National Biophilic Design Awards

The ASPECT Studios-designed forecourt for the Bendigo Law Courts was the result of a co-design process built through a genuine and respectful relationship with Dja Dja Wurrung.

It’s a thrill that this has been recognised at the 2024 National Biophilic Design Awards, where the project has won the Community and Urban Scale category.

The Living Future Institute of Australia praised the way the project “demonstrated extensive and thoughtful engagement with the Traditional Custodians from the narrative, values and connection all the way through to materiality.”

It has been a privilege to partner with Djandak and Dja Dja Wurrung Whartaka members and particularly with proud Dja Dja Wurrung artists Aunty Marilyne Nicholls and Bec Phillips. This has significantly contributed to the cultural expression being embedded into the civic revitalisation of Bendigo's city precinct.

This project is such a fantastic example of authentic Traditional Owner engagement and co design (where the Dja Dja Wurrung actually 'co made' the artworks, along with expert artisan fabricators). The design uses bio-cultural principles that reflect biophilic design principles of indirect experiences of nature, and evolved human nature relationships and is overtly aligned with the Living Building Challenge's "Beauty + Biophilia" Petal. The space hums with a discernible energy of the Elders and animals who are evoked in the design to produce a feeling akin to arriving at a space where a significant event has just occurred, the echoes of which can still be sensed.

A big thanks to our collaborators Court Services Victoria, Wardle, WSP, Kane Constructions, Billmans Foundry, Stateform and Anton Hasell.