Glenn Murcutt: Architecture for Place

Glenn Murcutt is Australia’s most internationally recognised architect. In 1992 he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Australian Institute of Architects; in 1996 he was awarded the Order of Australia (AO); in 2002 he received the Pritzker Prize, considered the equivalent of the Nobel Prize for architecture; and in 2009 he was awarded the Gold Medal of the American Institute of Architects. This exhibition profiles a selection of his built work and, through his drawings, his working methods. Photographs by Anthony Browell fluently capture the essence of Murcutt’s design : harmony between building and nature. The exhibition particularly focuses on Murcutt’s houses, private residences that are not open to visitors. Also shown is the award-winning Arthur and Yvonne Boyd Art Centre at Riversdale, New South Wales. With his focus on the sustainability of the natural environment, Murcutt’s works are at the forefront of contemporary architecture. They are eloquent of form and refined in detailing, but primarily concerned with bringing the qualities of the surrounding world into the daily experience of the occupants. Murcutt explains that he thinks by drawing. He considers that architecture is a path of discovery, and discovery is a creative process. Drawing, to him, is an essential part of discovery. The hand, making drawings, arrives at solutions before the mind is able to comprehend them. This exhibition presents drawings that trace the journey of creation through various stages of the design process, from initial sketch to detailed construction drawings. Born in London in 1936 to Australian parents, Murcutt spent his early childhood in New Guinea, before moving with his family to Sydney in 1941 where he graduated from Sydney Technical College (now the University of New South Wales) in 1961. Following a study tour of Europe and practical experience in leading architecture offices, he began his own practice in 1969. Since that time he has carried out his work predominantly alone, as a sole-practitioner, without staff but using creative collaborations on a project by project basis. He pursues an architecture that is rooted in Australia’s culture and its diverse climate and topography, while being active internationally, teaching and lecturing as a professor at universities throughout the world. The exhibition has been prepared by the Architecture Foundation Australia in cooperation with the Museum of Architecture and Design. www.mao.si