers a sense of generosity coupled with layers of privacy". You can read the full article on Habitus Living here...

Lots More Lightspace Launch Photos

Here's a few more photos from the Lightspace launch party last week, taken by the rather charming Marisol Da Silva. The man behind it all is in the top left image (he's the chap on the right), and the man behind the man, Mr Macdonald senior, can be seen next to Stephen on the bottom right...

Party Like It's 2009

It's officially open! After more than 18 months in design and construction, Lightspace finally went public last Thursday night in a style befitting its creative focus. Around 500 invited guests found their way to the top end of Light Street in Fortitude Valley for the event, and Lightspace owner John Macdonald made sure it was THE party to be at.
In the downstairs event spaces, a live DJ provided the soundtrack for the evening (80's remixed for the noughties) whilst street artists from Joshua Levi galleries got to work on outside walls and models (rumoured to be professional ballet dancers by day) promenaded before the crowd.
Upstairs, the brand new Studios were unveiled to the public for the first time, featuring light installations by artist Mary-Anne Kyriakou and of course our very own architecture. Check back soon for proper photos of the completed building, but in the meantime there's a nice little selection over at the Lightspace website.

Ark Celebrates Fifth Birthday

Here at Ark we're getting ready for a very long lunch today, and it's got nothing to do with that Victorian event that the whole nation stops for. No, as far as we're concerned it's even bigger than that - it's our 5th birthday! So we'll be removing our shoes, taking our places around a large Japanese table and celebrating with lashings of agadashi tofu, sukiyaki and perhaps even some Otokoyama sake...
Looking back over the past five years it's been quite an adventure, and we certainly won't be standing still for the next five - more news in that department as it comes to hand.

Lightspace Opening Event

It's official - the launch party for Lightspace is scheduled for Thursday 29th October. Our visionary client, Lightspace owner John Macdonald, tells us that the event will occupy the whole building with art installations, fashion and music. And we'll be there of course, along with all the other creative minds and hands that have helped bring Lightspace, the first building of its kind in Brisbane, into reality.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the river...

Here's a sneak peek of the Studios component of our Lightspace project, currently nearing completion in Fortitude Valley. This pic shows the recycled shipping containers that provide the enclosed spaces, with timber screens and recycled steel shelving separating the tenancies from the shared areas and each other. We're particularly enamoured with the bespoke signage, courtesy of The Letter D (more Lightspace photos there too).

Riverside Green-ing

With just over two weeks until the "pyrotechnic and musical extravaganza" that is Brisbane River Fire, our little gathering of public structures at the Riverside Green is just about ready to roll. By this time next week, people from all over Brisbane and beyond should be able to bring along their family, friends and picnic provisions to spend a delightful afternoon idling by the river under the shade of suitably subtle Ark structures...

On the Map

Nice to see a mention of our LightSpace project in this month's map magazine. You can pick up a copy of the mag for free in most good shops & cafes around town, or have a flick through the virtual magazine online here.

fACTion-al Talks

At the invitation of Canberra AIA-affiliated young architects' group fACTion, Stephen and Clare travelled to the national capital on July 30th to talk to a very enthusiastic & engaged audience of Canberrans about our work and, to quote Zumthor, the "secret passions" that underlie it.
Over 90 minutes or so, the assembled architects, graduates and students were treated to a suitably conversational presentation covering our completed works in Canberra, Fortitude Valley and South Bank, and the nearly-complete LightSpace. As is becoming customary, topics covered strayed into popular (and not-so-popular) media, including references to the written works of Alexander, Bachelard, Barthes & McEwen, and the cinematic works of Mann and Soderberg (respectively Miami Vice and Ocean's Eleven, to be precise...).

"...something a little 'left of centre'..."

LightSpace is back in the press, being described as "Brisbane's hottest new venue" in a recent InDesignLive article. The events space is proving very popular with photo shoots, product launches and parties of all varieties, and work on the super-gritty outdoor event space is nearing completion. Which can mean only one thing - a massive opening event is just around the corner...