Death, Life & the In-Between by Rayyan A. Roslan

INLAND PUBLIC DEATH, LIFE, & THE IN-BETWEEN

of Yarrawonga

The University of Melbourne Melbourne School of Design Master of Architecture Thesis Project 2021

Project by

RAYYAN ROSLAN

Supervised by Virginia Mannering student id. #582163

CONTENTS

PRELIMINARY HYPOTHESIS 01

TASK.01. - RESEARCH ON THE MURRAY

TASK.02. - SITE FOCUS RESEARCH // YARRAWONGA

TASK.03. - SITE INFRASTRUCTURAL NEEDS

TASK.04. - CIVIC & INFRASTRUCTURE TYPOLOGY

TASK.05. - PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT

TASK.06. - FROM RESEARCH TO DESIGN IDEAS

TASK.07. - DESIGN EXPLORATIONS

153

TASK.08. - SKETCH DESIGN

233

TASK.09. - RESOLVING THE DESIGN

253

FINAL DESIGN THESIS PROJECT // THESIS HYPOTHESIS STATEMENT

311

BIBLIOGRAPHY

371

Fig. 01. Asho. Dead Gums at Lake Mulwala at Sunset. 2007.

Preliminary Hypothesis Thesis Week 01 The Murray River has undergone significant changes in the past 200 years since it was colonized by the Europeans.1 In Yarrawonga, a central point on the river, the colonists made drastic environmental modifications to create Lake Mulwala as an extended water storage area for irrigation.2 This links to the 20th-century environmental historians’ theories that colonization has accelerated the destruction of the river’s ecology through engineered landscapes for social and economic needs.3 Today, while the lake appears natural and is an integral part of Yarrawonga’s tourism industry and prosperity, the town has been a major re-engineering site, resulting in environmental problems such as water pollutions and substantial loss of river red gum vegetation.4 In response to these issues in Yarrawonga, the thesis will propose a water filtration system and a plant nursery that aids with the regeneration of native plant species along the lake. The project will also provide the town, which relies on tourism, with additional tourist infrastructure and an observation tower that exposes the conditions of the engineered environment. The Winton Wetlands restoration project will be a key precedent for this thesis, drawing on ambitions such as revegetation and community engagement.5 The development of maps will explore environmental impacts and modifications of Yarrawonga. Sectional drawings will highlight the re-engineering of Lake Mulwala over time. These exploration and research methods within the lens of environmental histories will be critical for the thesis project to revisit the past and present to design for the future.

1. Peter Davies and Susan Lawrence, “Engineered landscapes of the southern Murray–Darling Basin: Anthropocene archaeology in Australia,” The Anthropocene Review 6, no. 3 (2019): 179, https://doi.org/10.1177/2053019619872826, 2. A. Noel Loughnan, From Ballanda to 1968; the story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan, ed. Club Yarrawonga Apex ([Yarrawonga, Vic.]: Yarrawonga Apex Club, 1968), 26-27. 3. John Robert McNeill, Something new under the sun : an environmental history of the twentieth-century world (W.W. Norton & Co, 2001), 147-48. 4. D. S. Baldwin and J. A. Howitt, “Baseline assessment of metals and hydrocarbons in the sediments of Lake Mulwala, Australia,” Lakes & Reservoirs: Science, Policy and Management for Sustainable Use 12, no. 3 (2007): 167-68, https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1440-1770.2007.00331.x 5. Winton Wetlands Committee of Management, Winton Wetlands Restoration and Monitoring Strategic Plan / report prepared by Tim Barlow, GBCMA, Winton Wetlands Committee of Management (Benalla, Victoria, July, 2011), 7-8.

Task.01. || X.L. Research on the Murray

thesis week #01

ANTHROPOGENIC MODIFICATIONS engineered landscapes

X.L. Case Study 1.0

Fig. 02. Rayyan Roslan, Anthropogenic Modifications of the Murray River map. Map image. 2021.

An Environmental History

The 19th century has brought drastic changes to the natural environment of the river. A radical alteration to the Murray River is linked to human activities’ impact over the past 200 years.6 The theories of “Landesque Capital” have dramatized the advancement of anthropogenic landforms. Permanent modification of landscapes is deemed necessary, and almost unavoidable, to satisfy human needs and population growth throughout history.7 The environment that was once natural is now oriented to cultural and social systems in the Anthropocene era. John R. McNeill, an environmental historian, emphasized that the colonization of the river has propelled the most drastic environmental shift.8 Waterways were confined with dams, weirs, and channels for human convenience. Clearance of natural habitat to enable the construction of these infrastructures has caused far-reaching effects in reshaping the river’s ecology.9 Anthropogenic modifications in the Murray River has brought along irreversible damage to its natural environment.

6. Davies and Lawrence, “Engineered landscapes of the southern Murray–Darling Basin: Anthropocene archaeology in Australia,” 179. 7. N Thomas Håkansson and Mats Widgren, Landesque capital: The historical ecology of enduring landscape modifications, vol. 5 (Routledge, 2016), 13. 8. McNeill, Something new under the sun : an environmental history of the twentieth-century world, 141 9. McNeill, Something new under the sun : an environmental history of the twentieth-century world, 173.

Fig. 03. Rose Stereograph Co. THE WEIR, YARRAWONGA, VIC. [picture], 1920.

thesis week #01

YARRAWONGA

location of research

X.L. Case Study 2.0

Fig. 04. Google Earth, Location of Yarrawonga from Melbourne. Google Earth Map. Accessed 2021.

Yarrawonga

Melbourne

Introduction Snippets of Yarrawonga

Yarrawonga, a town that is part of the Moira Shire, is located 287km north of Melbourne.10 Being a central point on the south bank part of the Murray River, the developments in the 20th century have brought prosperity and rapid growth of tourism to Yarrawonga. After the completion of Lake Mulwala, the town has become a tourist attraction since the 1960s.11 The man-made reservoir has become a centre for water sports and recreational fishing, making it a perfect tourist destination. Today, the demand for housing and commercial investment in the region has expedited Yarrawonga’s economic growth.12 With a current population of more than 8000 residents, the town is expanding further to support the rapid population growth, moving towards the district town’s reclassification to a regional centre.13

10. Moira Shire Council, Yarrawonga Futures Plan / report prepared by MacroPlan Australia, Moira Shire Council (Melbourne, Victoria, 2006), 6. 11. Alan James Dunlop, Wide Horizons: The Story of Yarrawonga, Tungamah, and Cobram Shires (AJ Dunlop, 1978), 177. 12. Moira Shire Council, Yarrawonga Futures Plan / report prepared by MacroPlan Australia, 6. 13. Moira Shire Council, Yarrawonga Futures Plan / report prepared by MacroPlan Australia, 13.

Fig. 05. Rayyan Roslan. Mapping of Yarrawonga region. Map image. 2021.

Fig. 06. Yarrawonga Chronicle. World Ski racing selections. Newspaper image. 2019.

Fig. 07. Murray Views Collection. Aerial view of Lake Mulwala and Yarrawonga Weir. Postcard image. 2015.

Task.02. || L. Site Focus Research

thesis week #02

a HISTORICAL TIMELINE stories of re-engineered landscapes

L. Case Study 1.0

Fig. 08. Rayyan Roslan. Yarrawonga Historical Timeline. Collage image. 2021. Timeline information taken from: Dunlop, Alan James. Wide Horizons: The Story of Yarrawonga, Tungamah, and Cobram Shires. AJ Dunlop, 1978. Loughnan, A. Noel. From Ballanda to 1968; the Story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan. Edited by Club Yarrawonga Apex. [Yarrawonga, Vic.]: Yarrawonga Apex Club, 1968.

YARRAWONGA A REVELATION OF ANTHROPOCENTRISM BEING IN PLACE IN HUMAN CULTURE, OPPOSING THE PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE OF THE ABORIGINES. THE PURSUIT OF A FLOURISHING ECONOMY AT THE EXPENSE OF NATURE.

Fig. 09. Rayyan Roslan. Scale drawings showing construction of Lake Mulwala. Still image. 2021.

Histories of Re-engineered Landscapes

River red gum forests is a significant environmental ecosystem of the Murray River that functions as a natural filter between waterways and contributes to an extensive habitat area for native flora and fauna.14 The historical timeline shows evidence that colonization of the river along Yarrawonga has drastically altered the natural environment with the removal of these important forests. The drought in 1902 has resulted in the re-establishment of the Victorian Irrigation Act which demands water storages and water regulation along the course of the Murray River.15 The year 1934 marks the destruction and clearance of 439km2 of dense river red gum forest in Yarrawonga to enable the construction of a weir and lake.16 The town became an important region that provides irrigation diversion through Mulwala Canal and Yarrawonga Main Channel, supplying water for the people living within the area. After the completion of Yarrawonga Weir and Lake Mulwala, the town begins to flourish, at the cost of the natural environment.17 The 20th century has witnessed an extensive lost landscape of river red gum forest that played an essential role in sustaining the natural ecosystem of the Murray River. The engineered landscape and regulated water regime to satisfy human needs has aggravated the condition of river red gum that stands downstream of the Yarrawonga Weir, risking a possible catastrophe to the ecology of the Murray River in the near future.18

14. S Cunningham et al., “Mapping the current condition of river red gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh.) stands along the Victorian Murray River floodplain,” Report to the northern Victorian Catchment Management Authorities and the Department of Sustainability and Environment. Department of Sustainability and Environment, Melbourne (2007): 3. 15. Loughnan, From Ballanda to 1968; the story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan, 23. 16. Loughnan, From Ballanda to 1968; the story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan, 27. 17. Dunlop, Wide Horizons: The Story of Yarrawonga, Tungamah, and Cobram Shires, 126. 18. Cunningham et al., “Mapping the current condition of river red gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh.) stands along the Victorian Murray River floodplain.”

Fig. 10. Chapman, Wilfred Disney. Yarrawonga [picture], 1927.

Fig. 11. Noel Loughnan. Clearing the tall red gums in Lake Mulwala. In Noel Loughnan. From Ballanda to 1968: The story of Yarrawonga, 27. Yarrawonga: Yarrawonga Apex Club, 1968.

Fig. 12. Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission. Yarrawonga Weir, 1934.

Fig. 13. Left & Right: Ian Lunt. Lake Mulwala in 1934 and 2009. Aerial Image. 2012.

thesis week #02

IMPACTS OF REENGINEERED LANDSCAPES a macro-scale destruction

L. Case Study 2.0

Fig. 14. Rayyan Roslan. Mapping of Unseasonal Flooding of the Barmah National Park. Map Image. 2021.

DROWNING the Barmah Red Gum Forest

The Barmah National Park, located approximately 100km from Lake Mulwala, covers an area of 700km2 that is mostly river red gum forest.19 In 1982, the forest is listed as Wetlands of International Importance by the ‘Ramsar Convention’, which functions as a significant floodplain system on the river, relying on seasonal flooding to sustain.20 With the construction of the Yarrawonga Weir, river regulation has altered the river flow and frequency of flooding, which is detrimental to the forest’s natural ecosystem.21 A main contributing factor to this environmental issue is the rejection of irrigation waters that overflows downstream instead of diverting into supply channels, causing unseasonal flooding in the Barmah Forest region.22 Due to the frequency of unseasonal flood events, 74.9% of river red gum stands in Barmah Forest are rapidly declining.23 The regulated river regime of the Murray River proves that the re-engineering of the river system has jeopardized the health of the river’s ecology despite providing the convenience of irrigation.

19. Joanne Chong and Anthony R Ladson, “Analysis and management of unseasonal flooding in the Barmah–Millewa Forest, Australia,” River Research and Applications 19, no. 2 (2003): 1. 20. Department of Agriculture Water and the Environment, “Australian Wetlands Database: Australian Ramsar Wetlands,” (January 2021). http://www. environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/wetlands/ramsardetails.pl?refcode=14. 21. Chong and Ladson, “Analysis and management of unseasonal flooding in the Barmah–Millewa Forest, Australia,” 2. 22. Chong and Ladson, “Analysis and management of unseasonal flooding in the Barmah–Millewa Forest, Australia,” 3. 23. Cunningham et al., “Mapping the current condition of river red gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh.) stands along the Victorian Murray River floodplain,” 55.

Mapping condition of river red gum 4

MURRAY RIVER

Barmah Lakes

ek Cre lah l u T

Stand Condition Score Good (12.1-15.0)

2 km

Declining (9.1-12.0) Poor (6.1-9.0) Degraded (3.1-6.0) Severely degraded (0.2-3.0)

Figure 19 Condition of river red gum stands predicted by the PVL model (r2 = 0.78) from remotely-sensed data for the Barmah Fig. 15. Cunningham et. al. Conditions of river red gum stands. In Cunningham et. al, Mapping the current condition of river red Forest. See Table 4 for an explanation of the condition classes. Permanent water bodies are indicated in blue. gum stands along the Victorian Murray River Floodplain, 45. Department of Sustainability and Environment, Melbourne. 2007.

Fig. 16. William van Aken. Flooded Barmah Forest river gums, VIC. Still image. 1989.

Negligence towards the environmental crisis

Solutions to reduce flooding events caused by rejected irrigation waters has been reviewed by the Murray-Darling Basin Commission.24 A proposal was made to lower Lake Mulwala’s water level to enable airspace to contain the released water from Hume Dam for irrigators.25 This would allow any rejected water to remain in the lake, reducing the chance of unseasonal flooding that would drastically affect the Barmah Forest downstream. However, the locals of Yarrawonga protested against the lake’s water level reduction proposal as they were concerned that it would affect the town’s tourist industry and recreational activities.26 Despite the environmental concerns, the Murray-Darling Commission ensures that the lake level and operations would continue at a normal range to satisfy the community’s concern.27 The negligence to control the regulated river regime to protect the Barmah Forest from unseasonal flooding reveals the authorities’ attitudes towards the severity of environmental issues on the river. The community concerns regarding the proposal show a lack of attention to the negative impacts that Lake Mulwala has on the environment. A response to spread awareness and environmental knowledge is critical at this stage to safeguard the fragility of the river’s ecosystem.

24. Tony Ladson and Joanne Chong, “Unseasonal flooding of the Barmah-Millewa Forest,” Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria 117 (06/30 2005): 132. 25. Ladson and Chong, “Unseasonal flooding of the Barmah-Millewa Forest,” 132. 26. ABC News, “MP backs residents’ lake plan protests,” (September 2003), https://www.abc.net.au/news/2003-09-16/mp-backs-residents-lake-planprotests/1479356. 27. Ladson and Chong, “Unseasonal flooding of the Barmah-Millewa Forest,” 132.

