Canberra practice Collins Pennington joins Architectus
“It’s a small town with high power,” says incoming Associate Principal Andrew Collins of his hometown Canberra, where the Collins Pennington team will join Architectus in early 2025.
Architectural practice Collins Pennington will bring a wealth of experience and a strong local legacy to the Architectus Canberra studio in February 2025.
Led by Andrew Collins, the practice has deep experience across public, education and residential sectors.
“It’s a privilege to be joining such an innovative design studio with a national reputation for excellence,” says Andrew.
“I know I can speak for my team when I say we are humbled and excited to start sharing our local expertise and vision for Canberra’s future.”
With strong lineage and roots in Canberra, the practice was founded by Andrew’s father Peter Collins and Jim Caddaye in 1985 and has been led by Andrew since 2013.
“The culture set by Dad and Jim was all about clients and architecture first, billings second.” It’s a mentality Andrew says especially applies to work which lives in the public realm.
“We particularly love the complicated projects,” says Andrew. “Whether it’s a tricky site, or many objectives within the brief, those are the projects we take pride in.”
A uniquely layered city
As Australia’s fastest growing economy over the past 10 years, Canberra also has a unique layering of heritage, master plans, planning controls and development criteria that presents exciting opportunities for the kind of design-driven, human-centric spaces Architectus is committed to.
The Collins Pennington team will join Canberra Studio Leader Alex Lawlor in working on significant local projects including the Telstra Tower and Canberra Theatre Centre redevelopments.
Andrew speaks with fascination about his hometown. “The city is unique by design,” he says, referring to the famed Griffin Plan, which is protected by Federal Law
“I’ve also lived in London, Sydney, Mexico and New York State, so I’m qualified to say that Canberra is a unique place.”
“The people are unique by design too – about 40% of Canberrans work in the public sector; they’re highly focused and invested in Canberra.”
“It’s a small town with high power, you can be walking you dog and say ‘Hi’ to someone who is a very important decision maker.”
He’s also witnessed the city change over the years. “Young people used to be asking, ‘How can I get out?’, and that’s not the case now. There’s so much going on; Canberra and its surrounds are evolving.”
Pictured at top: Architectus Canberra Studio Leader Alex Lawlor (2nd from right), Andrew Collins (far right) and the incoming studio team.
