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Forum to debate architecture, culture and climate
In a new twist, an upcoming architecture and culture debate isnt focused on the
rivalry between Melbourne and Sydney. A public forum at RMIT Capitol Theatre on
Thursday, 11 November, from 6pm to 7.30pm presented by RMIT Gallery will
discuss why Melbourne and Berlin are regarded as the cultural capitals of their
countries.
Richard Blythe, Professor of Architecture, Head of the School of Architecture and
Design at RMIT University, and Director of Terroir, is part of a distinguished panel
of international and local architects to ask can architecture be considered as a
base as well as a source of inspiration? Can a city, a suburb or a single building be
a pioneer for cultural formation?
Peter Mares, presenter of The National Interest, will host the forum, which will be
broadcast on ABC Radio Nationals Big Ideas. He will be joined by Jürgen Mayer
H., Visiting Professor at Columbia University, New York, and Director of Jürgen
Mayer H., Berlin; Claudia Perren, Architect, Curator, and Lecturer for Design,
Architectural Theory and History, Sydney and Berlin; Shelley Penn, Director of
Shelley Penn Architects; and John Wardle, Director of John Wardle Architects,
Melbourne.
Questions about the roles that architecture, climate, infrastructure and finance play
in urban strategies are ones that Ms Perren considers vital in town planning.
She singles out Jürgen Mayer H. architects design for a unique apartment house
at Johannisstraße in Mitte, Berlin's downtown district, being built by property
development group Euroboden. This reinterprets the classic Berliner Wohnhaus
with its multi-unit structure, varying floorplans and layouts that indicate a number of
housing options, as well as a green interior courtyard.
Berlins urban block structure supported a mix of people and uses from the
beginning; I do not think it works the same way in Melbourne, Ms Perren said.
Big Ideas Forum Hotspots: Culture, Climate and Architecture in Berlin and
Melbourne. Cost: $10 concession/ $15 full price. Tickets must be bought before
the event. Call RMIT Gallery on (03) 9925 1717.
This public program event is presented in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut
Australien and the initiative Future Proofing Property as part of Berlin Dayz, the
German-Australian Arts Festival, and the European design exhibition Somewhat
Different: Contemporary Design and the Power of Convention, RMIT Gallery 1
October 13 November. Developed by the Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (IfA).
For interviews, contact Evelyn Tsitas, RMIT Gallery media coordinator, on
9925 1716 or 0418 139 015.
Image: JOH 3 - Apartmenthouse Johannisstraße 3, Berlin, by Jürgen Mayer H.
Architects. (See second sheet of release.)
27 October, 2010
MEDIA
ALERT
University
Communications
View RMIT media
releases and
find experts:
rmit.edu.au/newsroom
MELBOURNE
BRUNSWICK
BUNDOORA
FISHERMANS BEND
POINT COOK
HAMILTON
HO CHI MINH CITY
HANOI