Fig. 17. Corowa Press. Water protest for ministers attention. Newspaper image. 2021.

thesis week #02

UNTHOUGHTFUL URBAN DEVELOPMENTS uncovering a “gap” in research

L. Case Study 3.0

Foreshore Clearance & Water Pollution

Yarrawonga is expected to be reclassified from a district town to a regional centre in 9 years with rapid population growth.28 Within this period, urban planners are currently pushing the developments of commercial and residential land use to support the town’s shift to a larger district.29 Even though future urban developments of Yarrawonga will bring prosperity and economic growth to the town, there is a concern that rapid urbanization has caused a decline in the water quality in the lake. There is evidence that water along Lake Mulwala with high urban density contains high levels of mercury and arsenic contaminants from urban run-offs.30 Issues of water pollution in the lake are aggravated further by earthworks conducted along the lake edge. In 2018, the foreshore and floodplain vegetations along Lake Mulwala were excavated to construct steel piling retaining wall in response to water erosion that is affecting the lake edge.31 On the contrary, such negligent action will only cause an increase in the risk of contaminants entering the waterbody from the urban districts along the lake that is growing indefinitely in the future. Further protective measures need to be implemented to reduce the risk of causing the lake’s water quality to be harmful for both the locals of Yarrawonga and the river system as a whole.

28. Moira Shire Council, Yarrawonga Futures Plan / report prepared by MacroPlan Australia, 17. 29. Moira Shire Council, Yarrawonga Futures Plan / report prepared by MacroPlan Australia, 15-16. 30. Baldwin and Howitt, “Baseline assessment of metals and hydrocarbons in the sediments of Lake Mulwala, Australia,” 173-74. 31. Goulburn-Murray Water, “Lake Mulwala foreshore works almost complete,” news release, December 2019, https://www.moira.vic.gov.au/Our-Council/ News-and-information/Media-releases/Lake-Mulwala-foreshore-works-almost-complete.

Foreshore Removal & Steel Piling Construction

Fig. 18. Rayyan Roslan. Mapping the removal of foreshore along Lake Mulwala. Map Image. 2021

Task.03. || M. Site Infrastructural Needs

thesis week #03

TYPOLOGY EXPLORATION site infrastructural needs

M. Case Study 1.0

Civic & Infrastructure Typologies along the Murray

A catalogue of civic and infrastructure buildings found along the Murray River was collected based on the needs of the town and what it is lacking. There is currently a concern from the community about the lack of amenity and nature parks for families and tourists on the lake edge: having only one nature reserve (Chinama’s Island Reserve) along Lake Mulwala.32 The tourist information centre and a museum in Yarrawonga-Mulwala is also undeveloped. The catalogue sees an opportunity for the town Yarrawonga to create a hybrid civic and infrastructure building typology that does not only provide the locals with public amenities to enjoy, but the architecture will also provide a function that helps to respond to the environmental issues that were highlighted in the research.

32. Victorian Planning Authority, Yarrawonga Framework Plan: Community-Engagement Summary Report (Yarrawonga, Victoria, August 2019), 4.

Fig. 19. Rayyan Roslan. Catalogue of civic and infrastructure buildings. Collage Image. 2021

Typology Mash-up Exploration

The building typologies from the catalogue were combined and repurposed to create a hybrid architecture that provides the function of both a civic and infrastructure typology. This exploration aims to test the program of the architecture based on the issues highlighted. From the research study of Yarrawonga and Lake Mulwala’s engineered landscapes, there is a need to respond to the issues of foreshore removal that risks unfiltered urban contaminants entering the lake. There is also a need to create awareness about the surrounding landscape that has been severely modified and degraded over time. The explorations will test each model based on the program’s effectiveness suited for a response to the issues raised.

Fig. 20. Rayyan Roslan. Mash-up exploration 3D models. 3D Image. 2021

Pool. Town Hall. Grain Silos.

Grain Silos. Observation Tower.

Grain Silos. Town Hall. Observation Tower. Fig. 21. Rayyan Roslan. Mash-up exploration 3D models. 3D Image. 2021

Weir. Grain Silos. Observation Tower. Jetty.

Wharf. Jetty. Silos. Town Hall. Observation Tower

3 D M O D E L E X P L O RAT I O N

Wharf. Pier. Grain Silos. Town Hall

Task.04. || S. Civic + Infrastructure Typologies

thesis week #04

MASH-UP TYPOLOGY TESTING physical model exploration

S. explorations

HYBRID TEST #01

MODEL 1.0 Typologies outdoor pool townhall grain silos

REFLECTIONS MODEL 1.0 provides the amenity of an outdoor pool that is popular amongst residents and tourist in Yarrawonga. However, the model does not provide an infrastructure function that could benefit the town in regards to the environmental issues highlighted. Grain silos could function as storages, archives, vault or seed bank. But another layer of infrastructure needs to be added to the overall scheme.

P H YS I CA L M O D E L E X P L O RAT I O N # 0 1

The physical model exploration seeks to test the overall scale, hierarchy, and most importantly, reviewing the functionality of the building structure based on its civic and infrastructure typology. The mash-up model must suit a response to the issues highlighted in the research and to provide for the town’s lacking infrastructures.

HYBRID TEST #02

Typologies weir grain silos observation tower extended jetty

REFLECTIONS MODEL 2.0 observation tower located right at Yarrawonga Weir is a perfect spot which provide views of Lake Mulwala and the Murray River downstream. It enables a critical reflection on the environment based on its difference in water levels (upstream and downstream). However, having a jetty/ piers along strong currents of water flowing downstream might need further exploration.

P H YS I CA L M O D E L E X P L O RAT I O N # 0 2

MODEL 2.0

HYBRID TEST #03

Typologies wharf jetty silos townhall observation tower

REFLECTIONS MODEL 3.0. The mashing shows interesting height combination, with towers providing views in both direction: from above and below. The scale of the jetty’s platform (about 40 meters long by 15 meters wide might need further investigation based on site selections). However, possibilities of multi-purpose space could be introduced on the platform. Silos alongside a civic structure could be repurposed which might be able to function as both civic and infrastructure.

P H YS I CA L M O D E L E X P L O RAT I O N # 0 3

MODEL 3.0

MODEL 3.0 was selected for further exploration. The jetty/wharf seeks to provide amenities that extend further into the lake, bringing people closer to the waterbody. It could also function as a natural water filtration system by revegatating native plants underneath the platform. The platform on the jetty/wharf could also function as a multi-purpose space that holds events, markets, conference, and open for public use. The townhall could be repurposed as a museum that exhibits the past stories of the lake and providing environmental knowledge, reflecting on its lost landscapes of river red gum forest. The grain silos alongside the museum could function as a vault, archive storage, or seed banks that provides shared knowledge about threatened native plant species. There are two observation towers in this model. One that provides views from above, and the other from below the water surface. Having towers in both directions could possibly open new possibilties that is unique to Yarrawonga, enjoying views in the sky as well as experiencing the underwater world. This programs and typologies will be explored further based on its functions that it could provide the town with benefits both socially and environmentally.

SELECTED TYPOLOGIES

MODEL SELECTION

Task.05. || XL-L-M-S. Proposal Developments

thesis week #05

a THESIS PROPOSAL EXPOSING the engineered landscape of lake mulwala

XL-L-M-S 1.0

Civic & Infrastructure Typologies along the Murray

Prior to Yarrawonga Weir’s construction to bring in water into Lake Mulwala, reinforced concrete cofferdams were erected to clear the river’s water to enable the construction to commence.33 These cofferdams were reinforced with steel piling and sheeting that was driven into the clay bed.34 While Lake Mulwala appears natural on the surface, remnants of these extensive stretch of concrete cofferdams lie below the surface, with no trees or vegetation existing within the cofferdams area. Mapping and a section drawing of the lake will uncover the cofferdam area and demonstrate the remnants of red gum trees that only exist within the upper region of Lake Mulwala. Hence, the thesis will propose to create a civic typology of a lookout tower, both above and below ground, to reveal these anthropogenic landforms that lie beneath the lake’s surface. The purpose of the architecture program is to create a shared knowledge for residents and visitors to witness the environmental evidence of the past and the destruction that the present has presented.

33. Loughnan, From Ballanda to 1968; the story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan, 24. 34. Loughnan, From Ballanda to 1968; the story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan, 25.

Fig. 22. Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission Photographer. [Early Construction Work on the Yarrawonga Weir] [picture], 1935.

Fig. 23. Left & Right: Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission Photographer. [Construction of Yarrawonga Weir] [picture], 1932.

Fig. 24. Rayyan Roslan. Map & Sectional Drawing of Lake Mulwala. Still Image. 2021

Fig. 25. Rayyan Roslan. Left: Mapping of cofferdam in Lake Mulwala, Right: Diagrams of proposal. Still Image. 2021

A THESIS PROPOSAL

E X P O S I N G T H E E N G I N E E R E D L A N D S CA P E S

Fig. 26. Rayyan Roslan. Collage diagram of Mary Miss’s Perimeters/Pavilion/Decoy. Diagram. 2021

CREATIVE PRECEDENT Inspiration from Land Art

The proposal of uncovering the unseen beneath the surface was inspired by the works of land art artist Mary Miss. Her work in 1977, which were constructed and displayed at the Nassau County Museum, demonstrates the idea of creating a sense of curiosity from the ground surface through a square hole with a ladder that leads into the space beneath.35 As visitors descend into the subterranean space, an extended atrium is revealed, contrasting their perception of the underneath space from above.36 The idea of revelation and uncovering the “unknown” below ground conforms with the thesis proposal, which seeks to expose and showcase the remnants of damage caused in the past to the red gum forest that once existed in the lake.

35. Mary Miss, “Perimeters / Pavilions / Decoys,” (1977). http://marymiss.com/projects/perimeterspavilionsdecoys/. 36. Mary Miss, “Perimeters / Pavilions / Decoys.”

thesis week #05

a THESIS PROPOSAL RESTORING the floodplain vegetation of the lake edge

XL-L-M-S 2.0

Safeguarding the ecology of Lake Mulwala

The rising environmental concerns regarding the lake’s water quality are aggravated further by the removal of the lake’s foreshore and the inevitable urban developments of Yarrawonga to support the town’s population and economic growth.37 Yarrawonga’s residents’ protest against the proposal to reduce water levels in Lake Mulwala to protect the Murray’s significant forested areas demonstrates the lack of awareness about the potential damage that Lake Mulwala could cause to the river’s ecosystem.38 With these issues, the thesis will propose to restore the foreshore conditions by creating an infrastructure that helps with the regeneration of floodplain vegetations through a plant nursery and a seed bank of endangered native plants such as the river red gum trees. Revegetation of the lake edge will also provide the town with a natural water filtration system along the lake with high urban density areas. The proposal aims to reinstil part of the natural ecology back into Yarrawonga and promote a community culture that engages with environmental restoration projects.

37. Moira Shire Council, Yarrawonga Futures Plan / report prepared by MacroPlan Australia, 17. 38. ABC News, “MP backs residents’ lake plan protests.”

Fig. 27. Yarrawonga Chronicle. Lake Mulwala’s water has turned green with higher levels of blue green algae. Newspaper image. 2020.

fofor r

reshore 0 ffooreshore 4 9 0 1 4 er 19 m er m

Fig. 28. Rayyan Roslan. Mapping & Thesis proposal diagram. Map & Diagram. 2021

A THESIS PROPOSAL

R E S TO R I N G T H E L A K E E D G E

LS L OF WA AL ING V MO PIL RE EEL T S

Fig. 29. Rayyan Roslan. Mapping of Winton Wetlands Restoration project precedent studies. Map & Diagram. 2021

PRECEDENT Winton Wetlands Restoration Project

The proposal to restore the foreshore of Yarrawonga was inspired by the Winton Wetlands restoration project. The wetlands have suffered similar destructions that occurred in Yarrawonga to the native red gum species due to land modifications.39 The thesis seeks to draw similar ambitions of the Winton Wetland restoration project in their determination to regain the health of the neglected wetlands. Part of the project is to spread awareness of the degrading natural environment by attracting tourist to the region, conducting school education events as well as community engagement in the activities that promotes the appreciation towards the wetland’s ecology.40 These examples will be set as key precedents for the thesis which will be explored further in translating these ambitions into an architectural program.

39. Winton Wetlands Committee of Management, Winton Wetlands Restoration and Monitoring Strategic Plan / report prepared by Tim Barlow, GBCMA, 7-8. 40. Winton Wetlands Committee of Management, Winton Wetlands Master Plan / report prepared by Arup, Winton Wetlands Committee of Management (Benalla, Victoria, 2012), 18.

thesis week #05

a MATERIAL EXPLORATION representation of the landscape

XL-L-M-S 3.0

MATERIAL PRECEDENT #01

Robert Smithson’s Spiral Jetty serves as an inspiration to the thesis material exploration. The artist was well-known for the creation of the Spiral Jetty at Great Salt Lake in Utah which uses materials of basalt rocks from the volcanoes that are already extinct within the region.41 Smithson’s artwork closely resembles the physical changes of the landscape as it is created to purposely decay in harmony with the environment.42 With the honesty of materials that were re-used from the remnants of the volcanoes, and the representation of its surrounding environment, the artwork plays a significant role in demonstrating the story of the landscape’s ecology and geology.43 This inspires the thesis to explore further on the way materials could be used on the building fabric to represent an architecture of “place” that closely resembling the landscape that it is sitting on.

41. Hikmet Sidney Loe, The Spiral Jetty encyclo : exploring Robert Smithson’s earthwork through time and place (2017), 13. 42. Loe, The Spiral Jetty encyclo : exploring Robert Smithson’s earthwork through time and place, 19. 43. Loe, The Spiral Jetty encyclo : exploring Robert Smithson’s earthwork through time and place, 20.

M AT E R I A L P R E C E D E N T # 0 1

Fig. 30. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram studies of Robert Smithson’s Spiral Jetty. Diagram. 2021

A Representation of Place.

Drawing from inspirations in the work of Robert Smithson, the thesis proposes to use concrete as one of the materials which reflects Yarrawonga’s heritage. After the World War, concrete was largely used as it resembles the town’s prosperity and stability, gaining back from the depression years.44 Inspirations from the representation of the environment was also adapted from Smithson, by proposing the erosion of concrete on silos, in its function as a seed bank, that sits in the lake’s waterbody. With the lake’s fluctuating water levels, traces of erosion on the concrete surface will be exposed, closely resembling similar degradation effects it has on the remnants of dead red gum trees in the lake. The exposure of erosion also acts as an archive of the lake’s changing water levels, providing a visual representation of the changes that occurs on the waterbody.

