JAWSARCHITECTS and Inspiring Place have developed a Master Plan for the Cradle Mountain Gateway zone, located on the disused, government owned airstrip airstrip just outside the northern entrance to the iconic Cradle Mountain Lake St Clair National Park.

A major site rehabilitation project, the zone comprises a new Park Centre, Café, Parks Administration, public amenities and a substantial car park which caters for visitors to the Gateway Zone and those transferring to shuttle buses into the National Park.

The new buildings are grouped around the end of the airstrip, set back from the edge of the forest to provide protection from the threat of bushfires.

Buildings contain embedded interpretation messages through form and detail, drawing on references to the local underlying alpine geomorphology and responding to the extreme weather conditions the area experiences.

Extending from an excavated rock face, a defensive perimeter wall reminiscent of a glacial-eroded head wall faces south. Extending this metaphor, the buildings wrap around and open onto a protected landscaped courtyard, a notional cirque which is contained at the northern end by an enclosing earth moraine.

The centre is conceived as an expansive veranda to provide shelter to pedestrian ways, the encompassing roof folding to the ground to keep a low profile with openings carefully placed to allow framed and filtered views to Cradle Mountain.

New buildings are single storey, the multi-faceted elevations clad in a skin of rough sawn Tasmanian Oak to create a strong material expression, the weathered natural materials all helping to reduce the visual prominence of the building in this pristine environment.

STATUS:

Planning Approval Received 2012

The construction of the Separate Prison based on the Pentonville system was strategically placed with the dominant structure on a rise for all to see from outside the imposing walls. The system that was enforced within the walls was that of a machine – a silent one in which those who were sentenced in the Separate Prison spent their time in solitude and silence.

After the prison was closed many of the buildings were gutted by large bushfires that raged through the site in 1895. During the twentieth century Wing A and C and the Chapel had been re-roofed and repaired, culminating in the most recent professional conservation and interpretation works.

B Wing has remained as a ruin, untouched in over 100 years.

The Separate Prison works conservation and reconstruction project was designed in stages by a team led by Tonkin Zulaikha Greer Architects (TZG).

Working to the staged concept plan and in consultation with TZG, JAWSARCHITECTS have documented B Wing as the final stage.

With many parts of the Port Arthur Site being restored and reconstructed there is a place for the retention of parts in ruin.

B Wing will be sheltered by a new steel framed translucent roof following the profile of the original, protecting the stonework and intact elements of the building.

A raised central walkway with railing limits public access to reduce damage to fragile building fabric.

Enlarged early interior images at both ends of the corridor aid interpretation of original prison use, while the translucent roofing continues the experience of the structure as ruin.

ARCHITECTS IN ASSOCIATION:

Tonkin Zulaikha Greer

STATUS:

Construction Due 2012

The Devonport Maritime Museum is a major cultural asset for the city, housed in a heritage-listed building which was originally the Harbour Master’s residence.

JAWSARCHITECTS was engaged to enhance this facility through provision of additional display space and storage for the numerous artifacts and exhibits which the museum holds. A purpose-built interpretation space was also required to enable the many stories of Bass Strait to be told, including revealing the Julie Burgess, a restored ketch which plied the local waters, as the ‘last of its kind’.

The design of the interpretation wing preserves the natural setting in which the existing museum is placed, the grass of the parkland allowed to gently fold up and over the new addition. The insulative qualities of the green roof will provide a thermally efficient building, working in tandem with the natural ventilation strategy utilised to minimise purchased energy costs.

The low building edges soften the outlook to the museum from the adjacent houses and provide a viewing platform which offers a direct connection with Bass Strait not available from ground level. Drawing on boatbuilding craftsmanship, the fluid form and timber cladding evoke an experience of being within the hull of a ship; the building literally becomes a vessel for story-telling, forming part of that narrative.

The clear span space within provides flexibility for multiple configurations, opening onto an external terrace to allow views of the existing museum and signal station to become integral components of the interpretation experience.

The distinct form provides a strong vehicle for re-branding the museum, strengthening its position as a cultural tourism destination.

STATUS:

Concept Design 2012

This development fulfils a desire to provide improved visitor amenity to one of Tasmania’s significant tourist attractions and most loved National Parks.

The project consolidates a previously haphazard arrangement of Park management offices, visitor information, retail facilities and amenities into a single reception building with more accessible parking facilities.

The primary objective of the development was to retain or enhance the natural and scenic qualities of the area, with the design of the Centre reflecting the sites particular sense of place.

Careful consideration has been given to site the new building unobtrusively into the landscape, open spaces to the sun, shelter from the weather and to create areas that engage with the natural surroundings.

The form of the building reflects the duality of the landscape within the Park entry zone, acting as a transitional space between the introduced landscape and the native bush beyond.

