Perspectives

Perspectives

The climate crisis, gender inequality, wealth and resource inequity are all 21st century challenges that will necessitate collaboration and inclusiveness. The Perspectives exhibition was a headline Melbourne Design Week Exhibition that by placing process, research, and conversation at the centre, rather than the finished object reframed design as a shared, inclusive, and participatory act.

Supported by:

Australian Institute of Architecture, National Gallery of Victoria – Melbourne Design Week, Footscray Community Arts Centre, XYX Lab Monash, Scanlon Foundation, Centre for Projection Art, RMIT Interior Design, Designers Institute of Australia

Location:

Testing Grounds, Naarm-Melbourne

Date:

May 2023

Role: Exhibition designer and curator in collaboration with Sandra Githinji

fundraising, curation, exhibition design

exhibition concept creation, identifying and engaging supporters, identifying exhibitors, creation of exhibition videos, exhibition design and installation, programming curation and coordination.

Designers have for some time been leveraging ways of knowing and being, to transform the world we live in. The Perspectives exhibition was focussed on uncovering this wealth of knowledge that practices have built through trial, experimentation, and refinement of process.

The Perspectives sought to unpack and share processes and research to better understand the formation of design ideas, and through inviting active participation from the audience create new relationships and ways of thinking.

Process work has been historically positioned in the periphery of design presentation. The conversations, notes, sketches, debates, are seen as secondary to the finished artefact.
Through flipping this hierarchy, the exhibition environment provided an opportunity to question and discuss pertinent issues and produce new knowledge.

The exhibition was structured around 4 core themes and conversations;
Indigenous Futures, Cultural Vocabularies, Intersectional Gender Equity and Sustainable Modalities.

Contemporary architecture and urban planning showcased by Dhliwayo Architecture.

The Nukakurra Cultural Story Place – Immersive Experiences of Country (20th May 2023)

Stories of Nukakurra – digital technologies and immersive experiences of Country. The Nukakurra Cultural Story Place: digital technologies and immersive experiences of Country

Nukakurra Cultural Story Place presents an in progress Traditional-Owner led co-design project which involves a collaboration between Olkola Aboriginal Corporation, and the University of Melbourne.

Contemporary digital technologies are used in a participatory design project, exploring how mixed reality technologies (virtual reality and augmented reality), storytelling, archaeological science and digital cultural heritage can help to preserve and repatriate Olkola heritage.

Nukakurra Cultural Story Place is part of a pilot project called Getting Back on Country that undertakes design-based research in connection with the digitisation of Olkola cultural archives and significant sites. This project innovatively transcends disciplinary expertise to provide significant social, cultural and economic benefits for Olkola People as identified by Olkola People, exemplifying a collaboration process that supports Indigenous self-determination on Country.

The exhibition and talk present stories of Country. using augmented reality, sound recordings, video and animation projections; accompanied by maps, texts and diagrams that outline the processes, tools, technologies and their potential future applications.

Presented by the Olkola Aboriginal Corporation and the University of Melbourne

Participants include Uncle Mike Ross, Debbie Symonds CEO, Olkola Aboriginal Corporation, and Dr Rochus Hinkel, Dr Hannah Robertson, Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning The University of Melbourne.

The installation has become a meaningful gathering spot — a place where people come to reflect, celebrate, and connect with the stories that make Brooklyn what it is. The project is ongoing, and more portraits will be added over time.

Indigenous Futures (20th May 2023)

Indigenous perspectives will be a vital part of rethinking how the world we live in can be more sustainable and equitable.

In Indigenous cultures, society sits within the ecosystem of the natural world, serving as stewards and custodians to lands, territories and resources as opposed to Western models of extraction. Indigenous perspectives will be a vital part of rethinking how the world we live in can be more sustainable and equitable. The conversation was led by:

Gabi Briggs is an Anaiwan & Gumbaynggirr gedyura (woman), a research-based artist, and a grassroots community organiser. Her work explores the intersection of land-based practices and virtual spaces, focusing on power redistribution and carving out self-determined spaces for her communities.

Jefa Greenaway RAIA MDIA (Wailwan | Kamilaroi + Dharawal) is a founding Director of Greenaway Architects. He’s championed Indigenous led design thinking for 3 decades as a registered architect in NSW/VIC/ACT, as founding Director of Indigenous Architecture + Design Australia (IADA), and as a co-author of the International Indigenous Design Charter, with a particular interest in design equity and Country-centred design.

Dana Moussaouiis a Strategic Planning + Architectural Consultancy with more than 20 years’ experience in the architecture industry and backed with double master’s degrees; in Interior Architecture, followed by Architecture.