44. Moira Shire Council, Moira Shire Stage Two Heritage Study, Moira Shire Council (Yarrawonga, Victoria, 2007), 8.

Fig. 31. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram of thesis material proposal. Diagram. 2021

MATERIAL PRECEDENT #02

The architecture of the Karijini National Park Visitor Centre by Woodhead International, located in Western Australia, provides a reflection of the landscape’s geology, natural ecology, as well as the stories of the past inhabitants.45 The form was curved intentionally that shapes a fluid movement, representing the aboriginal’s relationship with the native environment.46 The building fabric is made of weathering corten steel which erodes and rust gracefully over time, responding to the backdrop of the red-brown earth landscapes.47 The extensive use of corten in the architecture is remarkable as it interrelates with the environment, forming a strong relationship that made the building seem to grow out of the landscape. As the material degrades, it slowly changes marking the physical of its surrounding environment as well.

45. Hamish Muir, ‘The Phaidon Atlas of Contemporary World Architecture’ (Phaidon, 2004), 20. 46. Muir, ‘The Phaidon Atlas of Contemporary World Architecture’, 20. 47. Muir, ‘The Phaidon Atlas of Contemporary World Architecture’, 20.

M AT E R I A L P R E C E D E N T # 0 2

Fig. 32. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram studies of Karijini Visitor Centre materiality. Diagram. 2021

Physcial Changes over time.

The architecture of the Karijini National Park Visitor Centre’s use of weathering material is a clever method to represent the physical changes of the building skin over time. The thesis proposal seeks to take inspirations from the idea of relating the building envelope closely to the surrounding landscape, with a poetic gesture of respecting the environment in which it occupies. Therefore, corten steel will be explored further within the building fabric of the project in its relationship with the degrading environmental conditions. The lookout tower is chosen for this material exploration, being the tallest point within the building structure, which is effective in creating an emphasis to the material chosen. The industrial nature of the material will be contrasted with the natural material of red gum timber on its interior, creating a shift in atmosphere between the outside and inside spaces. Over time, as the corten steel weathers, the building will expose a rather rustic outlook which is intentional to reflect similar physical changes in relation to the surrounding degrading environment of the Murray River.

Fig. 33. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram of thesis material proposal. Diagram. 2021

Task.06. || Mid-Semester Progress

thesis week #06

from

RESEARCH TO DESIGN IDEAS thesis proposals development process

Mid-sem progress 1.0

SCOPE OF RESEARCH + DESIGN BRIEF

The SCOPE OF RESEARCH diagram demonstrates the areas of case studies conducted on Yarrawonga. The diagram consists of 3 research studies that overlay one another, leading to potential design response to the issues highlighted within the intercepting area as the thesis project’s selected site proposal. RESEARCH #01 highlights the significant historical event of the town’s engineered landscape that has led to the remnants of the dead red gum trees, which is evident in Lake Mulwala today.48 The design proposal seeks to bring people closer to these remnants to EXPOSE the degraded environment and create awareness about the substantial modifications to the landscape and the damages that it has caused. RESEARCH #02 highlights the issues of UNTHOUGHTFUL URBAN developments in the construction of steel piling and the removal of the foreshore and floodplain vegetations in response to water erosion.49 The design proposal seeks to replace the steel piling with a revegetation zone that restores native floodplain plants along the foreshore. RESEARCH #03 highlights the Victorian Planning Authority survey, which reveals a community concern about the LACK OF RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES along the foreshore.50 The design proposal seeks to provide additional public infrastructures for the community to engage better with the lake edge.

48. Loughnan, From Ballanda to 1968; the story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan, 27. 49. Goulburn-Murray Water, “Lake Mulwala foreshore works almost complete.” 50. Victorian Planning Authority, Yarrawonga Framework Plan: Community-Engagement Summary Report 4.

Fig. 34. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram of research scope & selected site proposal. Diagram. 2021

SELECTED SITE PROPOSAL

Fig. 35. Rayyan Roslan. Selected site proposal. Diagram. 2021

Responding to Scope of Research, Site Context and Design Brief

Fig. 36. Rayyan Roslan. Draft layout of programs on tracing paper. Diagram. 2021

programmatic ideas draft layout explorations

ADDRESSING THE PROGRAMMATIC NEEDS

The diagram demonstrates the preliminary program ideas associated with the scope of research and the responding brief on the site. It seeks to expand the preliminary thesis proposal further by addressing the programmatic needs based on the highlighted issues of Yarrawonga. In addition, the preliminary program ideas aim to create a hybrid civic and infrastructure building typology that provides the town with recreational spaces, which also functions as a natural water filtration system through the foreshore’s revegetation zones. The preliminary program ideas includes: - A plant nursery and a seed bank that aids with the regeneration of the floodplain and wetland vegetation. - A museum and observation towers (above and below ground) as a platform of shared knowledge whilst providing an overview of the degraded landscape. - An outdoor pool as a public infrastructure that reactivates the lake edge.

Fig. 37. Rayyan Roslan. Preliminary Program Ideas diagram. Diagram. 2021

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PROGRAM IDEAS TO SPATIAL PARTI

Fig. 38. Rayyan Roslan. Plan Parti. Diagram. 2021

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Based on the preliminary program ideas, there is a clear distinction between two programs along the foreshore: the jetty platform that extends into the lake and the revegetation zone on the lake edge. The two programs are further juxtaposed by contrasting the jetty’s rigid form to a more dynamic form along the revegetation zones. On the jetty, the form is extracted towards the sides to create an open ‘multi-purpose’ space on the platform. On the revegetation zone, the platforms are broken down further, facilitating pockets of wetland terraces responding to restore the vegetation along the lake edge.

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PARTI TO SITE CONTEXT physical model exploration

Fig. 39. Rayyan Roslan. Parti Diagrammatic Model analysis on site context. Physical Model. 2021

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parti exploration 1.0 responding to site context + proposal form orientation

EXPLORATION 1.0 focuses on the orientation and the form of the proposal parti. The extended jetty is orientated perpendicular to the Mulwala Bridge, responding to the main tourist circulation flow. With this orientation, the architecture serves as a new “landmark” for Yarrawonga that relies on tourism. The form of the proposal parti corresponds to the contrast of the two programs: the jetty and the revegetation zones. The jetty’s rigidity emphasizes the man-made structure that brings people closer to the lake, whilst the dynamic form of the revegetation zones responds to the nature of the lake edge.

PA RT I - S I T E C O N T E X T / / E X P L O RAT I O N # 0 1

The physical parti diagrammatic model exploration seeks to explore and analyze the proposal sitting within the site context. As a 3D physical model medium, the model serves to reveal potential refinements and developments to the program and form with the consideration of the site, such as the aspects of orientation, topography, and the overall landscape.

PARTI ON SITE TOPOGRAPHY physical model exploration

Fig. 40. Rayyan Roslan. Stacking of platforms and red gum stumps on site topography. Physical Model. 2021

PA RT I - S I T E TO P O G RA P H Y / / E X P L O RAT I O N # 0 2

Fig. 41. Rayyan Roslan. Overall Pati Diagrammatic model on site topography. Physical Model. 2021

PARTI ON SITE TOPOGRAPHY physical model exploration

Fig. 42. Rayyan Roslan. Elevation view of parti diagrammatic model on site topography. Physical Model. 2021

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responding to site topography + fluctuating water levels

EXPLORATION 2.0 explores the sitting of the proposal parti on the different topography height levels and fluctuating water levels. The horizontality and verticality aspects allow the programs to respond to various interactions to the site (from above, on the surface and from below). This reveals a potential for the stacking of programs with sacrificial platforms being in a place that is submerged during fluctuating water levels, which exposes the flaw of the regulated river system on the lake.

PA RT I - S I T E TO P O G RA P H Y / / E X P L O RAT I O N # 0 2

parti exploration 2.0

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thesis week #06

ITERATIVE REFINEMENT studio feedbacks, reflections and further research

Mid-sem progress 2.0

PRELIMINARY PROPOSAL PARTI Overall diagram of proposal parti on site

Fig. 43. Rayyan Roslan. Preliminary program development diagram. Diagram. 2021

The preliminary diagram demonstrates the first stage of developing programs, siting of design proposals based on site context and formmaking through parti explorations. Studio feedback and reflections seek to develop further the preliminary proposal parti that emerges from the research undertaken to closely respond to the issues highlighted. 111

studio feedbacks + reflections refinement of preliminary proposal parti KEY PROPOSAL: A design proposal that emerges from research • Exposing the remnants of dead red gum trees by encouraging the observation and scrutiny of the degraded landscape. • Restoring the foreshore by replacing steel piling with revegetation zones that functions as natural water filtration system. • Reactivating the lake edge with additional public infrastructure.

FEEDBACK + REFLECTION QUESTIONS R.01: SEED BANK Further research will question the role of the seedbank and the critical factors required to maintain an optimum condition for the storage of seeds. Refinement will focus on the “language” of a seedbank through architecture. R.02: UNDERGROUND TOWER The Underground Tower that intends to showcase the hidden red gum stumps will be ineffective in the muddy water of Lake Mulwala. Spaces on the jetty that provides an experiential journey through the landscape could have a similar effect of revealing the unseen. R.03: SCALE OF JETTY PLATFORM Scale of jetty requires refinement. The form could be decremented in size which emphasizes on a key space towards the end. Programs need to be consolidated into two focused programs with spatial hierarchy. R.04: REVEGETATION ZONES Platforms for plant nurseries could respond better to the surrounding landscape within the waterbody and the foreshore. Spaces that provides amenities could engage with the community better.

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Challenging the role of a Seed Bank A Future Direction Precedent Research

Yarrawonga is expected to be reclassified from a district town to a regional A seed bank is a facility that serves to conserve and propagate seeds, requiring a controlled optimum condition to preserve the seeds’ vitality effectively.51 The facility needs to comply with international seed banking standards whereby seeds need to be stored at 15°C, for short term storage of less than five years, and -21°C for long term conservation.52 Such procedures require professional knowledge and high maintenance to preserve the seeds effectively. However, there are sustainable alternatives that require less maintenance that plays a similar role to the seed bank, with the ideas of seed conservation and propagation. A project by the landscape architecture firm MIRIDAE challenges the concept of a “seed bank” and the conventional “green wall”.53 The new approach to a “living seed wall” or “living seed bank” functions as short-term seed storage that engages with the community with lowtech methods of seed dispersal. The living wall installation interacts with visitors, providing them with information about the various seed types and allowing them to bring back the seeds to sow at its corresponding landscape as a dispersal method.54 This will be a driving precedent that seeks to challenge the role of a seed bank and its alternatives that can be brought by through architecture. The project by MIRIDAE will serve as an inspiration to progress in the refinement towards the idea of a seed bank in the thesis project.

51. Australian National Botanic Gardens, “The National Seed Bank,” (May 2019). https://www.anbg.gov.au/gardens/living/seedbank/index.html. 52. Australian National Botanic Gardens, “Seed Bank Procedures,” (Jan 2019), https://www.anbg.gov.au/gardens/living/seedbank/seedprocedures. html. 53. American Society of Landscape Architects, “The Seed Bank: A New Approach to the Living Wall,” (2020). https://www.asla.org/2020awards/075. html. 54. American Society of Landscape Architects, “The Seed Bank: A New Approach to the Living Wall.”

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Fig. 44. MIRIDAE. A Living Seed Bank: Seeds of Change. Diagram. 2020. https://www.asla.org/2020awards/075.html

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Fig. 45. MIRIDAE. Living Seed Bank: A Social Centerpiece. Still image. 2020. https://www.asla.org/2020awards/075.html

Fig. 46. MIRIDAE. Living Seed Bank: The Seed Map. Still image. 2020. https://www.asla.org/2020awards/075.html

BUBBLE DIAGRAM Program Ideas Refinement

The preliminary program ideas consist of too many programs, which loses the focus of the thesis project. The programs are consolidated further through a clear spatial hierarchy that responds to the research and highlighted issues of the site. The refined bubble diagram merges the idea of the underground tower and the museum into spaces of moments and journeys through the jetty that showcases the landscape of dead red gum remnants as its primary “artefact”. The seed bank will be included as a wall feature along the jetty that exhibits the storage and growth of threatened native plant species. A spatial hierarchy on the jetty is emphasized towards the main key programs: the outdoor pool and the lookout tower towards the end. The revegetation zone will include plant nurseries and amenities along the foreshore that connects to the landscape and encourages community engagement.

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Fig. 47. Rayyan Roslan. Prorgam Ideas Refinement. Diagram. 2021

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Fig. 48. Rayyan Roslan. Spatial Parti Refinement. Diagram. 2021

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PROGRAM IDEAS TO PARTI Spatial Parti Refinement

The preliminary proposal parti is disconnected to the surrounding environment which loses the main intention of the thesis project: connecting people to the landscape of the lake and the foreshore. The refined spatial parti seeks to create a clear journey that is separated into the two key programs on the jetty, with spatial moments on the revegetation zone that connects to the landscape with the wetland terraces below that serves to unify the two structures together.

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PARTI TO FLOOR PLAN draft spatial planning from parti

At this stage, the floor plan drawing seeks to test out the parti refinement and exploration into spatial planning. Without too much detail, the floor plan demonstrates key programs and its spatial allocation with the consideration of site aspects such as orientation, access to views, and its relationship with the surrounding landscape. The floor plan mirrors the parti that responds to the site in the process of form-making.

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Fig. 49. Rayyan Roslan. Draft spatial planning for parti. Diagram. 2021

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HYBRID TYPOLOGY PRECEDENT #01 Progressing towards a focused Hybrid Infrastructure

The thesis design proposal’s development emphasizes on the refinement towards a focused type of a hybrid civic and infrastructure building typology that provides a recreational space for the community and functions as a natural water filtration system along the foreshore. Precedents that explore similar hybrid typologies will be a key driving inspiration for these developments. The King’s Cross Pond Club, by OOZE architecture and Marjetica Potrc, demonstrates a micro ecological environment that is also the first natural swimming pool in London.55 The project introduces a space for the growth of wetland aquatic plants amongst the urban district that also functions as a natural filter that purifies the swimming pool’s water. A clear hybrid typology serves an outdoor pool, an urban green space, and the social and environmental advantages of a shared space in between.56

55. Melanie Dodd, Spatial Practices: Modes of Action and Engagement with the City (Routledge, 2019), 113. 56. Dodd, Spatial Practices: Modes of Action and Engagement with the City, 114.

