WEST KOWLOON

CULTURAL DISTRICT
A COX ARCHITECTURE SHOWCASE
Culture civilises a society, reflecting its key ideas and values, and expressing
a unique identity which drives its social, cultural and economic
development. No place better exemplifies this than Hong Kong, with its
uniquely vibrant blend of East-West culture.

At the heart of every great contemporary city is a dynamic and innovative

cultural, arts and entertainment precinct which concentrates creative
activity, together with technological, intellectual and commercial
innovation, drawing local and international audiences and patrons whilst
inspiring future developments.

As one of the world’s largest cultural quarters, the West Kowloon Cultural
District will blend art, culture and entertainment facilities to form an
intensely engaging public realm transforming the life and economy of this
important civic precinct and enhancing Hong Kong’s international standing.

COX has been at the forefront of the typological evolution of arts and
cultural venues in Asia and Australia for the past twenty-five years, having
designed and completed art and cultural event facilities in Singapore, Kuala
Lumpur, Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Canberra
and Cairns.

Our team understands that the West Kowloon Cultural District’s success
will be driven by the creation of a dynamic, contemporary ‘experience
economy’ attracting the broad community and enabling individuals and
families to gather in order to pursue interests, to shop, to eat, to attend
commercial events and performances, or to simply participate in an ever-
changing tableau of public life.

We understand that the ‘experience economy’ must be designed with a

deep knowledge of how to generate an inclusive, engaging and connected
public life. Consequently, our design approach seeks to enable major public
facilities and arts and cultural venues, and the public spaces in-between,
to function as ‘event platforms’ to enhance their potential occupation and
use by patrons or the public generally. It is our belief that ‘event platforms’
provide the essential ‘social glue’ which activates public places promoting
wider occupation and use, stimulating a journey through the space and
creating memorable experiences and unexpected encounters.
From the COX perspective, a successful arts-culture-entertainment
precinct, which typically comprises a mix of building types hosting multiple
events and activities, must have the capacity to adapt and evolve according
to unexpected circumstances or changing needs. Consequently, COX
creates arts-culture-entertainment precincts to attract and accommodate
a myriad of formal events including music, dance, drama, recital, circus
performance and conventions as well as spontaneous and informal public
use. Our extensive record of successful national and international projects
confirms that this approach ensures a precinct’s economic success and its
continuing integration into the public life of its community.

Our evidence-based design approach reflects a deep appreciation of

place and how it affects the lives of individuals and communities; and how
places are occupied and used by the public. We continually explore new
ways to enrich and invigorate environments in order that they can sustain
healthy and inclusive communities. We recognise that new environmental
imperatives are emerging constantly, together with the exponential
transformation of digital technologies, generating a need to rethink the
value and purpose of physical environments to create opportunities for
individuals to be actively engaged in a vibrant civic life.

For over 40 years COX has prioritised public realm projects which enhance
city life and has undertaken significant civic Master Planning projects. In
addition, we have been involved in some of Melbourne’s major precinct
feasibility studies, business cases and master plans including the Melbourne
Cricket Ground Rail Deck Feasibility and Business Case (2015), Federation
Square Riverside Master Plan (2012) and Melbourne and Olympic Parks
Master Plan (2010).

As longstanding designers of transformational civic projects and arts and

cultural centres, and with an experienced and multi-disciplinary design
team committed to the project, COX are pleased to submit our expression
of interest for the exciting West Kowloon Cultural District Project and
welcome the opportunity to contribute creatively to Hong Kong’s continuing
development, prosperity and its rich public life.
ARTS
WALTZING MATILDA CENTRE
The Waltzing Matilda Centre is a unique and direct response to
a quintessentially outback landscape and to a very Australian
song. It is also a tribute to the robust and resourceful people
that live in this remote and harsh but beautiful landscape which
originally inspired the ballad of Waltzing Matilda. The new
centre is a restorative facility, occupying the site with a new and
richly experiential form, one which will allow the past and future
stories to be told of the people and landscape that make up this
distinct location in Winton, Australia

AWARDS
• 2019 Australian Interior Design Awards, Public Design,
National Winner
• 2019 Australian Interior Design Awards, Best of State –
Commercial Design, QLD
CAIRNS PERFORMING
ARTS CENTRE
Cairns, in far north Queensland, is the international tourism
base for accessing the renowned Great Barrier Reef. The city
itself, however, misses out on tourism vitality and the focus on
reef tourism has left the city without cultural or community
facilities of any substance.

The Cairns Cultural Centre is designed to fulfil both needs.

While the brief was for a 1500 seat theatre to attract
international performances and a museum to showcase
the region’s cultural diversity, it lacked a place for the city’s
community to gather and for its arts companies to work and
perform.

Our approach is to connect the theatre and museum by a

canopied multi-tiered plaza that enables community arts
life to flourish. The site we chose is a redundant port wharf
with an historic sugar shed which is designed to form part of
the museum. Between it and the theatre, the multiple tiers
create varied scale venues for community performances and
gatherings. Its canopy is based on the art of ‘crumplage’ and
gained community enthusiasm through a perceived analogy as
an abstraction of the rainforests that frame the city.

AWARDS
• Shortlisted in Future Projects – Culture, WAF 2015
QPAC REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT
This project is the first upgrade to Brisbane’s renowned
QPAC designed by Robin Gibson in the 1980s. While it has
proved durable, the main Lyric and Concert Theatres no
longer met technical needs and surveyed audience needs
for contemporary cultural performance. These issues were
exacerbated by discriminatory disability access and choice.
The challenge we undertook was to incorporate the major
technical changes and disability provisions while preserving
and enlivening the original character of the theatres.

The project encompasses complete state redevelopment,

new seating and levels, subtly integrated digital surround
systems, and re-articulation of the walls and ceilings to
improve acoustic performance. Comparison with the original
theatres demonstrates a preserved fabric and conceptual
intent while enhancing their performance and experience to
new audiences.