Cultural Vocabularies (27th May 2023)

The perspectives of Global South diasporas will be a vital part of rethinking how the world we live in can be more sustainable and equitable

The challenges of the 21st century will require a more inclusive collaborative approach, one which recognises the value of the knowledge systems and cultural practices of diverse communities. The perspectives of the Global South and it’s diasporas will be a vital part of rethinking how the world we live in can be more sustainable and equitable.
The conversation was led by:

cave_bureau’s research and exhibition programmes fall under what they call The Anthropocene Museum, where they curate discursive architectural events of resistance across many environments of natural beauty, commonly within caves such as along the Great Rift Valley, the capital city Nairobi in Kenya, and in different parts of the world.

Lilah Benetti is an esteemed artist and filmmaker hailing from Naarm, has gained recognition for their groundbreaking work in projection art and film. Challenging Western norms and exploring pre-colonial gender expression within cross-cultural queer identities, Lilah’s innovative projection art installations bring visibility and representation to marginalized voices in public spaces, disrupting the status quo and advocating for social change.

Dr Kelum Palipane is Lecturer in Architectural Design at the Faculty of Architecture Building and Planning, University of Melbourne. Through her research and teaching she advocates for, and foregrounds epistemic diversity in architecture by drawing on culturally specific knowledge systems and interdisciplinary research methods including creative ethnography.

Dhiwayo Architecture event hosting, architect discussing designs, professional building presentation, urban design discussion, architecture conference image.

Modern office meeting with diverse professionals discussing architecture design.

Innovative architecture discussion at Dhliwayo Architecture event with diverse panelists and creative background.

Sustainable Modalities (28th May 2023)

We have obligations to ensure we engage with processes of restoration for a renewed relationship with the planet and each other.

We have obligations to ensure we engage with processes of restoration for a renewed relationship with the planet and each other. As we continue to make design decisions that minimise waste through circular economies, we are also focused on the social health of communities and their longevity through equity and inclusion. The conversation was led by:

Jocelyn Chiew an Architect, Landscape Architect and Urban Designer. Director City Design, at the City of Melbourne (in 2023), she played a key role in creating inclusive and enduring public spaces. Jocelyn led the city’s Design Excellence Program and is Deputy Chair of the Melbourne Design Review Panel.

Alberto Kritzler Ring Harvard Loeb fellow, is a Mexican developer committed to responsible land transformation practices and passionate about how city making can improve communities’ wellbeing. He co-founded Reurbano, an adaptive reuse development company with three premises: to reuse existing buildings, reactivate the street-level, and rethink ways of living, working, and moving through cities.

Kelvin Mureithi is a seasoned Environmental Sustainable Design (ESD) Engineer and an RMIT University alumnus. In 2018, he founded Makao Group, a Melbourne-based firm known for its expertise in building performance and enclosure, climate adaptation and resilience, and waste management.

Thoughtful man speaking at a panel discussion on architecture and design solutions.

Women speaking at a panel discussion about architecture and design at Dhliwayo Architecture event.

Intersectional Gender Equity (28th May 2023)

Embracing the diverse experiences that come with intersectionality will be critical in building more inclusive, safer, healthier communities.

Gender inequity is compounded by factors such as age, ethnicity, geography, sexuality, disability and socio-economics. Embracing the diverse experiences that come with intersectionality will be critical in building more inclusive, safer and healthier communities. This conversation was led by:

Natalia Dopazo, Harvard Loeb fellow, is an Argentinian feminist born in Buenos Aires. She has been the infrastructure of care program coordinator at the National Ministry of Infrastructure and professor of urban planning at the School of Architecture, Design and Urbanism in the University of Buenos Aires. Natalia is a senior advisor on gender affairs for urban design, management and procedures in projects, public tenders and participatory methodologies for governments and multilateral agencies

Priyanka Ashraf is a Muslim woman from Bangladesh who previously worked as a lawyer before transitioning into technology and entrepreneurship in establishing The Creative Co-Operative, or The CCO. The CCO is the first 100% Woman of Colour owned, led and operated social enterprise in Australia working to close the intersectional and intergenerational wealth gap by leveraging technology to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, Black and Women of Colour in building shared economic power and improving access to mental health and wellbeing.

Nicole Kalms is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Art Design and Architecture and founding director of the Monash University XYX Lab which leads national and international research in Gender and Place. The innovation of Kalms’ research is the examination of digital, experiential, political and material interventions collated to articulate both the shared and conflicted struggles of women and girls internationally.

XYX Lab is a team of experienced design researchers exploring gender-sensitive design practices and theory. Their work operates at the intersection of gender, identity, urban space and advocacy. Through our research, we bring together planners, policy makers, local government and stakeholders to make tangible the experiences of underrepresented communities in urban space and planning.