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Fig. 51. Rayyan Roslan. King’s Cross Pond Club hybrid diagram. Diagram. 2021

HYBRID TYPOLOGY PRECEDENT #01

Fig. 50. John Sturrock. Of Soil and Water: King’s Cross Pond Club. Still image. 2016. http://www.ooze.eu.com/en/urban_prototype/kings_cross_pond_club/

Fig. 52. John Sturrock. King’s Cross Pond Club overview. Still image. 2016. http://www.ooze.eu.com/en/urban_prototype/kings_cross_pond_club/

Fig. 53. Marjetica Potrc. King’s Cross Pond Club constructed wetland. Still image. 2016. http://www.ooze.eu.com/en/urban_prototype/kings_cross_pond_club/

HYBRID TYPOLOGY PRECEDENT #02 Progressing towards a focused Hybrid Infrastructure

Similar to the King’s Cross Pond Club, the Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool by GH3 architecture depicts the creation of the first chemical-free public pool in Canada.57 The project demonstrates similar intention to the thesis proposal in its hybrid infrastructure of aquatic plants regeneration zones and a public swimming pool.58 In between, the ecosystem of plant materials, gabion wall gravel and sand aids with the natural filtration process that cleanse the pool water.59 The shared space is an important example in the idea of the relationships and cooperation between humanity and the environment.

57. GH3, “Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool: First Chemical-free Public Outdoor Pool in Canada,” (2018). https://www.gh3.ca/ work/natural-swimming-pool-02. 58. GH3, “Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool: First Chemical-free Public Outdoor Pool in Canada.” 59. GH3, “Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool: First Chemical-free Public Outdoor Pool in Canada.”

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Fig. 55. Rayyan Roslan. Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool hybrid diagram. Diagram. 2021

HYBRID TYPOLOGY PRECEDENT #02

Fig. 54. GH3. Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool. Still image. 2018. https://www.gh3.ca/work/natural-swimming-pool-02

Fig. 56. GH3. Hydrobotanic regeneration ponds. Still image. 2018. https://www.gh3.ca/work/natural-swimming-pool-02

Fig. 57. GH3. Natural Swimming Pool. Still image. 2018. https://www.gh3.ca/work/natural-swimming-pool-02

Fig. 58. Rayyan Roslan. Thesis project hybrid diagram. Diagram. 2021

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A HYBRID THESIS PROJECT focused civic + infrastructure typology refinement

The hybrid project precedents serve as an inspiration for the thesis to develop a focused key civic space that is integrated with the infrastructure. The development will create a holistic space between the two typologies that work together despite having its own agenda. As such, the threshold between the outdoor pool jetty and the revegetation zone sees the potential of an integrated civic and infrastructure typology that serves as a naturally filtered water recreational facility for the community, which also functions as a natural water filtration system that filters urban run-offs pollution along the foreshore.

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thesis week #06

MID-SEMESTER PRESENTATIONS presentation board panels: concept design

Mid-sem progress 3.0

Fig. 59. Rayyan Roslan. Landscape of dead red gum trees in Lake Mulwala. Still Image. 2021

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Mid-sem Refined Hypothesis Statement

European colonization of the Murray River has caused drastic environmental changes in the past 200 years.60 The colonists have made a significant modification to the Murray River’s central point in Yarrawonga to create Lake Mulwala to store water for irrigation.61 Such attitudes towards the engineered landscape have been highlighted in the theories by 20th-century environmental historians that colonization has accelerated the destruction of the river’s ecology to satisfy social and economic needs.62 Today, the prosperity of Yarrawonga is mainly associated with Lake Mulwala as an integral part of the town’s tourism industry. While the lake appears natural, it has undergone constant modifications and land clearance to sustain Yarrawonga’s tourism and economic growth.63 Consequently, the town’s re-engineered landscape has led to significant environmental issues such as water pollution and substantial loss of native vegetation along Lake Mulwala.64 The thesis will propose the regeneration of native floodplain and wetland plant species through a plant nursery on Lake Mulwala’s foreshore in response to these issues. The revegetation zone will also function as a natural water filtration system along the lake edge. The project will also provide the town, which relies on tourism, with additional tourist infrastructure: an extended jetty into Lake Mulwala that includes a naturally filtered pool and a lookout tower. These infrastructures will function as a space for public recreation that promotes the reflection and observation of the environmental conditions. Architecture projects such as the Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool and the King’s Cross Pond Club will be the guiding precedents, drawing the ambitions of creating a hybrid building typology that serves both the society and the natural environment.65 Sectional drawings and archive maps of Lake Mulwala will assist in deciphering and understanding the conditions of its re-engineered landscapes over time. Research methods within the lens of environmental histories will be critical for the thesis project to revisit the past and present to design for the future of Yarrawonga. 60. Davies and Lawrence, “Engineered landscapes of the southern Murray–Darling Basin: Anthropocene archaeology in Australia,” 25. 61. Loughnan, From Ballanda to 1968; the story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan, 26-27. 62. McNeill, Something new under the sun : an environmental history of the twentieth-century world, 147-48. 63. Goulburn-Murray Water, “Lake Mulwala foreshore works almost complete.” 64. Baldwin and Howitt, “Baseline assessment of metals and hydrocarbons in the sediments of Lake Mulwala, Australia,” 167-68. 65. GH3, “Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool: First Chemical-free Public Outdoor Pool in Canada.”; Dodd, Spatial Practices: Modes of Action and Engagement with the City, 114.

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proposal site plan within the context of Yarrawonga & Lake Mulwala

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overall floor plans

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section drawings that demonstrates moments and experience of spaces

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thesis week #06

REFLECTIVE COMPONENT first nations engagement

Reflections

First Nations Engagement Reflection within the Architectural Production

Thesis project: In the process of research and design explorations, it is almost impossible for me to not reflect upon the Pangerang people, who were the traditional custodians and owners who occupied the land of Yarrawonga for thousands of years before the European colonization. Evidence of destruction to the land that was sacred to the traditional owners serves as colonialism remnants and relics for us to reflect upon the severe, irreversible damage to nature and the Indigenous culture. • I have learnt from my mistake as I took a wrong turn during one of the design explorations by appropriating traditional Aboriginal artwork into the form of the architecture. This is a misinterpretation of the Australian Indigenous Design Charter that encourages design practitioners to promote knowledge sharing and representation of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture within the practice.66 • Instead, I should research deeply into the First Nations experiences, way of life and their land conditions in Yarrawonga prior to the colonization. Understanding the First Nations culture and the way they occupy and cultivate the land for thousands of years will provide a crucial step for the future direction of the design to respect the stories of the past in order to design for the future. • A method of knowledge sharing that engages with the First Nations could be promoted through the tools available to me as an architecture student: drawings, renders, sections, floor plans. Stories that describe the land of the traditional owners could be reflected within these conventional mediums by detailing the landscape, site context, that is contrasted to drawings that critiques and exposing the destruction caused by the Europeans to engage in decolonizing the thesis project. 66. Russell Kennedy et al., “Australian Indigenous Design Charter,” (2016): 6.

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Fig. 60. Rayyan Roslan. Dead red gum trees in Lake Mulwala. Still Image. 2021

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Task.07. || Sketch Design Explorations

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thesis week #07

DESIGN EXPLORATIONS #1.0 Post Mid-Semester Iterative Exploration

ITERATIVE PROCESS

MID-SEMESTER PROJECT Main working floorplan of mid-sem thesis

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studio feedbacks + reflections refinement ideas based on mid-semester progress

FEEDBACK + REFLECTION QUESTIONS LANGUAGE & EXPRESISON OF THE DEAD RED GUM TREES The dead red gum trees that exist in Lake Mulwala represents the historical remnants of land modifications and the degraded landscape of the lake. How can the language of the dead red gum trees influence the architecture to represent and respond to the environmental conditions and context? •

Architecture could reflect the qualities that is similar to the historical remnants of the dead trees.

•

Expression of materiality that reacts to environmental conditions could further represent the decay of the environment.

•

The idea of time and weathering of the material could be explored further.

STRUCTURES & PROGRAMMATIC IDEAS Through the architecture intervention on site between land and water, the programs could relate more to the context and the town. •

Further exploration is required through section in the way structural

columns

could

represent

the

environmental

conditions through its materiality. •

The lake is subjected to oversupply flooding events, causing the water to drastically increase from normal levels.

•

Temporality and changes based on environmental conditions that might affect how the programs are used could be investigated

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Materiality Expression in Architecture A Future Direction Precedent Research

The Murtoa Stick Shed in Victoria, Australia, also known as the Murtoa No.1 Grain Store, was built as an emergency grain storage during the Second World War.67 The architecture consists of a corrugated iron roof with 560 unmilled hardwood structural poles that supports the entire structure.68 At the start of the Victorian wheat industry during the mid-19th century, jute bags were used for the storage of wheat until the development of bulk storage in concrete silos from 1920 onwards.69 However, during the second world war, low-cost construction method was necessary to construct the bulk storage of wheat and horizontal shed of timber and corrugated iron were developed as an alternative to concrete silos.70 The architecture of the Murtoa Stick Shed became a historical significance in its association of ingenious form of construction using vernacular materials that mostly consisted of hardwood poles from Victorian forests to construct the large storage structure.71 Through the expression of the materials, the architecture represents the historical period during the Second World War, depicting the time of material shortages for the construction of wheat storages. The 19m high structure of 560 timber poles creates a monumental gesture which not only reflects the historical context of the site but also in the adaptation that the pioneers undertake in creating solutions to construct emergency wheat storages.

67. Martin Zweep, “The murtoa stick shed new life for a wheatbelt cathedral,” (2011): 1-2, https://doi.org/10.3316/informit.895365462828509, https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.895365462828509. 68. Zweep, “The murtoa stick shed new life for a wheatbelt cathedral,” 2. 69. Heritage Council Victoria, Marmalake/Murtoa Grain Store, Victorian Heritage Database (2008), 3 70. Heritage Council Victoria, Marmalake/Murtoa Grain Store, 3. 71. Heritage Council Victoria, Marmalake/Murtoa Grain Store, 4.

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Fig. 61. Bruce Thomas. The Murtoa Stick Shed. Still Image. 2008. https://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/868

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Fig. 62. Public Record Office Victoria. Erecting poles for Murtoa Stick Shed. Still Image. 1941.

Fig. 63. Public Record Office Victoria. Murtoa Stick Shed under construction. Still Image. 1941.

ENVIRONMENTAL REPRESENTATION Expression of the Dead Red Gum Trees

Fig. 64. Shepparton News. Lake to be emptied next year. Newspaper Image. 2020.

Fig. 65. Mako Hodgey. Lake Mulwala Drained. Still Image. 2009. https://www.fishraider.com.au/topic/41635-lake-mulwala-drained/

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Taking inspirations from the precedent of the Murtoa Stick Shed in the way the materiality of the architecture represents the historical context and the pioneering of adaptive construction methods, the thesis project seeks to investigate further the effects of environmental conditions on the dead red gum trees that exists in Lake Mulwala and questions the role of architecture in representing similar qualities of the degraded landscape. With the evident language of verticality and repetition within the natural context of the existing landscape in the exposed dead red gum trees, the project will explore the scope of materiality and the way it interacts and reacts to the changing water condition of the lake. The idea of weathering will influence the design of the architecture, taking into consideration areas that directly intercepts with the body of water, which intends to serve as a marking device or archive that reflects the changing condition of the environment.

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ITERATIVE PROCESS #1.0

responding to the expression of the degraded landscapes

ARCHITECTURAL TRANSLATION Material & Design Exploration

The project explores the use of red gum timbers as the material for structural columns which serves to connect to the site context within the degraded landscape of dead red gum trees. With the structural columns being the main elements that directly interacts with the body of water, the idea of weathering and erosion on the timber columns will reflect the environmental conditions of the water in Lake Mulwala, reflecting similar degrading qualities that occurs on the existing dead red gum trees. Taking inspirations from the Murtoa Stick Shed as a precedent in delineating its spatial experience through the extensive height and repetition of the timber poles, the structural columns in the thesis project will be extended above ground to a height that provides a “monumental” piece of architecture that serves as a landmark for Yarrawonga along Lake Mulwala.

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PHYSICAL MODEL EXPLORATION sketch iteration testing

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model exploration material expresison + scale testing

Through the physical model, the structural columns are arranged through a rigid series of grids along the jetty which increases in size to emphasize on a key moment towards the end of the jetty. The spaces in between the columns were kept consistent with the height of the columns intending to extend to a height that provides a “monumental” piece of structure that seeks to serve as a landmark for Yarrawonga, and at the same time depicting the past history of red gum trees that once existed in Lake Mulwala.

M AT E R I A L E X P R E S S I O N / / P H YS I CA L M O D E L E X P L O RAT I O N

The physical model intends to test the material and design exploration further to analyze the scale of the extended structural columns on the jetty. The iterative process seeks to demonstrate the language of verticality and repetition of the exposed dead trees and its visual representation that sits on the horizon of Lake Mulwala, translating this idea through the design making of the architecture.

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3 D M O D E L / / D E S I G N E X P L O RAT I O N

perspective from yarrawonga foreshore reserve

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3 D M O D E L / / D E S I G N E X P L O RAT I O N

perspective towards end of jetty platform

ITERATIVE PROCESS #1.0 studio feedbacks & reflections

175

The developed design process explores the language of the dead red gum trees in its association with the materials that reflects the environmental context. Through the explorations, the project sees the opportunity for the role of architecture to represent the degraded landscape through a poetic gesture in the choice of materiality and the design aspect that responds and reacts to the environmental changes that adapts similar qualities and conditions to the exposed dead trees in the lake. The arrangement of the extended structural columns on the jetty could be explored further based on its spatial experience on the jetty itself and considering the visual experience when observed at a distance. The form of other programs alongside the jetty could be refined further to respond to the site context as well as having a similar relationship in terms of its architectural language along the axis that ties the architecture together.

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DESIGN EXPLORATIONS #2.0 Forms, Compositions & Programs

ITERATIVE PROCESS

CHANGING LANDSCAPES OF LAKE MULWALA Architectural Response Exploration

Fig. 66. Ian Lunt. Dry lake bed of Lake Mulwala in July 2009 (top), and flooded Lake Mulwala in 2005. Aerial Image. 2021.

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Ever since the development of Yarrawonga Weir and Lake Mulwala over 100 years ago, the landscape of the lake is constantly changing due to the regulated river system of the Murray River. 1.