This aspect was critical to our concept. The theatres are also
distinguished aesthetically as distinct entities (as opposed
to previously), the Lyric darkened to intensify concentration
on plays, the Concert Hall brightened to enhance visual
participation in the symphonic experience.

The refurbishment has enabled QPAC to stage and the

Queensland public to enjoy the numerous performances,
both lyric and concert, that previously only went to
other Australian cities, especially those entailing digital
performance. The two distinctly different atmospheres
created greatly enhance the cultural experience of lyric and
concert performance, acknowledged widely by both major
performers and audiences.
 HER MAJESTY’S THEATRE
Her Majesty’s Theatre (HMT) is Adelaide’s oldest continually
operating theatre. Constructed in 1913, HMT will receive a
$66.2 million upgrade. COX Architecture are lead consultant
for the HMT Redevelopment Project, managing a multi-
disciplinary team through the design, documentation and
site administration phases.
Commissioned by the South Australian Government, COX
have worked in conjunction with DPTI, Arts SA and the
Adelaide Festival Centre Trust during the concept phase
to ensure that client vision was captured for the detail
design phase currently in progress. The HMT redevelopment
consists of approximately 8,000m² GFA over four levels.
Its design focuses on addressing the theatre’s existing
deficiencies and repositioning HMT as a contemporary viable
venue on the commercial circuit through:
• Increasing the auditorium capacity from 970 seats to
approximately 1,500 seats;
• Incorporating the adjacent building, 62 Grote Street into
the design which includes a new entrance
• Improving stage and back of house capabilities and
facilities to a benchmark standard for comparable
commercial
• Improving font of house patron experience including
integration into the surrounding leisure / markets /
Chinatown and precinct festivals;
• Ensuring universal access to the auditorium, all
amenities, Back and Front of House
 VIVID
We have established significant relationships that are in
tune with the broader ideas and attitudes within society
that we believe will enhance the thinking, creativity and
ethics of the Practice. This includes essential relationships
with our colleagues in related spheres, be they academics,
city planners, developers and other professions. At COX
we believe it is also vital to engage in broader debates and
more lateral stimuli. This has led to a range of enduring and
valued relationships with writers, artists, charities, theorists,
fashion designers and others – all of whom enhance our
Practice’s understanding of the world around us and
provide insights into the communities we serve. Ultimately,
this curiosity and these insights make us better Planners,
Architects and Interior Designers.
This is the second year of COX’s relationship with Vivid in
Sydney – a 23-day festival of light, music and ideas.
The festival features many of the world’s most important
creative industry forums, a free public exhibition of outdoor
lighting sculptures and installations and a cutting-edge
contemporary music program. Vivid Sydney is where art,
technology and commerce intersect and as such is a natural
fit for COX as a progressive practice focused on public life
and new typologies in architecture.
The COX ‘Vastitude’ installation provided Sydney’s people
with a mesmerising exhibition of light, colour and optical
illusion, powered by a powerful three-dimensional algorithm
to display something that is at once immediate and
aesthetic but also complex and mathematical. This software
is the very same the practice is using to collaborate with
clients and partners in a process that is both engaging and
‘live’ when exploring design scenarios.
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF
CIRCUS ART
Through the reinterpretation of the dialogue between the
performer and the entertainment stage the circus arts’
contemporary message is showcased through a simple
framework. The result is a facility which expresses the
potentialities of innovative training and performance
techniques.

Over-scaled backstage doors shout ‘Roll Up, Roll Up’, while

the contextually and theatrically inspired blue glass ribbon
playfully signifies the visual tag of the street and institution,
flowing and dancing across the façade of the building and
the community’s subconscious identity. The project involved
the construction of new training and performance spaces as
an expansion of NICA’s existing facilities.

