'Rich, robust and refined' building wins Sydney design excellence competition

Carter Williamson Architects with Land and Form have won a design excellence competition for a mixed-used apartment building in Sydney. The successful scheme has embraced a material palette inspired by the angophora tree that the building will eventually envelop.

The building, fittingly named the Angophora, will be built on Cammeray Country in Chatswood.

The jury commended the design, variety, and size of the proposed residences, as well as the intention to create a community of homes rather than repetitive apartment modules.

Influenced by its context, the project encapsulates a series of strategic moves that define the landscape, building forms, and public areas while optimising natural light and solar access, cross-ventilation, district views, and lush green communal spaces.

At the streel level, retail and commercial spaces seek to activate the public domain, while above, the structure emerges as two towers splitting from a singular, united podium. This split allows for natural light and cross-ventilation throughout the building core. Additionally, landscaped communal spaces are located on the podium, surrounding the towers.

"We're delighted to have our design recognised by the jury, and I would like to congratulate our design partners: Land and Form, Prism Facades, and Choirender," said Shaun Carter, principal at Carter Williamson Architects.

Drawing on the colours and textures of the angophora tree around which the design unfurls, the architecture practice describes the building's material palette as "rich, robust, and refined."

Ben Peake, principal at Carter Williamson Architects, explained, "the podium design draws on the character of the adjacent heritage conservation area. It is composed of brick to form a robust and texturally rich podium that is striking from afar but also works at a fine grain scale when experienced by the public up close."

In collaboration with Land and Form, designing with Country was a priority from the outset, as was the activation of streets and open spaces with public art. Landscape design was approached as a complete ecology to support all living things, with a focus on native planting and the maximisation of deep soil, tree canopy, and landscape coverage. The design incorporates a series of green communal spaces to achieve this design intention.

The winning team is comprised of Carter Williamson Architects, Land and Form, Prism Facades, and Choirender.