Oversupply flood levels due to flaws in the river system regulation has caused the lake water levels to fluctuate causing destruction to the river system downstream.72

2. The lake is drained, and water is lowered to its lowest level every 3-4 years for maintenance. It is during this time where the hidden red gum stumps on the lakebed can be seen towards the middle region of Lake Mulwala.73 With these events of environmental changes in Lake Mulwala, the project will explore the idea of temporality and time, investigating the design of programs, forms and composition of the architecture that could reflect and respond to these physical changes. It intends to use the language of architecture, with the changes of its structure, walls, platforms or floors, to express and create an awareness such extreme environmental changes that is currently neglected and ignored.

72. Chong and Ladson, “Analysis and management of unseasonal flooding in the Barmah–Millewa Forest, Australia,” 3. 73. Jared Loughnan, “Lake to be emptied next year,” Shepparton News (Shepparton), March 03 2021, https://www.sheppnews.com. au/2021/03/03/3460978/lake-to-be-emptied-next-year.

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An Interactive Architectural Response A Future Direction Precedent Research

The Greenwood Pond project by Mary Miss demonstrates the layers of architecture that intervenes within the landscape of the lake with the association of memories as visitors experience through the series of spaces and moments created. Visitors move through a curated journey that allows them to have an intimate view of the environment and construct an understanding of how the architecture and the landscape operates visually and physically.74 A unique feature of the project is the ramp that disappears into the lake, taking the visitors down to a concrete trough that allows them to “enter” the lake at an eye level. This creates a closer connection between visitors and the landscape of the lake, which enhances the experience of existing within the natural context of the environment.

74. Mary Miss, “Greenwood Pond: Double Site,” (1996). http://marymiss.com/projects/greenwood-pond-double-site/.

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Fig. 67. Mary Miss. Greenwood Pond: Double Site. Overview. Aerial image. 1996. http://marymiss.com/projects/greenwood-pond-double-site/

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Fig. 68. Mary Miss. Greenwood Pond: Double Site. Concrete trough in lake. Still image. 1996. http://marymiss.com/projects/greenwood-pond-double-site/

Fig. 69. Mary Miss. Greenwood Pond: Double Site. Installation overview. Still image. 1996. http://marymiss.com/projects/greenwood-pond-double-site/

ITERATIVE PROCESS #2.0

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Responding to the Environmental Changes Architecture as modes of representation and reflection

The exploration process engages with the idea of temporality where the architectural program and form changes with the environmental conditions of the lake. A curvature that follows the contour of the lake and the grid of the rigid axis of the jetty seeks to delineate an area of the architecture that is subjected to the events of flooding during oversupply flood levels of Lake Mulwala. On the other side of the axis, the plant nursery that was separated in the preliminary design exploration will be combined into a singular building typology with a void in between that exposes the wetlands below. The axis is tied together using similar architectural language of the curvature form on the platforms that reacts to the changing water levels. Iterative process 2.0 seeks to investigate further the relationship of the architecture with its surrounding context and questions the way it interact, react and change over time in response to the environmental conditions.

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floorplan refinements composition and form explorations

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Temporality in Architecture Architecture as modes of representation and reflection

Responding to Environmental Changes

The 3D model diagram demonstrates the way the architecture changes with the environment over time. Taking inspiration from the Greenwood Pond project by Mary Miss, the form of the pool along the jetty breaks away from the linear structures of the jetty platforms. This juxtaposes the rigidity and informing a natural outline that curves with the contour of the lake as it is lowered down beneath the water level during the events of oversupply flooding. During the events of flooding, the pool platform acts as a sacrificial platform that is submerged, making the pathway along the platform inaccessible. Such changes to the program of the architecture creates an awareness as it reveals the environmental changes of Lake Mulwala. While the platform is being submerged, the red gum timber structures alongside of it still remain exposed, reflecting similar conditions to the dead red gum trees in the lake. However, when the lake is drained down for maintenance ever 3-4 years, the pool platform becomes a safe passageway for visitors to experience the degraded remnants of red gum stumps that is hidden beneath the water surface throughout the year.

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PLANT NURSERY ITERATION composition and form exploration

The initial preliminary design of the plant nursery consists of two separated buildings for the plant nursery to accommodate different types of function: for emergent and submerged nursery stations. The iteration refinement seeks to explore a shared relationship that allows mutual conversation between the two. The merging of the plant nursery into a singular building typology with a void in between exposes the nursery to the wetlands area below. This provides a platform of shared knowledge where visitors are able to engage with the programs in the plant nursery as well as gaining an understanding of the environment below in which the nursery stations is situation upon.

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plant nursery section view

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Fig. 70. Dag Jenssen. Seljord Watch Tower / Rintala Eggertsson Architecture. Still image. 2012. https://www.archdaily.com/212966/seljord-watch-tower-rintala-eggertsson-architects

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SELJORD WATCH TOWER Form finding precedent

The Seljord Watchtower by Rintala Eggertsson Architects focuses on providing different lookout points around Seljord Lake as an experiential journey through different spatial configuration in its floor levels. The watchtower takes visitors into a sequence of carefully curated levels that extrudes out of the tower surface, that frames a particular view of Seljord Lake. The two bottom floors consist of smaller spaces that aligns towards the bird nesting area and the crown of the surrounding trees, whilst the top floor overlooks a view of Seljord Lake. Through these series of moments and spatial sequence throughout the tower floors, visitors are provided with a good perception of the environment that surrounds the lake before arriving to an overall picturesque view of Seljord Lake at the top.75

75. EUmiesaward, “Seljord Watchtower “ European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture (2013). https://miesarch.com/ work/1394.

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Fig. 71. Dag Jenssen. Seljord Watch Tower: Overview of Seljord Lake. Still image. 2012. https://www.archdaily.com/212966/seljord-watch-tower-rintala-eggertsson-architects

Fig. 72. Dag Jenssen. Seljord Watch Tower: Night perspective. Still image. 2012. https:// www.archdaily.com/212966/seljord-watch-tower-rintala-eggertsson-architects

TOWER ITERATION Composition and Form Exploration

Responding to External Surrounding Views

Drawing inspirations from Seljord Watch Tower by Rintala Eggertsson Architects as a precedent, the project explores the composition of the tower that focuses on the external forces as design drivers in its form making. The tower, being a key moment towards the end of the jetty intends to provide an overview of the degraded landscape of Lake Mulwala through series of curated spaces and levels that focuses on a specific view on each floor. Similar to Seljord Watch Tower, extrusions on the surface depicts a particular view that becomes the central focus on the individual floor levels. The tower for the thesis project consist of 3 point of view across the levels: Point One providing views to Yarrawonga Weir, Point Two towards the urban district and townships of Yarrawonga, and finally Point Three with extrusions that aligns with the views of the exposed dead red gum trees that exists in the middle region of Lake Mulwala.

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STRUCTURAL COLUMNS ITERATION Composition and Form Exploration

Representing the degraded landscapes of Lake Mulwala

Based on the studio feedbacks from peers and studio leader, the structural columns were spaced too evenly and at a gradual scale which does not help to enhance the spatial experience through the “monumental” gesture of the extended timber columns. The progress iteration explores an even more varied arrangement of the timber columns, however, still following a grid along the jetty platform. As the whole structure of the project intends to serve as a new landmark for Yarrawonga, views from afar will be considered. Therefore, the height of the timber columns are extended evenly, at 6m high, which creates an emphasis to the structure, capturing the attention of visitors that enters the township of Yarrawonga along Mulwala Bridge and from the town center itself.

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3 D M O D E L / / D E S I G N N E X P L O RAT I O N 2 . 0

side perspective of pool platform and columns refinement

scale of extended structural columns & framing the view of the lookout tower

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3 D M O D E L / / D E S I G N N E X P L O RAT I O N 2 . 0

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thesis week #09

DESIGN EXPLORATIONS #3.0 design iterations & refinements

ITERATIVE PROCESS

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studio feedbacks + reflections on iteration processes for sketch design

FEEDBACK + REFLECTION QUESTIONS FORM AND COMPOSITION OF TOWER The overall form of the tower is too rigid and does not emphasize on the building as a key element of the overall architecture. The form needs to be more dynamic and idiosyncratic for it to have its own “character” that stands out as compared to the other rigid structures. How can the form of the tower respond to external and internal experience that drives the composition of the building? •

Considering the surrounding environment, the external skin could respond to specific aligned views that could allow some areas of the building to chamfer or extrude towards it.

•

Materiality needs to be considered and how it plays a role in creating an experience of the tower internally and externally.

•

Curate spaces between floors, focusing on the entry point on the ground floor up to the highest floor with framed views and series of journeys and movements.

COMPOSITION OF OVERALL ARCHITECTURE The two axis seems to be too separated and does not tie together to create a whole piece of architecture that works together. There should be a tying element or architectural language on both axis that connects the two structures together, sharing a similar relationship between the two.

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ITERATIVE PROCESS #3.0

lookout tower form finding exploration sketch

tower iteration refinement composition and form section view

TOWER ITERATION 3.0 Composition and Form Exploration

Spatial Moments Section Perspective

Based on the sketch exploration, the iteration process seeks to expand the form finding further by testing different angles of chamfers and folds on the envelope of the tower which delineates spaces that opens up on specific sides to provide views to the outside from the interior. The section iteration refinement reveals a curated series of spaces with moments that allows visitors to experience as they progress upwards on each floor level. The entry point welcomes visitors with a mesh platform and a square void in the middle that exposes the water and the structure of the tower below. The interior spaces are enhanced further through the void which captivates the sound and smell of the water that seeks to interact with the visitor as they experience the different framed views along each floor. The bottom of the tower is also partially exposed on its envelope to reveal the structures that interacts with the water, allowing visitors on the lower platform to witness the weathering and erosion that happens on the tower’s timber structures.

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TOWER ITERATION 3.0 Composition and Form Exploration

Spatial Moments Floorplan Perspective

From a floorplan perspective, while the envelope wraps and enclose the interior space, the tower is connected throughout the levels to the water of the lake below via the middle void. Sequence of spatial moments through the different levels are dictated by the specific framed views that aligns through the openings. The tower starts with views of the Yarrawonga Weir and the urban district on the bottom floors before reaching to the top open balcony that provides an overall lookout of Lake Mulwala’s landscape. The idea of these curated spaces is to allow visitors to have an understanding of the environment that surrounds Lake Mulwala before making an observation towards the degraded landscape that exists in the lake.

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studio feedbacks + reflections tower form finding iterations

FEEDBACK + REFLECTION QUESTIONS TOWER ENVELOPE FORM During the process of creating a dynamic form towards the overall form of the tower, several factors need to be considered such as the walls of internal spaces, external conditions as design drivers and alignment of respective floor levels. There must be reasons to those specific design choices, angles, chamfers and movements and it could mainly respond to internal and external factors that surrounds the tower to inform the design decisions. • • •

The connection of ground floor entry point to the experience of visitors needs to be refined further. A series of grids or modules could help set the spatial organization better. The plan view of the tower seems to be too rigid with not much changes of experience on each floor levels.

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thesis week #09

DESIGN EXPLORATIONS #4.0 design iterations & refinements

ITERATIVE PROCESS

ITERATION PROCESS #4.0 Composition and Form Exploration

Tower composition GRID MODULES

The previous iterations served as a learning process through the exploration of form making, revealing the flaws of design decision which questions the way the architectural exterior skin and internal environment could respond to the surrounding environment. Iteration process #4.0 seeks to test a series of grid modules to produce an organized spatial arrangement that could also be dynamic in terms of differentiating the spatial moments and experience on every floor.

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tower floorplan grid layout

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tower floorplan refinements grid modules // form & composition exploration

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GRID EXPLORATION Composition and Form finding

Tower composition PLANS & SECTIONS

Through the series of grids and modules, the floorplan was able to curate a spatial sequence that shares similar relationship to its arrangement however contrasted based on the type of extrusion on each floor to delineate a different experience and programs within the respective floor levels. The ground floor level sets the tone for the floors above as it begins with a 3.5 meter opening on the external skin of the building that aligns with the entry point, framing a view of the exposed dead red gum trees at the starting entry sequence. The extrusion between the grids also informs the scale of the extruded spaces, contrasting between a more open space with seating on Point One to observe the view of Yarrawonga Weir and a more intimate space with a large opening that provides a view of the township of Yarrawonga on Point Two. The tower ends with a large open balcony that provides a 360-degree view of Yarrawonga and Lake Mulwala, that also serve as a resting point while visitors observe the landscape of the lake.

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TOWER ENVELOPE MATERIALITY Composition and Form finding

Tower composition RESPONDING TO WATER & CLIMATE CONDITIONS

Modules of red gum timber panels is explored as a choice of material on the external envelope of the tower. These timber panels will be in direct contact with the water in Lake Mulwala, similar to the structural columns, and are being subjected to weathering and erosion as it reacts to the condition of the water throughout the years. With this idea of temporality and change over time towards the material, the external skin opens up and breaks away towards the bottom, revealing the tower’s structures as well as the effects of weathering and tidal marks that will be evident on the red gum timber panels and the structures itself. These openings are then extruded further creating a void on the external skin on the ground floor that starts to frame the view of the exposed dead red gum trees towards North of the tower. The form of the roof responds to the harsh climate of Yarrawonga in summer, blocking off direct sunlight but allowing direct natural light in the morning on the East face of the tower. The large opening on the roof will also allow natural ventilation to occur throughout the tower with the voids from the bottom assisting to cool off the building during summer.

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reflections + future directions iteration process #4.0

Iteration process #4.0 focused on the exploration and testing of compositions and form making for the architecture to respond to the environmental conditions and site context. •

Further investigation and iteration are required that seeks to tie the axis together with the language of the dead red gums as an expression through the poetic gesture of the verticality and repetition of the red gums structural columns.

•

The architectural language of the tower and plant nursery are too separated and does not seem to highlight the two as the key element of the architecture. A similar relationship through the language of its roof form and envelope could play a role in emphasizing on these two key elements stronger.

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Task.08. || Sketch Design Refinements

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thesis week #09

DESIGN EXPLORATIONS #5.0 design iterations & refinements

SKETCH DESIGN

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PARTI REFINEMENT Composition and Form finding

The parti from mid-semesters review were clear in the way the programs are organized, however, the architecture lacks in responding to the internal and external conditions, as well as the changing environmental conditions of Lake Mulwala. The refined parti seeks to elevate the platforms based on the fluctuating water levels of Lake Mulwala, that also provides different levels of interactions within the lake: from above (tower), on the surface (plant nurseries), with the water itself (pool platform). The new parti also seeks to consolidate the different pathways into 3 clear movements & journeys on the jetty platform. The parti also follows a rigid and linear composition on the two axis that points at the key elements towards the end of the platforms. However, it creates a contrast that breaks away from the idea of rigidity to delineate the pool area that is subjected to the effect of flood levels, being submerged as a sacrificial platform with its red gum timber columns being the only element that is exposed during such events.