The design and briefing process extended to include a

master plan for the precinct that included a performance
and training space with an 800-seat capacity, movement
and drama studios, a multi-purpose foyer space to support
public performance and exhibition, an outdoor performance/
public gathering space and associated ancillary spaces.
Flexible and efficient structural design was required to
support numerous rigging configurations and catwalk
systems to enable the facility to attract and conduct a
myriad of events. Simple operational systems have been
designed so operation and maintenance can occur with
minimal professional oversight, maintaining accessibility to
the broadest possible range of users and promoting genuine
community engagement.
CULTURE
NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM
OF CHINA, TIANJIN
The design of the National Maritime Museum of China
originated in an international competition staged in 2013.
The competition was unusual in that it involved progressive
feedback sessions with the finalists, some individual and
some combined, the process taking eight months.
The museum is sited on a bay in the port city of Tianjin, to
the east of Beijing. It is designed to reach out into the bay
from a large waterfront parkland, behind which a new city
district called Binhai is being developed.
The plan comprises five linear pavilions that fan out
and cantilever over the water from a central arrival and
interpretation hall. This hall provides access to the upper of
two exhibition levels. Below it, the collections stores enable
artefacts to be taken radially out to each of the lower
exhibition levels.
Three of the hall pavilions have specific themes — World
Maritime Civilisation, Chinese Maritime Culture, and Oceans
and Nature. The World Maritime and Chinese Maritime halls
are interconnected so that visitors have the opportunity
to understand and interpret China’s maritime evolution in
relation to events in Europe, America, and wider Asia.
A fourth hall contains a historic vessel visible from the park,
and the fifth hall has four levels comprising public education,
research and administration sections. Apart from functional
resolution, a reason for distinctly articulating the halls was
to impart visual permeability from the city to the bay. A
second reason was to create a series of forms that seem to
flow between the parkland and the bay as a piece of land
art. As the design evolved several metaphors emerged —
corals, starfish, jumping carp, sea anemones, moored ships
in port, an open hand reaching out from China to the world.
None were meant to be literal but nevertheless evocative
of the museum, and we allowed some to influence various
elements, such as the ribbed structure and shimmering
metallic roof tiles.
To finesse the design, we built physical models of the
whole and of details, concurrent with parametric computer
modelling. The physical models focused on human scale and
interaction while the algorithmic models helped solve the
doubly curved structure and cladding system. The major
energy source for the 80,000m2 building is geothermal,
drawn from 100 metres below ground.
AWARDS
• Future Project of the Year World Architecture Festival
(WAF) 2013
AUSTRALIAN AGE OF DINOSAURS
MUSEUM, WINTON
This project is located on top of a remote mesa in far north
Queensland in outback Australia.
It was created as a visitor centre for people to witness
first-hand one of the world’s most significant and cohesive
dinosaur collections and it is remarkable for two reasons.
The first is its gestation. Twelve years ago, a cattle grazier
David Elliott accidentally stumbled on 100 million year
old dinosaur fossils while mustering cattle. Since then, he
has become Australia’s leading palaeontologist who has
engaged Winton’s whole community in the excavating,
assembly and conservation of large dinosaurs. Through
these operations, Winton’s fragile farming economy has
been transformed.
The second is its making. So enthralled were we by the
phenomenon, we agreed to design it pro-bono, with the
Elliott family and community to build it. They asked only
that the Centre captures the essence of the ancient
landscape and entices visitation by its forms and spaces.
The building is designed to unfold from the mesa, tapering
back down to it. It is composed of only two materials –
multiple large interlocking precast concrete panels imbued
with the texture and colour of the red earth, and hand-
made perforated iron screens.
The architecture is inspired by the site’s deep rock fissures.
Its plan is a journey from a narrow entry aperture to a
spatial sequence that fans out to embrace the alluvial
dinosaur plane below. Through this project, we evolved a
new Australian architectural ethos of evolving from the
landscape.
AWARDS
• State Award for Public Architecture, AIA QLD 2013
• J.W. Wilson Building of the Year Award, AIA QLD
Central Queensland 2013
• Queensland State Award, CCAA 2013
• Kevin Cavanagh Medal for Excellence in Concrete, CIA
2013
• Shortlisted in the World Architecture Festival 2012
OMAN MUSEUM OF PAST
AND PRESENT
The Royal Court Affairs, Royal Estates in Oman, is
committed to the delivery of a new world-class destination
in Oman. Located at Nizwa, the crossroads of Oman, the
new Renaissance Museum Project will be a cultural and
educational complex for all Omanis and all visitors to Oman.

The purpose of the Renaissance Museum is to tell the story

of Oman from prehistory to the present day, with a focus
on the period of Renaissance since 1970, during which Oman
has experienced a sustained period of development and
transformation under the leadership of H.M. Sultan Qaboos.
The Renaissance has heralded remarkable economic,
technological and political advance and social change.

It is anticipated that the Oman Renaissance Museum will

reflect the same spirit of enterprise that has characterised
the Renaissance Era and will become a destination that has
the capacity to inspire, engage and educate. It is intended
that the Museum will become a focus for the celebration
of Oman and of being Omani. More particularly, the Oman
Renaissance Museum should instil in young Omanis a sense
of belonging and pride in their country and its achievements.

The Renaissance Museum will have a voice that distinguishes

it as a ‘must see’ for residents and domestic and
international visitors alike, igniting the imagination and
curiosity of all visitors; in this achievement, a host of wider
direct and indirect benefits will follow.

The Museum offers an extraordinary narrative from which

to forge a plane of great worth and gravitas. The proposal is
centred on creating a unique journey – a set of experiences
like no other, and a place of memories and celebration. The
concept fundamentally works with this wonderful landscape
to craft a museum of stunning individuality; bred out of the
very earth of Oman. It harmonises the awe and might of
the landscape with the stories of human enlightenment and
achievement.
SIR JOHN MONASH CENTRE
To the east of the 1938 Edwin Lutyens-designed memorial
to the Australians who fell in the nearby fields during World
War I, a new feature has been added.
On Wednesday 25th of April 2018, ANZAC day, the
Australian Government opened the new immersive museum
experience, the Sir John Monash Centre. This new facility
is sensitively arranged and complements, in terms of both
its form and function, the existing Australian National
Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux in France. It is designed by
COX Architecture with Williams, Abrahams, Lampros.
A primary objective for the design is the way in which it
complements Lutyens’ unifying geometry. COX Director Joe
Agius explains that ““the design of the centre is carefully
placed ‘within’ the overarching site geometry as set out
by Edwin Lutyens in the original memorial design, this
geometry dictates the placement of the building and its
proportioning.” The intervention in and around the site
respects and enhances the landscape values of the site, by
remaining below the height of the Wall of the Memorial and
below the natural ground level for the ancillary buildings on
the site.”
The centre can be described as a “landscape solution,” with
the building hidden from view underneath the elevated
French meadow – a meadow which now becomes the roof
of the building. “It is intended to be very much secondary,
ancillary and subservient to the monument,” said Tim
Williams. “It’s almost an anti-building, connected to the
monument from an abstract and geometric point of view.”
The Sir John Monash Centre will have an educational
purpose for visitors, most of whom will be European. It will
tell the story of Australia’s role on the Western Front in the
First World War, where 290,000 Australians served. In many
cases this education is delivered from a first-person and
highly personal perspective, using memoirs and belongings
from serving soldiers themselves.
EXHIBITION
KAOHSIUNG EXHIBITION CENTRE
COX Architecture won this project through an international
design and build competition. The project is part of a large
harbour redevelopment within the city.

Key to the design solution is the introduction of a public

street that links the city to the waterfront, through the
centre of the facility.

The design concept reflects the city’s strong relationship

with the sea. In keeping with the city’s sustainability
initiatives, a large number of advanced environmental
components are contained within the building.

The building plan reflects the new hybrid centre and

combines exhibition and convention in a single integrated
facility. This combination plans to improve the centres
flexibility in hosting a large variety of events and conventions
simultaneously.

The exhibition component has 1,100 indoor ground floor

stands and 400 outdoor stands. The convention component
accommodates 2,000 delegates and is located on the first
floor. The basement includes full cook chill catering facilities
plus associated service and equipment rooms.

