Architectus turns 21 with a keen eye on the future
This month Architectus is celebrating 21 years as a practice committed to transforming the way people live, work, learn, travel, and play through the city-shaping projects we design.
Now one of Australia’s leading architecture and design firms, we are marking our ‘coming of age’ with a series of national events dedicated to the myriad clients and collaborators who have shared our journey.
The Architectus story began in 2001 when a federation of four independent practices was formed in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Auckland. As we evolved into a united entity, we continued to grow, opening studios in Adelaide (2015) and Perth (2018) to create a truly national offering for our clients.
Today, we operate as a single studio with more than 430 talented staff working across five studios, specialising in aviation, commercial, defence, education, health, living, infrastructure, interiors, public, rail, and urban futures.
Our design philosophy is summarised in the shorthand of 5Ps – people, place, purpose, planet, and production. These are the framework we use to ensure we collectively design projects that stand the test of time and are respected for their rationality, ingenuity, and beauty.
“We’ve built a practice on deep cross-sector expertise and an unwavering commitment to design excellence,” says Architectus CEO, Ray Brown, one of the founding directors. “Our starting point was always exceptional design that’s thoughtful, collaborative, and human focused. That will never change for us.”
“Over the years, many of our clients have told us that what draws them to Architectus is our belief that good design can significantly improve lives,” says Ruth Wilson, also a founding director, Principal and CCO. “While we’re a team that celebrates diverse skills and perspectives, what unites us is our shared curiosity about how people encounter places and spaces – and how we can make that experience richer through design.”
Among our seminal projects are 1 Bligh Street (our first major collaboration), Barrack Place and Cranbrook School in Sydney, the Queensland Gallery of Modern Art and Queen Elizabeth Courts in Brisbane, the Flinders University Health and Medical Research Building in South Australia, our body of work for Loreto Mandeville Hall, including The Clendon Centre, and State Library Victoria in Melbourne, as well as the Kings Square 5 tower in Perth.
As we hit our stride at 21, Architectus is taking on more complex, city-shaping projects that blur the boundaries between sectors and typologies. This includes urban regeneration such as Sydney’s Central Precinct Renewal, traversing 24 hectares at the southern end of the city.
We continue to build on our established relationships with clients such as Macquarie University, our collaborators on a portfolio of work transforming the campus experience, including their Central Courtyard Precinct and Incubator projects.
Ray says the first two decades were “a rewarding time of growth – as people and as a practice.” But he believes the best is yet to come. “We’re still evolving every day, to realise our vision of becoming Australia’s leading architecture and design studio.”
