Winter - Australian Institute of Architects

22THE ARCHITECT 2012 ISSUE 002Review by Carly BarrettThe commission for the Perth CulturalCentre Precinct public restrooms wasawarded following an open publictender, Andrew Ainsworth commentsthat “Coniglio Ainsworth Architectssaw a greater design opportunity thanthe initial upgrade brief suggested andhave attempted to facilitate a sense ofconnection with the Cultural precinct…”– I submit they have been exceptionallysuccessful in that endeavour.Tucked away in the heart of the PerthCultural Centre Precinct, the public toiletfacilities are quite literally a concealedgem. As a typology, the public restroomgained popularity during the VictorianEra with local councils competing forthe best facilities. Nicked-named the“Loouvre”, the project responds to thisVictorian tradition of civic pride fosteringa culture of high quality design, superiormaterials, attention to detail and anopportunity to demonstrate technologyin public bathrooms.The project officially opened by the RightHonorable Lord Mayor Lisa-M Scaffidion behalf of the City of Perth in 2011,embodies several principal opportunitiesin public architectural commissions byenhancing experience and setting. Theexisting facility lacked legibility andbelonging was prone to vandalism,defacing and homeless occupation.There is often a tendency to viewpublic toilet commissions as purelyutilitarian design projects. The “Loouvre”is a delightful departure from thisnorm, where light assumes an almosttactile experience. Andrew Ainsworthlists Tadao Ando’s “Church of Light”and Le Corbusier’s “Chapel of NotreDame Du Haut” as inspirations, andtheir influences become clear as onenegotiates between threshold space,contextual setting and outlook. Lightbecomes a spatial tool, superlativelycrafted into sculptural form.Juhani Pallasmaa writes about theintuitive connection, the connectiona sculptor makes in the act of makingbeyond theorisation and intention wheretheory opposes making. He quotesTadao Ando as expressing a desire foropposition between utility and theineffectual where he states “I like to seehow far architecture can pursue functionand then, after the pursuit has beenmade, to see how far architecture can beremoved from function. The significanceof architecture is found in the distancebetween it and function” 1 . The“Loouvre” project personifies a tangibleexpression of this distance wheredynamic cavernous form disconnectsthe nature of public restroom from anexceptional architectural experience.Materials selected pragmatically suchas the Cameo White Matt Satin Coriancladding seamlessly blur the boundarybetween benchtop, wall and ceiling. Justas the functional becomes poetic andlight becomes spatial, artwork becomesaccessible through Laminex Customarttoilet cubicles where nine artworks wereselected from the Western AustralianState Art Collection and providedcourtesy of the artists and their estates.The opposition between function andarchitecture provides opportunityfor positive public interaction and,as Andrew Ainsworth states “Publicamenities can often be overlooked asbeing simply utilitarian facilities. Thisproject challenges these perceptionsand attempts to demonstrate that suchamenities can be attractive, uniquespaces that warrant the same levelof design rigour given to larger scaleprojects”.This project establishes new benchmarksfor civic utilitarian commissions in Perthwith folding planes spatially enticing theoccupier to engage with more perceptiblecomplexity. A high quality designresponse to pragmatic constraint andfunction, the vision to make this projectsignificant excels both in execution andintent; no mean feat for a public toiletin the previously underutilised Perth’sCultural Centre Precinct.1Pallasmaa, J (2009) The Thinking Hand;Existenitial and Embodied Wisdom inArchitecture page 141