Public access is provided on site for 6 coaches, 12 taxis,

300 cars and 850 motorcycles.
AWARDS
• Chinese Institute of Engineers 2014
INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION
CENTRE DURBAN ARENA
After seven years of a globally successful operation the
Durban International Convention Centre was under pressure
to expand. It had successfully attracted more than the
estimated one million tourists into the city delivering on its
primary objective to generate economic multipliers.
To protect this business, a development brief was written
to add an indoor Arena for hosting major indoor sporting
and entertainment events and accommodating large
conventions.

The design team which was given the specific brief to

respect the original award winning building. The design team
led by COX developed a form that coalesced sympathetically
with the original yet met the stringent functional needs for
a multipurpose arena. This required a careful understanding
of sightlines, sports formats and codes along with musical
concert configuration as well as the complex engineering to
enclose the internal spaces.

The new arena can accommodate up to 6000 spectators for

various event configuration all of which were documented
as part of the design concept. In addition to the arena the
project concept also included for meeting two double storey
meeting pods and the need to create a new public space for
the city. The urban space is intended to be an all day activity
space for free use by the public. This space and the meeting
pods are part of the next phase of the building and will
creates a large covered public space to be known as
“ African Square”.

AWARDS
• South African Institute Of Architects 2000
BRISBANE CONVENTION AND
EXHIBITION CENTRE
The Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre is divided
into 5 x 5000m² exhibition spaces with a main auditorium
accommodating up to 4,000 delegates. Maximum design
flexibility is obtained through a system of hinged seating
tiers and operable walls, giving a variety of sizes of flat and
floor and/or raked seating configurations in the same area.
Meeting rooms surround a three level high atrium space
giving visibility between the lower levels and the railway
plaza.

The form of the centre is derived from a series of five

hyperbolic paraboloid roofs from which large folded
plate verandah roofs are extended to protect pedestrian
accessways. A large plaza extends over a main railway line
on which some building components are located, principally
a ballroom accommodating 2,500 guests. This presented
the design team with a number of constraints, in particular
acoustic and vibration issues as the main auditorium space
functions as a theatre.
AWARDS
• Australian Engineering Excellence Awards 1996
• Royal Australian Institute of Architects QLD Chapter 1996
• Australian Institute of Steel Construction Queensland 1995
• BHP (Bluescope Steel) Steel Awards 1995
SINGAPORE EXPO

Won in an international design competition, Singapore

EXPO was strongly influenced by the Brisbane Convention +
Exhibition Centre, completed three years earlier, both being
designed in conjunction with ARUP.

EXPO is 2.5 times larger, comprising six clear-span exhibition

halls each 100 metres long and wide. To reduce the impact
of its 600 metre length, the plan forms an arc facilitating
visibility of the halls from a central space. This space is
covered by a continuous louvred canopy of perforated
aluminium that permits filtered daylight and facilitates
outdoor exhibitions.

The building's vaulted roofs and expressed structure were

designed to reflect the character of several large old
industrial buildings in the Changi context. A remarkable
aspect of the roof structures was that each 10,000 square
metre frame erected on the exhibition floor was raised into
position in an eight hour period.
KUALA LUMPUR
CONVENTION CENTRE (KLCC)

The Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre has been designed

as an international convention and exhibition centre to
attract and conduct large regional and international
standard conventions, related trade shows and large public
exhibitions.

The convention centre consists of both convention and

exhibition facilities comprising a 3,000-seat plenary hall, a
500-seat auditorium, ballrooms, meeting rooms, 4 exhibition
halls and food and beverage/retail areas. The convention
centre building also incorporates the podium structure
for the 576-room hotel, with the accommodation tower
designed and built under separate contract.
CAIRNS CONVENTION CENTRE
This project was won in a selected design competition
for a 2,400 seat convention centre and a 7,000m² exhibition
centre, to be constructed in two phases. The competition
brief also required a master planning concept for the
riverside urban renewal area located at one end of the
centre.

An undulating curved roof was developed as a means

of terminating the riverside redevelopment. This curve
is achieved using a folded plae structure enabling the
roof geometry to change from an orthogonal form to a
fan-shape. Unlike previous public buildings, the structure
is formed from a combination of steel and laminated
plantation timber, producing a more crafted architecture
that responds to environmental issues.

The Stage 2 Exhibition Centre, was designed a an exhibition

centre/basketball stadium with retractable seating, allowing
clear span exhibition space or seating for 5,800.

The Cairns Convention Centre has been ranked in the top

ten international meeting venues in the world in a survey
undertaken by North America’s leading meetings industry
publishing company.