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a refined proposed site plan that reveals a consolidated axis that acts as a new landmark for Yarrawonga. An architectural intervention between land and water.

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floorplan refinements composition & form finding // sketch design

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LOOKOUT TOWER & PLANT NURSERY Architectural Language of Key Elements

With the lookout tower and plant nursery located towards the end of the two axis, the key elements share a similar architectural language of red gum structural columns that wraps around the respective buildings. Both buildings also focus on the idea of transparency through openings on the spaces with mesh platforms that seeks to connect the internal spaces to the external environment. This enhances the program on each building with similar design elements: with the tower focusing on specific framed views on each floors, whereas the plant nursery focuses on a central void that frames and exposes the wetland environment below.

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LOOKOUT TOWER & PLANT NURSERY Architectural Language of Key Elements

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language of dead red gum trees expressed through red gum structural columns that ties the two axis of the architecture together a reciprocal gesture that points towards the key elements at the end of the jetty

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SECTION VIEWS Lookout Tower / Materiality & Moments

The Lookout Tower towards the end of the jetty provides an overview of the landscape which focuses on framing specific views for visitors to observe on each level. The experience is dictated by the transparency on the stairs which connects people through both internal and external views, however, being enclosed on each floor focusing on the framed views. The surface and internal material is made of Corten steel contrasting the natural red gum timber structures that surrounds the tower. It is with the idea of temporality where both the structure and the skin changes over time through its interaction with the environment, in both the water as well as on the surface.

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SECTION VIEWS Pool Platform & Plant Nursery

Series of journeys and moments dictates the way visitors experience the space of the architecture, allowing them to construct multiple ways of understanding the environment of Lake Mulwala and the foreshore. The revegetation zone located towards the start point of the axis provides an open platform of shared knowledge and community engagement in the plant nursery. As visitors progress further into the platform, the pool platform encourages a more physical interaction with the water that is naturally filtered by the aquatic plants.

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a refined proposed composition and siting of the architecture within the context of Lake Mulwala and Yarrawonga Foreshore Reserve. A new landmark for Yarrawonga.

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SKETCH DESIGN Critiques Feedback & Reflections

•

A stronger relationship that links the architecture to its context, site and program needs to be investigated further.

•

The use of sawmilled red gum timber as a structural element for tower or methods to express language of the dead read gum timbers should be reconsidered as it contradicts the main intention of the project, despite being thoughtful to represent the degraded landscape of Lake Mulwala.

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Series of moments and markers on the platform needs to be clearer in the sequence of movements and the subject that visitors will observe on each point.

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Stronger connection with the town and foreshore is required for the architecture to represent as a landmark for Yarrawonga.

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02.

03.

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DRAWING MARK UPS Future Direction Progress

The sketch mark-ups on the site plan seeks to provide an overview of the feedbacks received on the iterations and exploration progress on the thesis project sketch design. The mark-ups highlight areas that needs to be taken into consideration for further investigation and exploration, based on: 1.

The disconnection of plant nursery in its siting on site. Based on the thesis inquiry which highlights a community concern to reactivate the foreshore with amenities and connection to the lake, the programs within the architecture could relate further to the town and the lake edge.

2. The architectural language of the key elements such as the tower requires further investigation in the way it relates to the context of Lake Mulwala, as well as highlighting a specific characteristic of Yarrawonga for the architecture to represent a new landmark for the town and the degraded landscape of the lake. 3. The sequence of entry and journeys into the architecture should be well curated, with specific observation points, markers and facilities on each destination in which the main intention of the thesis project is to allow visitors the acknowledge and understand the degraded landscape of Lake Mulwala, that has been highlight through the thesis research.

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Task.09. || Towards the Finals

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thesis week #10

REFINING THE DESIGN THESIS #1.0 project refinements & development

RESOLVING THE DESIGN

Week 09 initial design proposal reflections 255

JOURNEY SEQUENCE Reflections & Refinements

The initial design proposal reveals a flaw in the sequence of journeys, where specific observation points are not clear through the architecture. The point of entry and departure from each designated key spaces do not indicate a linear process journey. The experience of each key spaces is rather separated from each other and the emphasis of the architecture in its entirety to provide a clear journey sequence is not effective.

•

The programs need to be consolidated further, where each key spaces links to one another, providing a collaborative process of experience as visitors move through the architecture.

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Specific points, and markers, must be clear on each key space to designate a distinct observation of the landscape.

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The architecture will be refined into 2 main parts: on land and water, highlighting on the aspects of “life” on the foreshore and the “death” of the degraded landscapes of Lake Mulwala.

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PROGRAM CONSOLIDATION

DESIGN REFINEMENTS Observation Points & Journey Sequence

The design proposal is refined based on the consolidation of programs by creating key spaces that layers upon one another. The architecture is linked as a whole journey to provide a linear sequence of movement that emphasizes on specific moments and observation points as visitors move forward through the architecture. The key spaces delineate four observation points: 1.

REGENERATION: a shared education platform in the plant nursery to highlight the regrowth of lost foreshore vegetations.

2. NATURAL FILTRATION SYSTEM: a naturally filtered pool surrounded by foreshore aquatic plants that provides amenities along lake edge. 3. MEASURING

DEVICE: sacrificial

platforms

that

are

submerged during the events of Oversupply Flooding. 4. REMEMBRANCE: a lookout tower that allows for a closer observation of the degraded landscapes of extensive dead red gum trees in Lake Mulwala.

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PROGRAM REFINEMENTS Mark-up ideas

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framing

memorial lookout tower

architecture as as a measuring device

naturally filtered pool framing

plant nursery

Refinement Iteration #01

ramp down submerged point during oversupply flooding

foreshore

lake mulwala

overall elevation

oversupply flood levels average water levels

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OVERSUPPLY FLOOD EVENT responding to fluctuating flood levels

detached memorial tower

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end jetty platform & lookout tower submerged during the event of flooding

creating the awareness of oversupply flooding that damages the Murray River downstream

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thesis week #11

REFINING THE DESIGN THESIS #2.0 key spaces & program detailing refinements

RESOLVING THE DESIGN

Refinement Precedent Research Exterior materiality & Envelope

The 2014 MPavilion, designed by Sean Godsell, reflects the Australian outback of barns, sheds, and shelters where people gather and congregate within such a rudimentary structure.76 The pavilion is enclosed with an operable envelope that opens up during the day, revealing an entirely open and free structure in its interior space that accommodates programs for presentations and congregation in summer. The automated and operable envelope also provides shading from the summer sun which could be configured to control specific areas of enclosed or open spaces within the pavilion. The opening of the roof also reflects the concept of distant hills as influenced by the perspective of the Australian outback.77 The precedent research serves as an inspiration to the project refinement of the plant nursery in creating an operable envelope that entirely opens up, allowing the programs within to extend into the site. It intends to promote community and social engagement within the plant nursery as well as to reactivate the lake edge by providing an open space amenity that could accommodate multipurpose functions such as the farmers’ market.

76. MPavilion, “Sean Godsell Architects,” (2014). https://mpavilion.org/architect/2014-sean-godsell-architects/. 77. MPavilion, “Sean Godsell Architects.”

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Fig. 73. Earl Carter. Sean Godsell: MPavilion. Still image. 2014. https://www.archdaily. com/554942/sean-godsell-unveils-melbourne-s-inaugural-mpavilion

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Fig. 74. Earl Carter. 2014 MPavilion: Enclosed structure. Still image. 2014. https://www. archdaily.com/554942/sean-godsell-unveils-melbourne-s-inaugural-mpavilion

Fig. 75. Earl Carter. 2014 MPavilion: Opened structure. Still image. 2014. https://www. archdaily.com/554942/sean-godsell-unveils-melbourne-s-inaugural-mpavilion

Plant Nursery Development Program & Envelope refinement

Operable exterior walls that opens up. Allowing internal programs to extend into the exterior site context.

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plant nursery storage

opening up the interior to site context

workshop space. community engagement

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polycarbonate roofing + rain water collection

connection to lake landscape

sense of awareness + regrowth of lost landscapes

platform of shared knowledge

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operable polycarbonate external walls

connection to town

farmers’ market space

reactivating foreshore amenities

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Refinement Precedent Research Internal Materiality & Atmospheric Qualities

The design of ‘Bruder Klaus Field Chapel’ by Peter Zumthor revolves around the aspect of materiality, senses and the atmospheric experience that is captured within the tectonics of the building.78 The internal space is surrounded by a concrete cladding with rough timber textures that was etched by the framework which was removed as part of the construction process. The tectonics create an identity of a carved space of the exposed concrete, which leads the viewer’s eyes towards the oculus above, activating the senses of a “spiritual center of the chapel”.79 With the idea of materiality and its atmospheric expression, the journey towards the heart of the chapel provides a spiritual connection between heaven and earth.80 The design thesis will adapt similar ideas of atmospheric qualities through the expression of materiality in the lookout tower that seeks to connect with the surrounding degraded landscapes in which the architecture intends to highlight. The existing dead red gum trees will be adapted as part of the project, through the materiality of the lookout tower’s internal cladding. Rough textures of dead red gum bark will serve as an atmospheric quality to the internal space that connects visitors to the surrounding context of Lake Mulwala: emphasizing on the “death” of the landscapes.

78. Chad Schwartz, Introducing architectural tectonics: Exploring the Intersection of Design and Construction (Taylor & Francis, 2016), 279. 79. Schwartz, Introducing architectural tectonics: Exploring the Intersection of Design and Construction, 283. 80. Schwartz, Introducing architectural tectonics: Exploring the Intersection of Design and Construction, 282.

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Fig. 76. Samuel Ludwig. Bruder Klaus Field Chapel: Zumthor. Still image. 2011. https:// www.archdaily.com/106352/bruder-klaus-field-chapel-peter-zumthor

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Fig. 77. Samuel Ludwig. Bruder Klaus Field Chapel: Internal Space. Still image. 2011. https://www.archdaily.com/106352/bruder-klaus-field-chapel-peter-zumthor

Fig. 78. Samuel Ludwig. Bruder Klaus Field Chapel: Internal Space. Still image. 2011. https://www.archdaily.com/106352/bruder-klaus-field-chapel-peter-zumthor

Lookout Tower Development Materiality & Atmospheric Expression

central roof opening

dead red gum timber external cladding

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TOWER FLOORPLANS

framing remnants

ground floor

first floor

second floor

third floor 280

Lookout Tower Development Materiality & Atmospheric Expression

dead red gum trees

internal cladding

TOWER SECTION

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central focal point

oversupply flood level average water level

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development of program details & materiality. enhancing atmospheric expression that connects to the site context

REFINING THE DESIGN THESIS #02 Feedback & Reflections •

The architectural programs reveal a journey sequence that provides a clear observation points and markets on each key spaces.

•

There is a flaw in the architectural language of the two main feature of the architecture: the plant nursery and the tower.

•

The plant nursery and the tower need to have a cohesive identity between the two in terms of structure or form: creating a characteristic to these main features that ties them together.

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The jetty platform that is submerged during oversupply flooding could play a role in being a measuring device that provides a visual gauge of the changing water levels.

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thesis week #12

REFINING THE DESIGN THESIS #3.0 key spaces & program detailing refinements

RESOLVING THE DESIGN

Refinement Precedent Research External facade materiality + Connection to site context

Karsamaki Church, by OOPEAA/Lassila Hirvilammi Architects, was designed by adapting traditional building methods whilst intending to create a simplistic atmospheric quality using local timber materials from its surrounding context.81 The church consist of two main features: a timber log central space and black timber shingles external cladding. The adaptation of vernacular building methods and the use of local materials results in an architecture that closely reflects its surrounding context whilst being environmentally friendly. The church is entirely free of electricity and heating, relying mostly on natural ventilation and lighting through openings and skylight from above. The external cladding of timber shingles closely resembles the rural setting in which the church is situated upon.82 The precedent research serves as an inspiration for the development of materiality and cladding of the design project which intends to provide a connection to the degraded landscapes of Lake Mulwala. The emphasis on the existing dead red gum trees will be reflected on the façade of the two main features of the thesis project: the plant nursery and the lookout tower. By adapting similar external cladding strategies, the thesis project aims to adapt the treatment of timber shingles that is made from the dead red gum trees in Lake Mulwala. The architecture seeks to incorporate existing historical remnants of the red gums as part of the project to engage a closer connection to the site context.

81. Philip Jodidio and Sonja Altmeppen, Architecture now!, vol. 2005 (Taschen Cologne, 2001), 304. 82. Jodidio and Altmeppen, Architecture now!, 2005, 305.

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Fig. 79. Jussi Tiainen. Karsamaki Church: OOPEAA. Still image. 2015. https://www.archdaily.com/465128/karsamaki-church-lassila-hirvilammi

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Fig. 80. Jussi Tiainen. Karsamaki Church: Black exterior shingles. Still image. 2015. https://www.archdaily.com/465128/karsamaki-church-lassila-hirvilammi

Fig. 81. Jussi Tiainen. Karsamaki Church: Black exterior shingles. Still image. 2015. https://www.archdaily.com/465128/karsamaki-church-lassila-hirvilammi

PHYSICAL MODEL EXPLORATION PLANT NURSERY structure & materiality

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model exploration #1.0 structure + materiality

Through the model exploration, the roof of the plant nursery consists of timber truss structure that supports the polycarbonate roof sheeting allowing natural lighting into the space whilst still being able to filter the harsh summer sun. The external face of the plant nursery is cladded with shingles that is made from the existing degraded red gum trees, connecting back to the landscape of Lake Mulwala.

S T R U C T U R E + M AT E R I A L I T Y / / P H YS I CA L M O D E L E X P L O RAT I O N # 1 . 0

The physical sketch model intends to explore the structural and materiality component of the plant nursery, taking inspirations from the precedent research of adapting local materials from the site in which the Karsamaki Church is located upon. Raw timber materials will be used for the interior and exterior cladding of the plant nursery, adapting the use of the degraded red gum trees that exists in the lake as part of the façade in the form of timber shingles.