The overall mass of the building is broken up into a number of separately articulated, but related parts to minimize its impact on the site. The building subtly refers to forms, colours and materials found within the park and reinterprets them in a contemporary manner.

The new Centre and associated landscape design provides a stimulating and visually cohesive environment for visitors to develop an understanding of the biodiversity of the Park and adjacent World Heritage Area.

STATUS:

Completion December 2000

An iconic ecotourism destination in the Otway Ranges of southwest Victoria which combines the thrill and excitement of an elevated walkway through the tree-tops of Victoria’s finest stands of Myrtle, Beech and pristine forest.

The visitor centre is a low elegant Japanese style pavilion with robust rough sawn eucalypt columns on a rhythmical grid.

A crisp palate of greys and greens was drawn from the stunning surrounding forest to create a relaxed, yet contemporary and inviting space whilst providing a neutral backdrop where the foliage outside becomes the main focus for the visitor.

STATUS:

Completion November 2004

Dismal Swamp is a polje or sinkhole like a giant colosseum, a cauldron starting with an unusual geological formation and mixing in a brew of the mythical and the majestic.

The architecture too, is a curious blend of buildings, sculpture and structures which accentuate and describe this wondrous place.

The Visitor Centre is perched high on the rim of the polje and floats amongst the tree tops overlooking the swamp below.

Curved Blackwood beams and crown-cut veneers sourced from the nearby forest echo an era when Coopers fashioned barrels from the Blackwood. This warm timber cocoon embraces the guest shielding them from the savage westerlies.

The natural spring of the endemic Celery Top Pine beams bounces and sways the springboard amongst the giant eucalypts. The slide slips sensuously through the forest canopy propelling the visitor at an alarming pace to commence an amazing journey of discovery in the ancient forest.

The floor of the sinkhole is a featureless, flat plane, forested with an endless stand of Blackwood. To be lost in this environment creates an overwhelming experience of disorientation and alienation.

The key concept behind the Dismal Maze is the notion of developing this disorientation further and pushing the boundaries of emotional response to this alien environment, creating in the visitor's mind, a disorienting experience.

A maze winds around the sink hole floor leading the visitor on a journey of experience. The maze and the elements that are located within it actively support and reinforce the range of information that makes up the Blackwood interpretation story.

The elements to be discovered within this maze are a series of extraordinary structures evidencing different methods of construction and materials and involve a range of interpretation methods appropriate to telling the Blackwood story in an innovative and exciting manner.

STATUS:

Completion December 2004

PHOTOGRAPHY:

Richard Bennett, Nick Osborne

The Tahune Airwalk takes the visitor on a thrilling ride through the giant eucalypts of the cool temperate rainforests of southern Tasmania.

A new experience; a new view of this beautiful world is accessible for all - from the very young to the very old. Perched over the understorey of Tasmania's richly diverse endemic rainforest species, a spectacular (if scary) view awaits the brave at the end of the cantilever some 40 metres above the banks of the majestic Huon River.

Return to relative comfort and safety for a coffee in the Visitor Centre for further close encounters with fiddleback Huon Pine, Celery top pine burled myrtle and figured eucalypt.

PHOTOGRAPHY:

Richard Eastwood

STATUS:

Completion September 2001

JAWSARCHITECTS was invited to prepare a concept for a new golf clubhouse on a magnificent setting on the east coast of Tasmania. The golf course and clubhouse are envisaged as the catalyst for an associated residential development and a number of supporting infrastructure buildings across the site.

A series of major geologic fractures have affected this region in its past, causing uplift (horst) and down-faulted (graben) block structures to characterise the landform seen today. The design uses this notion of the fracture, expressed as an abstract line in the landscape, to orchestrate pedestrian movement across the site and become a generator for the placement of buildings and spaces, the embedded meaning enriching the experience.

The clubhouse is seen as one of a series of points along a path and an extension of playing a round of golf, with changes of direction framing key landscape vistas and views of the course. The distinctive roof form emerges from the natural contours of the land, drawing on the horst and graben structures in its expression.

The site fracture also provides a means of resolving the competing dualities of the site in determining key functional relationships within the building. Spaces are located in a hierarchy that responds to their particular needs; being public or private, exposed or sheltered or with a focus on views or solar orientation.

This duality extends to the notion of landscape, with the conflict between the natural setting and the constructed landscape revealed through the fracture. The architecture seeks to capture the inherent qualities of the site and informal coastal lifestyle; the tactility of the landscape expressed through the palette of natural materials and finishes.

STATUS:

Concept Design 2008

Wellington Park drinking water catchments provide 20% of greater Hobart’s drinking water. St Crispins Well is one of nine intakes on Mt Wellington and is the only one that offers public access. A heritage-listed site, it has traditionally been a destination for local walkers and picnickers.

JAWS was engaged to lead the design team to create an enhanced public space which provides information regarding water supply and catchment management, to highlight the importance of the drinking water supply catchment, to provide information regarding the protection of the natural values of the area and to improve employee safety while undertaking routine cleaning and testing of the intake.