AWARDS
• BHP (Bluescope Steel) Steel Awards 2000
• Royal Australian Institute of Architects
QLD Chapter 1997
• Metal Building Awards 1997
• BHP (Bluescope Steel) Steel Awards 1997
Dulux Colour Awards 1997
ENTERTAINMENT
LUSAIL MULTI-PURPOSE HALL
The Lusail Multi Purpose Hall was developed by the Qatar
Olympic Committee to host the 2015 International Handball
Federation (IHF) World Championships. It was also a key
venue in Doha’s bid for the 2020 Olympic Games.
A building of advanced technology and sustainability
initiatives, the venue is required to comply with the
related international federations’ regulations, in particular
Basketball, Volleyball and Handball.
The concept is inspired by the graphics of Islamic ceramics
and mosaics using bright colours and results in a curved
form that is unique and exciting, yet identifiable with the
local culture.
The undulating form maintains a regular centre dome
consistent with Islamic architecture.
The central arena has a regular structural system spanning
across to form a dome. The roofs of the surrounding
concourse spaces and lobbies would be free flowing shell
shapes, rising to signal the key internal areas and entries.
The roof panels would be opaque at roof level. Glass panels
and screens would increase as the outer form turns into
walls and reach the ground.
The venue includes:
• Relevant training and warm up facilities for Basketball,
Volleyball and Handball
• 65 x 50 metre event floor to suit a wide range of uses
• 16,000 fixed seats in the arena, plus a further 3,000
retractable seats for flexibility of formats
• Flexibility to host events such as concerts, exhibitions,
convention and indoor entertainment such as ice shows
and motocross
• LED lighting incorporated into the junction points of the
wall and roof panels
• Extensive hospitality areas for the public and VIP’s
WELLINGTON ARENA
Drawing on cultural elements and its proximity to the
Wellington waterfront, the design uses sculptural timber
structural elements to develop a flexible, and iconic indoor
entertainment and sporting venue which will truly improve
the city and region.Located over the railway airspace
between Wellington Train Station and Westpac Stadium,
the arena creates a series of activated spaces between the
three facilities to enhance a currently underused pedestrian
concourse from the train station to the existing stadium.
QUDOS ARENA
Qudos Arena is a wholly enclosed, fully air conditioned arena
with seating for up to 20,000 people – the largest indoor
space in the Southern Hemisphere. It has been designed
as a completely flexible entertainment and sports facility
permitting a diverse range of performances from basketball
to ice hockey, rock concerts to circuses.
The Complex also includes a separate warm-up court,
capable of holding up to 1,000 spectators, which can
operate independently from the main foyer as a function
and exhibition space. The adjoining carpark, with space for
3,500 cars, is the largest parking structure in the Southern
Hemisphere.
The facility has been reaslised as a long, horizontal and
translucent building, scaled to unify with a lightweight
verandah structure that wraps around two sides of the
dome. Because the scale of the Superdome can only be
appreciated from one location, a system of tall mast
structures, visible from all surrounds, was developed around
the stadium, like a coronet.
AWARDS
• IOC/IAKS Awards - International
Olympic Committee + International
Association for Sports and Leisure
Facilities 2003
• BHP (Bluescope Steel) Steel Awards
2000
• National Bankisia Environmental
Awards 1999
As a result the total complex appears delicate and
permeable, in contrast to typically solid indoor sports
centres.
The appearance is accentuated by a thin line of cantilevered
and free-standing colonnade edges that are supported by
fine, tree-column structures. The cable-suspended, truss
roof system appears equally delicate, yet spans 150 by
120 metres.
Qudos Arena was Australia’s first major building to be
designed and constructed to Ecologically Sustainable
Development guidelines, and being a first for Australia, it
required innovation in design and construction to ensure
that requirements were met. This included energy efficient
lighting, a dual water system maximising the use of recycled
water and significant reductions in PVC usage.
Stats: 70,420m2 site, 18,920m3 footprint, 7 levels (4
spectator) seating for 20,977 including 3,000 on prestige
club level and 1,200 in 56 suites; carpark (105,000m2)
vehicle capacity 3,500.
IOC/IAKS Awards - Inter-
national Olympic Com-
mittee + International
Association for Sports
and Leisure Facilities
2003
BHP (Bluescope Steel)
Steel Awards 2000
National Bankisia Envi-
ronmental Awards 1999
 SINGAPORE:
ORCHARD ROAD REVITALISATION
Orchard Road is Singapore's premier
shopping district. COX was engaged
to revitalize the area, which comprises
over 800,000sqm of shopping and
entertainment facilities, a verdant lush
landscape and an enviable strategic
location. COX has sought to enhance these
qualities through a number of urban design
and landscaping interventions that will
invigorate its tropical and international
character.
Key to the approach is a recognition layered
morphological nature of each precinct: over
time the street has developed from a road
fronted by plantations and orchards to the
commercial character we know today. This
is reflected in the landscape theming of
Orchard Road's theatre distinct precincts:
Tanglin - Flowers; Orchard - Forest;
Somerset - Fruit.
Most significant to Orchard Road, especially
with respect to globally recognised "streets',
is its continuity of tree canopy.
Key urban design insertions proposed by
COX include:
• ‘Glass Shards’ covered ways to enhance
pedestrian experience
• Suite of street furniture and planting
within an overall landscape structure
• Celebrating Advertising as popular art
• Flower totems to act as gateways
• New event space/plaza spaces
• Sculptural structures
• LED lighting displays to act as gateways
at night
SINGAPORE:
MARINA BAY AND HELIX BRIDGE

COX have worked in

associaiton with Singaporean
architects Architects 61
over a number of high
profile projects to revitalise
the heart of Singapore:
inlding the Orchard Road
Revitalisation, the Civic
District – Public Realm
Master Plan and the Helix
Bridge at Marina Bay.
HOTELS &
RESORTS
 HYATT REGENCY
REDEVELOPMENT, SYDNEY
The 5-Star Hotel now owned by Hyatt
Regency is a redevelopment of the existing
Nikko Hotel site located within the Darling
Harbour precinct on a State Significant Site.
Maximising vistas over Darling Harbour
the 25 storey tower was carefully shaped
to frame the Market Street vista and
public domain of Pyrmont Bridge, the CBD
gateway, and mirrors the curved facade of
the existing Corn Exchange heritage building
directly adjacent.
The convention building at podium level has
a prominent façade addressing the Pyrmont
Bridge and Darling Harbour public domain.
It’s silhouette reinforces the horizontal
nature of the Western Distributor beneath
it while also activating the backdrop with
distinct sawtooth roof forms which resonate
the adjacent heritage roofs.
The design of the refurbished public domain
and entry areas on Sussex Street reveal
what is heritage and make distinct what
is contemporary through sensitive scaling,
design and material selections. The design
introduces a clear, safe and direct pedestrian
site through link connecting Sussex Street
to Darling Harbour for both public and hotel
patrons.
The design sensitively interfaces with the
four heritage buildings present on the site,
along with a demolition and refurbishment
design solution that addressed the
complexity of the existing building while also
maintaining the operation of the existing
hotel complex building during construction.
SHANGRI-LA’S TRADERS HOTEL
KUALA LUMPUR

The Shangri-La Traders Hotel, Kuala Lumpur

is a contemporary 4-star 576-room hotel in
the world-class KLCC precinct.

