Jury citation
A holocaust museum’s content is sensitive, and the building’s design must be approached in the right way. Here, the method is one of absolute consistency, from the strong cohesive urban form to the exhibition spaces and their connecting circulation areas.
The street facade is made from glass and clay bricks woven together, expressing the functions within and culminating in a large lantern. The new building is cast snugly over the existing heritage facade, and the two elements work beautifully together. Their combination yields a building that has gravitas and humanity, and it represents an innovative approach to the integration of heritage fabric. Courtyards, terraces and skylights bring light into the building’s depths. These gestures skilfully integrate opportunities for landscape and sculpture throughout.
Internally, the exhibition spaces and function rooms are connected by a timber-lined common space that extends the full length of the building. Natural light floods in from the glass-block facade and the large skylight above. This simple, warm space is a comforting adjunct to the immersive exhibition spaces, which are at times confronting. The details are rigorous and pared back, granting a calm order and elegance. From outside to within, this building is perfectly positioned as a sophisticated and appropriate place to tell the stories of the Jewish community.
Melbourne Holocaust Museum is located in Elsternwick, Victoria on Boonwurrung Country and will be reviewed in an upcoming issue of Architecture Australia.
Project credits
Architect: Kerstin Thompson Architects; Project team: Kerstin Thompson, Kelley Mackay, Claire Humphreys, Tobias Pond, Anne-Claire Deville, Martin Allen, Hilary Sleigh, Jasmine Placentino, Tamsin O’Reilly, Sophia Nicholaou, Karina Piper, Ben Pakulsky, Scott Diener, Lauren Garner, Paul Lau, Thomas Huntingford, Leonard Meister; Builder: McCorkell Constructions; Project manager: DPPS Projects; Civil and structural engineer: Adams Consulting Engineers; Services consultant: Cundall; Building surveyor: PLP; Land surveyor: Hellier McFarland; Landscape consultant: Tract; Traffic consultant: One Mile Grid; Heritage consultant: Bryce Raworth Conservation and Heritage; Acoustic consultant: Cundall; Town planner: SJB Planning; Fire engineer: Focused Fire Engineering; Quantity surveyor: Napier and Blakely; Waste management: Leigh Consulting; Facade engineer: Inhabit; DDA consultant: Before Compliance; Wayfinding/signage consultant: Pop and Pac; Exhibition designer: Thylacine; Memorial designer: Jolson Architecture and Interiors; Security consultant: Michelson Protech Security, CSG Security, M.I.P. Security (Israel).