Plant Nursery Plan Development

chang e room s clos

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pool

Program & Spatial refinement

community & social engagement workshop space

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larger storage area for plant nursery equipments and misc.

open space farmers’ market

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Plant Nursery Section Development Roof Structure & External Cladding Refinement

operable timber louvres allowing natural ventilation

external red gum timber shingles

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polycarbonate roof + timber truss structure

roof angles towards the central point rainwater collection

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thesis week #13

REFINING THE DESIGN THESIS #4.0 key spaces & program detailing refinements

RESOLVING THE DESIGN

PHYSICAL MODEL EXPLORATION LOOKOUT TOWER structure & materiality

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model exploration #2.0 structure + materiality

The sketch model exploration tests out a part of the tower, which is the ground floor roof, emphasizing on a similar timber truss structure that is adapted in the plant nursery. However, it is contrasted by continuing the degraded red gum timber shingles on the roof, instead of having a transparent material, creating a darker ambience in its internal spaces. The lookout tower will then have a more controlled views and lighting that only emphasizes on the degraded landscape of Lake Mulwala.

S T R U C T U R E + M AT E R I A L I T Y / / P H YS I CA L M O D E L E X P L O RAT I O N # 2 . 0

Model exploration #2.0 intends to test out similar structures and materiality that is adapted in the plant nursery for the lookout tower in order to create a characteristic that ties these two main features of the architecture together. Highlighting the death of the Murray and Lake Mulwala, the external materiality of the lookout tower will mostly adapt the use of the degraded red gum trees as shingle façades that continues throughout its external faces.

Tower Plans Development Framed Views & Experiential refinements

seating on g.floor towards view of dead red gum remnants

ground floor

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slows down circulation via narrow stairs upwards

first floor

degraded red gum timber shingles on roof that continues on the external face of tower

second floor

top floor with framed view of overall landscape of dead red gum remnants in the lake

third floor

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Tower Section Development Framed Views & External Cladding Refinements

l materia ity

continu

framed view

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degraded red gum timber internal cladding

degraded red gum timber shingles + timber truss roof structure

submerged “acetylated” timber platform during oversupply flood events

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Materiality Research ACETYLATED TIMBER submerged timber platform during oversupply flood event

The renewable material of timber has widely been used as a structural element throughout architectural history. However, the issue related to timber application is its limited life span due to damages by humidity.83 Timber that is exposed to water increases the growth of fungi that causes decay, as well as moisture absorption which results in shrinkage and swelling.84 Such condition causes the timber to lose its strength properties that results in failure to the overall structural component. However, a chemical modified timber, known as “acetylated timber”, has resulted in an increase to its resistance from decay and improving the state of its stability despite various moisture conditions.85 Acetylated timber is also environmentally friendly as it avoids the use of biocides that could affect the surrounding environment.86 The use of acetylated timber provides innovative structural applications, replacing the use of fabricated materials with a more sustainable and renewable properties of timber.87 The design thesis seeks to incorporate the use of acetylated processed timber as the structural element of the tower and in the area towards the end of the jetty that is submerged during oversupply flood events. These submerged platforms intend to highlight the changing water levels that is damaging towards the Murray River downstream, thus creating an awareness through the role of architecture. With the use of acetylated timber on these sacrificial platforms and the structural components of the tower, there is a decrease in the need for maintenance since acetylated timber have a lifespan of 30 years in water, and 80 years above water.88

83. Ferry Bongers et al., “Acetylated wood in structural applications” (paper presented at the Proc. 5th Eur. Conf. on Wood modification, 2010), 2. 84. Bongers et al., “Acetylated wood in structural applications,” 3. 85. Bongers et al., “Acetylated wood in structural applications,” 5. 86. Bongers et al., “Acetylated wood in structural applications,” 5. 87. Bongers et al., “Acetylated wood in structural applications,” 5. 88. Bongers et al., “Acetylated wood in structural applications,” 6.

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Task.10. || The Final Project

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thesis week #14

FINAL DESIGN THESIS PROJECT finalising the research to a resolved design, & final viva voce panels

INLAND PUBLIC

Yarrawonga

DEATH, LIFE, & THE IN-BETWEEN

of Yarrawonga

Final Design Thesis Project

a Hypothesis Statement The Murray River has undergone drastic environmental changes in the past 200 years since the European colonization.89 In Yarrawonga, a central point on the river, the colonists made substantial modifications to construct weirs and water storage areas for irrigation.90 The 20th-century environmental historians have highlighted that colonization has accelerated the destruction of the river’s ecology to satisfy social and economic needs.91 Alteration of the river flow and frequency of unseasonal flooding due to oversupply irrigation waters in Yarrawonga reveals the flaws of the regulated river system that jeopardizes the health of the Murray River’s ecology.92 Today, the prosperity of Yarrawonga is mainly associated with Lake Mulwala as an integral part of the town’s tourism industry. While the lake appears natural, it has undergone constant modifications to sustain Yarrawonga’s tourism and economic growth.93 Consequently, the town’s re-engineered landscape has led to significant environmental issues such as water pollution and substantial loss of native vegetation along Lake Mulwala.94 In response to these issues, the thesis will propose the regeneration of threatened wetland plant species through a plant nursery along Yarrawonga foreshore. The revegetation zone will also function as a natural water filtration system along the lake edge. The project will also provide the town, which relies on tourism, with additional tourist infrastructure: an extended jetty into Lake Mulwala that includes a naturally filtered pool and a lookout tower. These integrated series of programs and interventions will function as public recreation spaces that promote the reflection and observation of the environmental conditions. The interactions and architectural response to the fluctuating water levels and lake conditions seeks to uncover the past and present, and creating awareness on the impact of anthropogenic modifications that is causing the death of the Murray River. 89. Davies and Lawrence, “Engineered landscapes of the southern Murray–Darling Basin: Anthropocene archaeology in Australia,” 1-2. 90. Loughnan, From Ballanda to 1968; the story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan, 26-27. 91. McNeill, Something new under the sun : an environmental history of the twentieth-century world, 147-48. 92. Chong and Ladson, “Analysis and management of unseasonal flooding in the Barmah–Millewa Forest, Australia,” 2. 93. Goulburn-Murray Water, “Works to commence for Lake Mulwala foreshore protection, tourism boost,” (July 2019). 94. Baldwin and Howitt, “Baseline assessment of metals and hydrocarbons in the sediments of Lake Mulwala, Australia,” 167-68.

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project site location along Murray River

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oversupply flooding from yarrawonga - lake mulwala 316

regulated river system, drowning the Murray downstream

Fig. 82. Murray Willaton. The little-known Aussie icon drowning in controversy. Online News, Still Image. 2019. https://au.news.yahoo.com/it-was-disgusting-the-aussietown-that-never-stops-flooding-075459879.html

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unseasonal flooding that causes the death of red gum forest at Barmah National Park, a wetland of International Importance 318

land modifications of Lake Mulwala. destruction of extensive red gum forest. constructed lake & flaws of water storage for irrigation. lost landscape of foreshore vegetation. urban run-off pollution. historical remnants of dead red gum trees. concrete cofferdam relics.

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yarrawonga / site context

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degraded landscapes of Lake Mulwala

Fig. 83. Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission. Yarrawonga Weir. Still image. 1932.

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Fig. 84. Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission. Construction of Yarrawonga Weir. Still image. 1934.

Fig. 85. Rose Stereograph Co. The Weir, Yarrawonga. Still image. 1940.

Fig. 86. Rayyan Roslan. Dead red gum trees, Lake Mulwala. Still image. 2020.

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DESIGN THESIS PROPOSAL an architectural response to the degraded landscapes & a new landmark of Yarrawonga - Lake Mulwala

323

DEATH, LIFE, & THE IN-BETWEEN

overall floor plans

326

YARRAWONGA PLANT NURSERY

the life of Yarrawonga

regrowth of lost foreshore vegetation sense of community engagement a platform of shared knowledge reactivating the lake edge for locals & tourists

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329

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Yarrawonga Plant Nursery REINVIGORATING THE LOST OF NATIVE FORESHORE VEGETATION

The foreshore along Yarrawonga has undergone extensive clearance of native vegetation since the construction of the lake and the weir, causing major pollution from urban run-offs affecting the water quality of the Murray River.95 Continuous urban expansion that includes earth works and infrastructural development along the foreshore threatens the native vegetation that helps to sustain the health of the river.96 The Yarrawonga Plant Nursery seeks to regenerate the loss of native foreshore vegetation, focusing on the regrowth of endangered and threatened species that has been highlighted in the Conservation Plan report by the Department of Primary Industries.97 Current threatened aquatic and wetlands flora that was once abundance along the Yarrawonga Foreshore Reserve includes the River Swamp Wallaby-grass, Swamp Billy Buttons, Water Starwort and Ridged Water Milfoil.98 The regeneration of these species along the foreshore will also aid with the filtration of urban run-off pollution that enters the lake. The existence of these aquatic plants could also provide a safe space for water recreation through its natural filtration processes, reactivating the amenities along the foreshore for visitors. The Yarrawonga Plant Nursery also seeks to provide a platform of shared knowledge, raising the awareness of the historical destruction of the lake and promoting a renewed life to the landscape of Yarrawonga and Lake Mulwala.

95. Department of Primary Industries, Conservation Plan for the Yarrawonga Landscape Zone (Victoria: Catchment and Agriculture Services, September 2006), 9. 96. Department of Primary Industries, Conservation Plan for the Yarrawonga Landscape Zone, 19. 97. Department of Primary Industries, Conservation Plan for the Yarrawonga Landscape Zone, 3. 98. Department of Primary Industries, Conservation Plan for the Yarrawonga Landscape Zone, 54.

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YARRAWONGA PLANT NURSERY

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FARMERS’ MARKET SPACE

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YARRAWONGA NATURALLY FILTERED POOL

living in collaboration with nature natural filtration systems a representational model of landscape regeneration reactivating foreshore amenities & recreational spaces

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YARRAWONGA NATURALLY FILTERED POOL

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WATER RECREATIONAL SPACE

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ARCHITECTURE AS A MEASURING DEVICE

submerged sacrificial jetty platform marking flood levels & the “death” of the Murray living archive & records of changing water levels sense of awareness through temporality & architecture

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submerged platform during the event of oversupply flooding creating a sense of awareness of changing environmental conditions

a memorial to the destruction of the former foreshore & an architectural response to the flood levels that damages the river’s ecology downstream

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Temporality Diagram effects of regulated river system to the architecture & the environment of the murray river

AVERAGE WATER LEVEL

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OVERSUPPLY FLOOD EVENT

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YARRAWONGA LOOKOUT TOWER

the death of Lake Mulwala

observation & scrutiny of degraded landscapes historical remnants of dead red gum trees remembrance of environmental destruction

memorial architecture

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349

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YARRAWONGA LOOKOUT TOWER

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FRAMED VIEW OF DEGRADED LANDSCAPES

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oversupply flood events. a submerged jetty platform towards the end, with the lookout tower being detached from the architecture. a memorial to the drastic environmental destruction of Lake Mulwala. and the death of the Murray River downstream.

memorial. remembrance.

death of the murray river.

PHYSICAL MODELS PRODUCTION

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DEATH, LIFE, & THE IN-BETWEEN

INLAND PUBLIC

Yarrawonga

model assembly

yarrawonga look out tower

east tower elevation

west tower elevation

tower ground foyer area

a closer connection to historical remnants

materiality. an architectural expression.

adapting red gums bark as shingles exterior skin

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plant nursery exterior shingles

tower ground foyer roof shingles

INLAND PUBLIC yarrawonga

Special thanks to Virginia Mannering for the guidance, mentoring, and the fruitful learning journey.

BIBLIOGRAPHY ABC News. “Mp Backs Residents’ Lake Plan Protests.” (September 2003). https://www.abc.net.au/news/2003-09-16/ mp-backs-residents-lake-plan-protests/1479356. American Society of Landscape Architects. “The Seed Bank: A New Approach to the Living Wall.” (2020). https://www. asla.org/2020awards/075.html. Australian National Botanic Gardens. “The National Seed Bank.” (May 2019). https://www.anbg.gov.au/gardens/ living/seedbank/index.html. Australian National Botanic Gardens. “Seed Bank Procedures.” (Jan 2019). https://www.anbg.gov.au/gardens/living/ seedbank/seedprocedures.html. Baldwin, D. S., and J. A. Howitt. “Baseline Assessment of Metals and Hydrocarbons in the Sediments of Lake Mulwala, Australia.” Lakes & Reservoirs: Science, Policy and Management for Sustainable Use 12, no. 3 (2007): 167-74. https:// doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1440-1770.2007.00331.x. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.14401770.2007.00331.x. Bongers, Ferry, John Alexander, André Jorissen, Hans J Blaß, and Callum Hill. “Acetylated Wood in Structural Applications.” Paper presented at the Proc. 5th Eur. Conf. on Wood modification, 2010. Chong, Joanne, and Anthony R Ladson. “Analysis and Management of Unseasonal Flooding in the Barmah–Millewa Forest, Australia.” River Research and Applications 19, no. 2 (2003): 161-80. Cunningham, S, Ralph Mac Nally, Matt White, Jenny Read, P Baker, Jim Thomson, and Peter Griffioen. “Mapping the Current Condition of River Red Gum (Eucalyptus Camaldulensis Dehnh.) Stands Along the Victorian Murray River Floodplain.” Report to the northern Victorian Catchment Management Authorities and the Department of Sustainability and Environment. Department of Sustainability and Environment, Melbourne (2007). Davies, Peter, and Susan Lawrence. “Engineered Landscapes of the Southern Murray–Darling Basin: Anthropocene Archaeology in Australia.” The Anthropocene Review 6, no. 3 (2019): 179-206. https://doi. org/10.1177/2053019619872826. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/2053019619872826. Department of Agriculture Water and the Environment. “Australian Wetlands Database: Australian Ramsar Wetlands.” (January 2021). http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/wetlands/ramsardetails.pl?refcode=14. Department of Primary Industries. Conservation Plan for the Yarrawonga Landscape Zone. (Victoria: Catchment and Agriculture Services, September 2006). Dodd, Melanie. Spatial Practices: Modes of Action and Engagement with the City. Routledge, 2019. Dunlop, Alan James. Wide Horizons: The Story of Yarrawonga, Tungamah, and Cobram Shires. AJ Dunlop, 1978. EUmiesaward. “Seljord Watchtower “ European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture. (2013). https://miesarch. com/work/1394. GH3. “Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool: First Chemical-Free Public Outdoor Pool in Canada.” (2018). https:// www.gh3.ca/work/natural-swimming-pool-02. Goulburn-Murray Water. “Lake Mulwala Foreshore Works Almost Complete.” news release, December 2019, https:// www.moira.vic.gov.au/Our-Council/News-and-information/Media-releases/Lake-Mulwala-foreshore-works-almostcomplete. Goulburn-Murray Water. “Works to Commence for Lake Mulwala Foreshore Protection, Tourism Boost.” (July 2019). https://www.g-mwater.com.au/news/media-releases1/works-to-commence-for-lake-mulwala-foreshore-protectiontourism-boost.html. Håkansson, N Thomas, and Mats Widgren. Landesque Capital: The Historical Ecology of Enduring Landscape Modifications. Vol. 5: Routledge, 2016.