The Traders Hotel anchors and frames

the horizontal form of the neighbouring
convention and exhibition centre with
the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, providing
stunning views of KLCC Park and the iconic
PETRONAS Twin Towers.

Located to the eastern wing of the

convention centre, the hotel has been
configured into two wings. The tallest
wing runs parallel to the park boundary,
allowing for the most advantageous solar
orientation. Hotel rooms are oriented to
take advantage of the park views and to
minimize solar heat gain, which is assisted
by external blinds and sunscreens which also
create a textured façade.

Facilities include bar and restaurant areas, a

25m pool, gymnasium, business centre and
office space for administrative staff and
associated BOH amenities.

The level 33 Sky Bar is the hotel’s signature

recreation and entertainment level which
features a light-filled double-height space
with views to the park and the PETRONAS
Twin Towers.

The Traders Hotel is an exciting addition

to Kuala Lumpur, justifying the claim that
KLCC is one of the most important urban
spaces in the world.
 FOUR POINTS HOTEL
SHERATON EXPANSION, SYDNEY
The 4-star Four Points Hotel, Sheraton
is a redevelopment of the existing Nikko
Hotel site located within the Darling
Harbour precinct. The key challenge has
been designing a facility over the Western
Distributor Freeway system, one of the
busiest arterial roads in Sydney CBD.
The hotel expansion is designed to increase
the quantum of hotel accommodation in
Darling Harbour, with significantly improved
convention facilities, functionality for front
and back of house areas), public amenity
around the site, and the provision of a direct,
safe through-site link to Darling Harbour.
The proposed mixed-use 25 storey tower and
development will consist of:
• 231 new rooms (existing hotel has 696
refurbished rooms) and suites, in the
lower 14 levels of the tower
• commercial office space
• pgraded porte cochere, hotel lobby and
reception areas at the podium
• convention space with associated new
pre function areas and meeting rooms
• new back-of-house facilities and
meeting rooms to serve the convention/
ballroom functions
• new restaurant/bars on the ground floor
LONGITUDE 131°,
AYERS ROCK RESORT
Longitude 131° offers guests the ultimate way to experience
the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park in a self-contained
boutique hotel 2kms south-west of Ayers Rock Resort. The 15
hotel rooms are located on a remote, crescent-shaped dune
with uninterrupted views of Uluru.

Environmental protection of the dune flora and fauna during

both construction and occupation led to important design
decisions. For example, elevating the rooms on steel piles
leaves the sand untouched below and allows the rooms to be
removed or relocated. In addition, the rooms are accessed on
foot via a compacted earth path on the low side of the dune
to avoid the damaging the dune crest.

Each room is roofed in 3 layers of fabric. The outer layer is

a fly sheet in the traditional sense, providing shade and a
majority of weather protection, and shaped to evoke little
dunes. Below it are 2 layers forming a sealed cavity providing
thermal and acoustic insulation. The rooms are a simple
box plan, with a fully glazed south-facing wall making the
most of the expansive view. Sliding glass panels open half
the façade to embrace the external environment. The walls
diverge slightly to open the view still further. Ensuite facilities
are located to the rear with windows to provide glimpses
back to the dune as a reminder of the location.

The Adelaide Oval project includes significant sports

event planning and design components, including new TV
and Radio broadcast centres for both cricket and side on
sports, outside broadcast facilities, stadium operations,
commercial catering, security, service areas and back of
house logistics area. AFL Club areas include ‘state of the art’
warm up, training and recovery facilities with specialised
configurations for both the Adelaide and Port Adelaide
Football Clubs, in addition to separate visitor facilities.
 THE DARLING, SYDNEY
The Darling is a 5-star 171 room hotel
located within Pyrmont and an iconic
addition to the adjacent ‘The Star’
entertainment complex.
The project was secured through a
Department of Planning managed
architectural competition process.
The design clarifies and enhances public
movement at street level around and
through the hotel as well as through the
adjacent complex. Critically Pyrmont’s Union
Square is re-connected to Sydney harbour
and a key public transport interchange via
these urban manoeuvres.
The hotel lobby/atrium itself is treated
as a ‘through site’ link with dual entries –
encouraging public permeability and directly
linking the lobby to the darling harbour
entertainment precinct. The atrium contains
active uses including cafe, bars, restaurants
which enhance the public domain, encourage
public use and extend Union Street’s relaxed
café and bar activity.
The carefully scaled podium relates positively
to the surrounding historic streetscape via
its extensive, robust but contemporary use
of sandstone; while the tower presents a
positive and memorable form to Sydney
Harbour, and particularly in its iconic gesture
towards the Pyrmont Bridge pedestrian
approach from
the CBD.
AWARDS
• Best New Hotel Asia Pacific (Design
+ Construction), International Hotel
Awards, 2012
• Awards: Winner 2012, Best New Hotel
Asia Pacific (Construction & Design),
International Hotel Awards
The Shangri-La’s Fijian Resort and Spa is
located in a lush tropical setting in a unique
part of the world. The resort’s reputation is
synonymous with experiencing the best of what
Fiji has to offer as an exotic holiday destination,
complete with a resort spa complex, luxury
ocean and family-style lagoon bures, ballroom
convention centre, and golf and gym clubhouse.

