Adjaye Associates in collaboration with contemporary aboriginal artist Daniel Boyd have unveiled their vision for a new public plaza and community building in Sydney, Australia. Conceived as a ‘found place’ offering sanctuary from the busy metropolis, the project consists of a new public square, community building and feature artwork in the form of a 27 x 34 m canopy that shelters the plaza below.
Referencing the dwellings of Australia’s early European settlers, the new public building will take the form of a pitched roof house with fluted exterior cladding, a symbol of shelter and respite in the context of the city’s busy streetscape. It is expected to be used as a flexible, multipurpose space with room for an open plan cafe, meeting spaces, gallery, and garden terrace. Adjaye stated that he hoped the space would become a “place for people to connect, recharge, reflect and take a pause from the rhythm of a fast-transforming city.”
Boyd’s monumental perforated steel sculpture will jut out above the building and adjacent plaza, filtering light onto the public space below through multiple-sized apertures inspired by Aboriginal dot paintings. Nearly 20 meters tall and with only minimal support, Boyd’s structure visually appears as a ceiling to an outdoor living room.
“Rooted in lost history, the new Sydney Plaza is about the meaning of place, heritage, and identity,” stated a recent press release. “An attempt to uncover, layer, and celebrate the Eora origins of this part of coastal Sydney, the project is about the reconciliation of cultures…and aims to articulate dialogue around the complex relationship colonizers have to their indigenous communities.”
The project is anticipated to be completed by 2022.