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Heritage Council Victoria. Marmalake/Murtoa Grain Store. Victorian Heritage Database, (2008). Jared Loughnan. “Lake to Be Emptied Next Year.” Shepparton News (Shepparton), March 03 2021. https://www. sheppnews.com.au/2021/03/03/3460978/lake-to-be-emptied-next-year. Jodidio, Philip, and Sonja Altmeppen. Architecture Now! Vol. 2005: Taschen Cologne, 2001. Kennedy, Russell, Meghan Kelly, Brian Martin, and Jefa Greenway. “Australian Indigenous Design Charter.” (2016). Ladson, Tony, and Joanne Chong. “Unseasonal Flooding of the Barmah-Millewa Forest.” Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria 117 (06/30 2005): 127-37. Loe, Hikmet Sidney. The Spiral Jetty Encyclo : Exploring Robert Smithson’s Earthwork through Time and Place. 2017. Loughnan, A. Noel. From Ballanda to 1968; the Story of Yarrawonga. Editor: A. Noel Loughnan. Edited by Club Yarrawonga Apex. [Yarrawonga, Vic.]: Yarrawonga Apex Club, 1968. Mary Miss. “Perimeters / Pavilions / Decoys.” (1977). http://marymiss.com/projects/perimeterspavilionsdecoys/. McNeill, John Robert. Something New under the Sun : An Environmental History of the Twentieth-Century World. W.W. Norton & Co, 2001. Miss, Mary. “Greenwood Pond: Double Site.” (1996). http://marymiss.com/projects/greenwood-pond-double-site/. Moira Shire Council. Moira Shire Stage Two Heritage Study. Moira Shire Council (Yarrawonga, Victoria: 2007). Moira Shire Council. Yarrawonga Futures Plan / Report Prepared by Macroplan Australia. Moira Shire Council (Melbourne, Victoria: 2006). MPavilion. “Sean Godsell Architects.” (2014). https://mpavilion.org/architect/2014-sean-godsell-architects/. Muir, Hamish. ‘The Phaidon Atlas of Contemporary World Architecture’. Phaidon, 2004. Schwartz, Chad. Introducing Architectural Tectonics: Exploring the Intersection of Design and Construction. Taylor & Francis, 2016. Victorian Planning Authority. Yarrawonga Framework Plan: Community-Engagement Summary Report (Yarrawonga, Victoria: August 2019). Winton Wetlands Committee of Management. Winton Wetlands Master Plan / Report Prepared by Arup. Winton Wetlands Committee of Management (Benalla, Victoria: 2012). Winton Wetlands Committee of Management. Winton Wetlands Restoration and Monitoring Strategic Plan / Report Prepared by Tim Barlow, Gbcma. Winton Wetlands Committee of Management (Benalla, Victoria: July, 2011). Zweep, Martin. “The Murtoa Stick Shed New Life for a Wheatbelt Cathedral.” (2011). https://doi.org/10.3316/ informit.895365462828509. https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.895365462828509.

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LIST OF FIGURES Fig. 01. Asho. Dead Gums at Lake Mulwala at Sunset. 2007. Still image. https://www.flickr.com/photos/ash0/514270682/in/ photostream/ Fig. 02. Roslan, Rayyan. Anthropogenic Modifications of the Murray River map. Map image. 2021. Fig. 03. Rose Stereograph Co. THE WEIR, YARRAWONGA, VIC. [picture], 1920. Fig. 04. Google Earth, Location of Yarrawonga from Melbourne. Google Earth Map. Accessed 2021. Fig. 05. Roslan, Rayyan. Mapping of Yarrawonga region. Map image. 2021. Fig. 06. Yarrawonga Chronicle. World Ski racing selections. Newspaper image. 2019. https://www.yarrawongachronicle.com.au/ sport/2019/05/07/573813/world-ski-racing-selections#2 Fig. 07. Murray Views Collection. Aerial view of Lake Mulwala and Yarrawonga Weir. Postcard image. 2015. https://www. victorianplaces.com.au/aerial-view-lake-mulwala-and-yarrawonga-weir-murray-river-yarrawonga-mulwala Fig. 08. Roslan, Rayyan. Yarrawonga Historical Timeline. Collage image. 2021. Fig. 09. Rayyan Roslan. Scale drawings showing construction of Lake Mulwala. Still image. 2021. Fig. 10. Chapman, Wilfred Disney. Yarrawonga [picture], 1927. Fig. 11. Noel Loughnan. Clearing the tall red gums in Lake Mulwala. In Noel Loughnan. From Ballanda to 1968: The story of Yarrawonga, 27. Yarrawonga: Yarrawonga Apex Club, 1968. Fig. 12. Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission. Yarrawonga Weir, 1934. Fig. 13. Ian Lunt. Lake Mulwala in 1934 and 2009. Aerial Image. 2012. Fig. 14. Rayyan Roslan. Mapping of Unseasonal Flooding of the Barmah National Park. Map Image. 2021. Fig. 15. Cunningham et. al. Conditions of river red gum stands. In Cunningham et. al, Mapping the current condition of river red gum stands along the Victorian Murray River Floodplain, 45. Department of Sustainability and Environment, Melbourne. 2007. Fig. 16. William van Aken. Flooded Barmah Forest river gums, VIC. Still image. 1989. https://www.scienceimage.csiro.au/tag/ watercourses/i/4471/flooded-barmah-forest-river-gums-vic/ Fig. 17. Corowa Press. Water protest for ministers attention. Newspaper image. 2021. Fig. 18. Rayyan Roslan. Mapping the removal of foreshore along Lake Mulwala. Map Image. 2021 Fig. 19. Rayyan Roslan. Catalogue of civic and infrastructure buildings. Collage Image. 2021 Fig. 20. Rayyan Roslan. Mash-up exploration 3D models. 3D Image. 2021 Fig. 21. Rayyan Roslan. Mash-up exploration 3D models. 3D Image. 2021 Fig. 22. Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission Photographer. [Early Construction Work on the Yarrawonga Weir] [picture], 1935. Fig. 23. Left & Right: Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission Photographer. [Construction of Yarrawonga Weir] [picture], 1932. Fig. 24. Rayyan Roslan. Map & Sectional Drawing of Lake Mulwala. Still Image. 2021

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Fig. 25. Rayyan Roslan. Left: Mapping of cofferdam in Lake Mulwala, Right: Diagrams of proposal. Still Image. 2021 Fig. 26. Rayyan Roslan. Collage diagram of Mary Miss’s Perimeters/Pavilion/Decoy. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 27. Yarrawonga Chronicle. Lake Mulwala’s water has turned green with higher levels of blue green algae. Newspaper image. 2020. Fig. 28. Rayyan Roslan. Mapping & Thesis proposal diagram. Map & Diagram. 2021 Fig. 29. Rayyan Roslan. Mapping of Winton Wetlands Restoration project precedent studies. Map & Diagram. 2021 Fig. 30. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram studies of Robert Smithson’s Spiral Jetty. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 31. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram of thesis material proposal. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 32. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram studies of Karijini Visitor Centre materiality. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 33. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram of thesis material proposal. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 34. Rayyan Roslan. Diagram of research scope & selected site proposal. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 35. Rayyan Roslan. Selected site proposal. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 36. Rayyan Roslan. Draft layout of programs on tracing paper. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 37. Rayyan Roslan. Preliminary Program Ideas diagram. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 38. Rayyan Roslan. Plan Parti. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 39. Rayyan Roslan. Parti Diagrammatic Model analysis on site context. Physical Model. 2021 Fig. 40. Rayyan Roslan. Stacking of platforms and red gum stumps on site topography. Physical Model. 2021 Fig. 41. Rayyan Roslan. Overall Pati Diagrammatic model on site topography. Physical Model. 2021 Fig. 42. Rayyan Roslan. Elevation view of parti diagrammatic model on site topography. Physical Model. 2021 Fig. 43. Rayyan Roslan. Preliminary program development diagram. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 44. MIRIDAE. A Living Seed Bank: Seeds of Change. Diagram. 2020. https://www.asla.org/2020awards/075.html Fig. 45. MIRIDAE. Living Seed Bank: A Social Centerpiece. Still image. 2020. https://www.asla.org/2020awards/075.html Fig. 46. MIRIDAE. Living Seed Bank: The Seed Map. Still image. 2020. https://www.asla.org/2020awards/075.html Fig. 47. Rayyan Roslan. Prorgam Ideas Refinement. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 48. Rayyan Roslan. Spatial Parti Refinement. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 49. Rayyan Roslan. Draft spatial planning for parti. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 50. John Sturrock. Of Soil and Water: King’s Cross Pond Club. Still image. 2016. http://www.ooze.eu.com/en/urban_ prototype/kings_cross_pond_club/ Fig. 51. Rayyan Roslan. King’s Cross Pond Club hybrid diagram. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 52. John Sturrock. King’s Cross Pond Club overview. Still image. 2016. http://www.ooze.eu.com/en/urban_prototype/ kings_cross_pond_club/

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Fig. 53. Marjetica Potrc. King’s Cross Pond Club constructed wetland. Still image. 2016. http://www.ooze.eu.com/en/urban_ prototype/kings_cross_pond_club/ Fig. 54. GH3. Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool. Still image. 2018. https://www.gh3.ca/work/natural-swimming-pool-02 Fig. 55. Rayyan Roslan. Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool hybrid diagram. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 56. GH3. Hydrobotanic regeneration ponds. Still image. 2018. https://www.gh3.ca/work/natural-swimming-pool-02 Fig. 57. GH3. Natural Swimming Pool. Still image. 2018. https://www.gh3.ca/work/natural-swimming-pool-02 Fig. 58. Rayyan Roslan. Thesis project hybrid diagram. Diagram. 2021 Fig. 59. Rayyan Roslan. Landscape of dead red gum trees in Lake Mulwala. Still Image. 2021 Fig. 60. Rayyan Roslan. Dead red gum trees in Lake Mulwala. Still Image. 2021

Fig. 61. Bruce Thomas. The Murtoa Stick Shed. Still Image. 2008. https://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/868 Fig. 62. Public Record Office Victoria. Erecting poles for Murtoa Stick Shed. Still Image. 1941. Fig. 63. Public Record Office Victoria. Murtoa Stick Shed under construction. Still Image. 1941. Fig. 64. Shepparton News. Lake to be emptied next year. Newspaper Image. 2020. Fig. 65. Mako Hodgey. Lake Mulwala Drained. Still Image. 2009. https://www.fishraider.com.au/topic/41635-lakemulwala-drained/ Fig. 66. Ian Lunt. Dry lake bed of Lake Mulwala in July 2009 (top), and flooded Lake Mulwala in 2005. Aerial Image. 2021. Fig. 67. Mary Miss. Greenwood Pond: Double Site. Overview. Aerial image. 1996. Fig. 68. Mary Miss. Greenwood Pond: Double Site. Concrete trough in lake. Still image. 1996. http://marymiss.com/ projects/greenwood-pond-double-site/ Fig. 69. Mary Miss. Greenwood Pond: Double Site. Installation overview. Still image. 1996. http://marymiss.com/ projects/greenwood-pond-double-site/ Fig. 70. Dag Jenssen. Seljord Watch Tower / Rintala Eggertsson Architecture. Still image. 2012. https://www. archdaily.com/212966/seljord-watch-tower-rintala-eggertsson-architects Fig. 71. Dag Jenssen. Seljord Watch Tower: Overview of Seljord Lake. Still image. 2012. https://www.archdaily. com/212966/seljord-watch-tower-rintala-eggertsson-architects Fig. 72. Dag Jenssen. Seljord Watch Tower: Night perspective. Still image. 2012. https://www.archdaily.com/212966/ seljord-watch-tower-rintala-eggertsson-architects Fig. 73. Earl Carter. Sean Godsell: MPavilion. Still image. 2014. https://www.archdaily.com/554942/sean-godsellunveils-melbourne-s-inaugural-mpavilion Fig. 74. Earl Carter. 2014 MPavilion: Enclosed structure. Still image. 2014. https://www.archdaily.com/554942/seangodsell-unveils-melbourne-s-inaugural-mpavilion Fig. 75. Earl Carter. 2014 MPavilion: Opened structure. Still image. 2014. https://www.archdaily.com/554942/seangodsell-unveils-melbourne-s-inaugural-mpavilion

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Fig. 76. Samuel Ludwig. Bruder Klaus Field Chapel: Zumthor. Still image. 2011. https://www.archdaily.com/106352/ bruder-klaus-field-chapel-peter-zumthor Fig. 77. Samuel Ludwig. Bruder Klaus Field Chapel: Internal Space. Still image. 2011. https://www.archdaily. com/106352/bruder-klaus-field-chapel-peter-zumthor Fig. 78. Samuel Ludwig. Bruder Klaus Field Chapel: Internal Space. Still image. 2011. https://www.archdaily. com/106352/bruder-klaus-field-chapel-peter-zumthor Fig. 79. Jussi Tiainen. Karsamaki Church: OOPEAA. Still image. 2015. https://www.archdaily.com/465128/ karsamaki-church-lassila-hirvilammi Fig. 80. Jussi Tiainen. Karsamaki Church: Black exterior shingles. Still image. 2015. https://www.archdaily. com/465128/karsamaki-church-lassila-hirvilammi Fig. 81. Jussi Tiainen. Karsamaki Church: Black exterior shingles. Still image. 2015. https://www.archdaily. com/465128/karsamaki-church-lassila-hirvilammi Fig. 82. Murray Willaton. The little-known Aussie icon drowning in controversy. Online News, Still Image. 2019. https://au.news.yahoo.com/it-was-disgusting-the-aussie-town-that-never-stops-flooding-075459879.html Fig. 83. Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission. Yarrawonga Weir. Still image. 1932. Fig. 84. Victoria. State Rivers Water Supply Commission. Construction of Yarrawonga Weir. Still image. 1934. Fig. 85. Rose Stereograph Co. The Weir, Yarrawonga. Still image. 1940. Fig. 86. Rayyan Roslan. Dead red gum trees, Lake Mulwala. Still image. 2020.

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Yarrawonga

winter. 2021.