Traditional and modern spa facilities combine

within the sheltering atmosphere of simple,
unhurried service to encourage wellbeing
and relaxation.
SHANGRI-LA’S
FIJIAN RESORT AND SPA
Set in the sub-tropical climes of the
Gold Coast, Sanctuary Cove is one of
Queensland’s major resort communities.
Cox was engaged to create a masterplan
to revitalise this vibrant and popular
destination. This process involved intensive
community consultation and was completed
with the endorsed recommendation to
totally redevelop the town centre, and
deliver a variety of residential products to
complement its stunning waterfront setting,
maximise the attraction of the Palms Golf
Course and function in the context of Water
Sensitive Urban Design.
We created a design language for
the residential component that was
contemporary and subtropical, optimising
views while providing naturally lit and
spacious internal volumes. This approach
also afforded visual connections between
floors, internally, and between interior
and exterior. Stage 1 of the residential
component features 16 terrace houses,
10 duplex houses and 36 apartment units.
SANCTUARY COVE,
GOLD COAST
TEAM
 COX SECTOR LEADERSHIP
Patrick Ness
Design Direction
Patrick is chair of the national
practice. This sits alongside
his role as Design Director of
the Melbourne office. Patrick
is responsible for the concept
design and design review of all
projects and is a member of
the Design Committee for COX
Architecture.
Patrick’s level of project
advocacy has been instrumental
in achieving high quality
outcomes for clients and project
stakeholders, as evidenced by
the AAMI Park stadium and the
Adelaide Oval Redevelopment
which had 80.3% of SACA
members vote in favour of
the proposal, resulting in the
securing of $450M in funds from
the State Government.
Patrick is focussed on working
collaboratively with clients and
stakeholders to provide spaces
that reflect and enrich culture,
diversity and civic life within
progressive and sustainable
environments.
Alastair Richardson
Sport + Entertainment
Alastair Richardson, Director of
COX Architecture, is one of the
preeminent sports architects
in Asia Pacific, designing and
delivering projects of global
significance which deliver a fans
first experience, while providing
enhanced revenue for owners
and operators.
His work has been recognised
internationally and locally
with numerous architectural
and industry awards. Alastair
is a regular contributor to
conferences and international
publications.
Of major stadia and arena in
Australia there are few that
have not had their planning or
development guided by Alastair.
Alastair is currently working
across Asia advising on venue
development to maximise fan
experience, precinct creation
and revenue development.
Through Alastair’s sport work
he has developed an acute
understanding of the strategic
thinking to assist clients and
Governments in the creation of
new developments that enhance
nation building and social
interaction.
Ian Sutter
Convention + Exhibition
Ian has over 30 years experience
in the design and delivery of
successful convention and
exhibition facilities within
Australasia, beginning with the
industry recognised Brisbane
Convention and Exhibition
Centre in 1993.
Since then, Ian has been
working with clients across a
broad range of delivery models
to provide convention and
exhibitions centres that present
state-of-the-art technology and
maximum flexibility within an
ever-changing and competitive
market.
Ian is also recognised for his
experience in the successful
delivery of hotels and resorts,
many of which have been
designed to support convention
and exhibition markets.
Ian is well versed in all aspects
of public building procurement
and has developed expertise
in brief development for the
current forums of public delivery
models, such as public private
partnerships. In addition to his
convention, exhibition, hotel and
resort experience, Ian has been
responsible for the successful
delivery of a range of project
types including community
and cultural, education and
workplace.
Brendan Gaffney
Culture + Comm
Brendan graduated
University of Queens
First Class Honours
joined COX Architect
and was appointed a
COX Architecture in
Brendan has worked
coordinating and de
architect on many si
public and civic proje
including Brisbane C
(BCC) New Farm Riv
Cairns Cityport Nort
Inlet Boardwalk and
Public Boardwalk at
Specifically in terms
infrastructure, Brend
been the design and
architect for the 199
generation of six Bri
terminals (New Farm
Mowbray Park, Sydn
Holman St, Riverside
and Regatta) follow
further two new upg
West End and Bulim
was followed by the
competition win for
project for BCC, mov
to detailed design de
recent completion w
which explored innov
related to flood resil
equitable access.
 COX’s sector leadership will provide peer
review to the WKCD team offering both design
excellence and safe hands.