The design methodology employed a thematic approach to the site, using the platform as an interpretive medium to evoke an appreciation of the site and its natural features.

The siting of the platform and seat are designed not to impede on the view of the intake, providing a contemplative area to appreciate the natural values of the area whilst giving the visitor the desired experience and understanding the site.

The fluid form responds to the course of the rivulet by key messages inscribed into the fabric of the platform aim to avoid overt signage, instead offering a personal connection to the site and a valuing of its features.

A linking balustrade encourages movement up to obtain a closer view of the working infrastructure and a controlled access point for staff to access the intake for water quality sampling and cleaning.

The materials are in line with Wellington Park’s guidelines and include recycled plastic, local stone and natural timbers all with muted colours to ensure minimal visual intrusion on the natural values.

STATUS:

Completion 2008

Designers JAWS2 worked collaboratively with Curator Julia Clark and Graphic Designer Lynda Warner to create an evocative interpretation experience that draws on the imagery of 'grinding rogues into free'.

In a darkened room, cases frame a single glowing object. This is the theme for each unit. On walking into the viewing space a background panoramic image reinforces the object theme and opens out to display an array of thematically linked artifacts.

This installation is all about new ways of learning how to interpret our past in our own manner.

Moorilla Estate, established in 1958, is Tasmania's oldest commercial winery and vineyard. Located 12km north of Hobart on a peninsula in the Derwent River, the estate has a significant physical and cultural context into which the new Moorilla Wine and Food Centre has been inserted.

The building occupies the apex of the site in both topographical and hierarchical terms to capitalise on sun and views of the river and the wider landscape and to provide a strong public face to the estate. It is also sited immediately adjacent to the outdoor wine making facility so that patrons have a direct interface with the winery at work.

The two storey building consists of an entry, reception, lobby and function rooms on the lower level and restaurant and wine tasting bar on the upper level. The 't' shaped plan was generated by acknowledging two perpendicular axis. One runs the length of the peninsula [entry axis] the other relates to the head of the peninsula where the dominant contour addresses the river [view axis].

The dominant element of the architectural expression is the roof plane which unites the parts, provides a gesture to entry and works as a contemporary verandah - providing shade to the extensive glazing and defining the outdoor dining decks.

The palette is concrete, steel, aluminium, timber and glass – all expressed honestly inside and out.

The Concert Stage at the Northern end of the green and the Micro Brewery at the southern end of the restaurant, complete the composition by using the ‘view axis’ as an ordering device.

ARCHITECTS IN ASSOCIATION:

Craig Rosevear Architects + Jacob Allom Wade

STATUS:

Completion November 2005

PHOTOGRAPHY:

Brett Boardman

The Coalmines Historic Site was Tasmania’s first operating mine, established as a much needed local source of coal, but also as a place of punishment for the “worst class” of convicts.

Along with the Port Arthur Historic Site, the Coalmines Site has recently been included in the Australian Convict Sites World Heritage Property.

In collaboration with a team of landscape planners and interpretation designers, providing access and interpretation infrastructure over the whole site, JAWSARCHITECTS created structures for the separate apartment ruins.


Once a large brick building containing 108 separate convict apartments the building was demolished after the end of convict occupation.

The few remaining underground tunnels now have grated walkways to protect the ground level fabric and a series of steel hoops to shore the brick tunnel structure.

Above ground the corners of the original brick walls are identified by red steel markers and fencing growing out of the rubble.

The Penitentiary Chapel was designed by colonial architect and civil engineer John Lee Archer, and is recognized as one of the very finest examples of Georgian ecclesiastical architecture in Australia. Building of the chapel commenced in 1831.

In 1860 two wings of the chapel were converted into courtrooms by the removal of the tiered pews and the erection of subdivision walls, removal of underground cells and digging of underground tunnels to enable prisoners to be brought directly from the gaol into the two docks, and the erection of court offices on the Campbell Street frontage.

The Gallows, last used in 1946, were deliberately burnt when the old gaol was demolished. The building continued on in use as Magistrate’s Courts until 1983.

A staged conservation program was undertaken over a period of some 7 years. The staging was necessary to enable the works to be undertaken within well established guidelines, but had to accommodate the vagaries of funding from various State and Federal Government Agencies.
Arguably the most exciting in technical and philosophical terms, a decision was made to retain the 1960’s caged walkway which revealed the brutal destruction of the vaulted brick cells beneath the sloping 1830’s chapel floor.

The conservation and reconstruction of the execution yard and scaffold posed some difficult moral and technical problems. The conservation team was strongly of the view that abhorrent though this execution yard was, it is fundamentally important to portray all aspects of history: good and bad.

ARCHITECTS IN ASSOCIATION:

Forward Viney Woolan Architects