y Lachlan Abercrombie Phil Rowe Brooke Lloyd

munity Planning + Urban Design Hotels + Living Interior Director

from the Lachlan is a Director at Philip joined COX Architecture Brooke has extensive experience
sland with COX and is responsible for in 1998, after graduating from across a broad range of design
in 1990. He overseeing the international Royal Melbourne University focussed, high profile
ture in 1997 and national urban design of Technology, with Honors. international projects in the
a director of and planning team in Sydney. Since this time he has worked residential, hospitality, cultural,
2007. Lachlan has substantial extensively throughout Australia commercial, education and
experience on major transport and Asia. He has extensive transportation sectors. Shortly
d as after graduating with distinction
and land use projects in NSW. hotel experience: currently in
esign in 2001 from QUT with a degree
He works on a variety of Melbourne he is working on
ignificant in Built Environment, Brooke
projects that seek to integrate a hotel within the Melbourne
ects relocated to London where she
strategic planning, land use, Square precinct and the
City Council worked for over 10 years.
traffic, transport and urban Shangri-La Melbourne. He has
verwalk,
design to deliver the best worked on hotels in Malaysia Her previous role with John
th Trinity
quality urban outcomes for all including the Traders Hotel McAslan + Partners, as Associate
d Allisee
walks of life, across all modes and Sheraton Desaru. This and Head of Interior Design,
t Hollywell.
of travel. expeerience is complemented included responsibility for the
s of public by his work in mutiresidential overall design direction across the
Lachlan is the Director of
dan has development and major sports practices interiors work and
Planning at COX and will be
d delivery facilities. He has been involved managing a team on a range of
assuming the role of discipline
99-2002 in major building infrastructure projects including the Kings Cross
leader and will be responsible
isbane ferry projects in the recent Station Redevelopment, Doha
for the daily management of Cultural Forum and the Al
m Park, development of Melbourne,
the land use, urban design and Jazeera Networks HQ in the
ney St, in particular AAMI Park, MCG
public domain outputs. Shard.
e Centre Redevelopment, Commonwealth
wed by a Lachlan’s primary role will be in Games village and master Having recently migrated back to
grades at undertaking the strategic land planning for Melbourne Australia, Brooke has taken the
mba. This use investigations, identifying Docklands and Federation mantle of Head of Interior Design
successful concepts for growth, identifying Square. in the Brisbane office and is
the D9FIS opportunities for realising the currently leading the fitout for
As a Design Director, Philip is
oving forward potential of transit-oriented Tatts Group and the revitalisation
responsible for the initiation
elivery and mixed-use developments on of Suncorp Stadium’s food and
of design concepts and the
with Aurecon government landholdings, beverage outlets.
ongoing monitoring and review
vative ideas testing the viability of various
of design development. He
lience and options, preparing the
has been responsible for the
“urgency” case, the integration
design and delivery of an award
of transport planning in to the
winning range of innovative
study.
projects.
WKCD TEAM
Alastair Richardson
Project Director
Alastair Richardson, Director of
COX Architecture, is one of the
preeminent sports architects
in Asia Pacific, designing and
delivering projects of global
significance which deliver a fans
first experience, while providing
enhanced revenue for owners
and operators.
His work has been recognised
internationally and locally
with numerous architectural
and industry awards. Alastair
is a regular contributor to
conferences and international
publications.
Of major stadia and arena in
Australia there are few that
have not had their planning or
development guided by Alastair.
Alastair is currently working
across Asia advising on venue
development to maximise fan
experience, precinct creation
and revenue development.
Through Alastair’s sport work
he has developed an acute
understanding of the strategic
thinking to assist clients and
Governments in the creation of
new developments that enhance
nation building and social
interaction.
Russell Lee Stuart Harper Richard Morre
Technical Director Senior Associate Design + Proje
Russell is one of the practice’s Stuart has been a key member Richard joined C
Directors for sports, leisure and of the COX Architecture team Architecture in 2
hospitality projects and has since joining in 2006 During this design and proje
specialised in these facilities for time, Stuart has demonstrated for several signif
over 25 years. He is recognised a versatility and competence realms, nature b
as a leader in his field having that have seen him successfully and sporting des
provided advice to clients on deliver on a range of large scale projects.
various projects. In addition projects of Civic importance.
Richard’s experie
to this, Russell operates in the
Stuart’s passion for designing designing landm
commercial and education
places has seen him specialise include the Eden
sectors, and is experienced in
in the area of Sports Stadiums, Cornwall, UK (lar
master planning.
community gathering spaces, rainforest in the
Russell’s primary role is to direct and key public transport nodes. The Savill Garde
projects within the office and Centre, UK (a pro
His particular skills in para-
report to clients from concept Queen in Windso
metric design and 3D concep-
through to completion. from locally fore
tualisation, combined with his
to form a grid sh
His experience also provides understanding of long-span,
Both projects aim
valuable assistance in brief lightweight structural systems
the visitor with in
development and feasibility give him a unique edge in the
structures and su
studies. concept design and detail devel-
landscapes.
opment phase of many of COX’s
He is responsible for many
innovative projects. An architect with
of the firm’s innovative
understanding o
sports and community Keen to be exposed to interna-
quality design ou
leisure facilities including the tional excellence, Stuart recently
projects both int
Sydney International Athletic spent 6 months on exchange
and within Austr
Stadium; the 1998 Asian in the United States with a
well developed s
Games Aquatic and Athletic strategic partner firm working
with complex bu
facilities in Bangkok; and in the Sports and Entertainment
and diverse stak
the entertainment/sports sector.
whilst working w
complex, Sydney Superdome at
teams across all
Homebush Bay. His most recent
projects from fea
completed stadia include the
and documentat
Khalifa Stadium for the 2006
both imagination
Asian Games in Qatar and the
and technical ca
redevelopment of the Sydney
projects.
Cricket Ground.
 ell Zen Lee Brooke Lloyd
ect Lead Senior Urban Designer Interior Director

COX Zen has more than 25 years of Brooke has extensive experience
2015 with a experience in master planning across a broad range of design
ect lead role and urban design projects of focussed, high profile
ficant public varying scales, ranging from international projects in the
based tourism individual sites to street blocks, residential, hospitality, cultural,
stination precincts, districts and cities. His commercial, education and
key interest is in the creation of transportation sectors. Shortly
distinctive, dynamic and after graduating with distinction
ence of delightful public realm through in 2001 from QUT with a degree
mark projects the three-dimensional shaping of in Built Environment, Brooke
n Project in open spaces by surrounding built relocated to London where she
rgest indoor form, how they are integrated worked for over 10 years.
world), and seamlessly within the cityscape
en Visitor Her previous role with John
and its impact in further
oject for the McAslan + Partners, as Associate
consolidating the larger city
or Park) made and Head of Interior Design,
structure.
included responsibility for the
ested timbers
Zen has worked across the globe, overall design direction across the
hell roof.
including in Australia, USA and practices interiors work and
m to engage
Asia. In particular, Zen’s managing a team on a range of
nnovative
experience and skills have projects including the Kings Cross
ustainable
contributed tremendously in Station Redevelopment, Doha
creating the prominent city Cultural Forum and the Al
h a strong skyline and the comprehensive Jazeera Networks HQ in the
of delivering network of distinctive building Shard.
utcomes and forms, memorable spaces and
Having recently migrated back to
ternationally delightful streetscapes in Marina
Australia, Brooke has taken the
ralia. He has Bay / Central Business District of
mantle of Head of Interior Design
skills in dealing Singapore. He has also
in the Brisbane office and is
uilding projects contributed significantly in the
currently leading the fitout for
keholder groups, making of vibrant urban
Tatts Group and the revitalisation
with design landscapes in Melbourne,
of Suncorp Stadium’s food and
l phases of Australia.
beverage outlets.
asibility, design
tion. He brings
n, enthusiasm
apability to
Contact:
Alastair Richardson - Director

COX Architecture
Level 2, 167 Flinders Lane,
Melbourne VIC 3000 Australia
E: alastair.richardson@cox.com.au |
T: +61 3 9650 3288 |
F: +61 3 9650 2747 |
M: +61 406 380 522 |
W: http://coxarchitecture.com.au