The Embassy of Australia,
Washington D.C.
Melbourne Design Week 2024
This exhibition celebrates the architecture, art, and design of the new Embassy of Australia in Washington D.C., exploring its connection to history, the Australian landscape, and cultural identity.
23rd May — 2nd June
Bates Smart Gallery, entry via Albert Street.
Ground Floor / 1 Nicholson St, East Melbourne.
Thu 23 May
Fri 24 May
Sat 25 May
Thu 30 May
Fri 31 May
Sat 01 May
11am - 3pm
11am - 3pm
11am - 3pm
11am - 3pm
11am - 3pm
11am - 3pm
History
The previous Embassy of Australia in Washington D.C., also by Bates Smart, opened its doors in 1969. For more than half a century it stood as a significant symbol of the strong alliance between the two nations. Yet, as time flowed, so did the need for a fresh chapter in Australia’s diplomatic history in the United States.
Our new Embassy showcases the very best in Australian design, materials and architectural excellence, thanks to the innovative design by prominent Australian architectural studio, Bates Smart, who also designed our original Embassy building over half a century ago.
Architecture
The new embassy’s monolithic form is inspired by Australia’s iconic landscape, capturing the essence of an ancient and vast continent inhabited by the world’s oldest continuous living culture. The design exhibits a striking tectonic quality where large shadow line joints define a series of aggregated forms which combine to create a dialogue between positive and negative space.
Façade materiality tests
Materiality and light are key in expressing the building’s design where the appearance of the façade changes throughout the day depending on the viewer’s perspective. The interplay of angled copper cladding and extensive glazing combine to create a dynamic and engaging expression of Australia that is also considerate of its Washington site.
The design and construction teams located in Australia, the USA and in other countries around the globe worked hand in hand around the clock to create and deliver a building that represents the Australian spirit, whilst respecting the local context and values of international diplomacy.
The design is respectful of Capitol Hill’s architectural style and acknowledges the site's transition from residential to the north and commercial to the south. Formal access is from the south, acknowledging the White House, a 'garden face' landscape embracing Scott Circle, and greater solidity towards the 16th Street Historic District.
The Australian Embassy design balances its role as a strong visual reflection of Australia, with enduring civic spaces and functional workplaces set across seven levels.
The embassy includes a thermally efficient façade, a green roof with an extensive photovoltaic array, expansive use of natural light and the latest building services technologies. It also hosts a rooftop apiary, which can serve as home to approximately 240,000 resident bees. The embassy has been awarded the LEED Gold Certification.
Interiors
Symbolising Australia's welcoming nature, a celebrated gateway entry and visually open ground plane invites public engagement whilst providing the necessary security. The building is organised around a north-south civic axis and a large central atrium connecting the ground plane to the sky.
The interior expresses the unique qualities of the Australian natural environment, the bold textures of our bushland and the soft filtered light which falls upon it.
- Drop off
- Enterence
- Vestibule
- Screening area
- Lift lobby
- Waiting
- Gallery
- Conference
- Large meeting
- Auditorium
- Small meeting
- Sculpture court
- Sunken garden
The entry lobby welcomes all consular visitors, staff and invited guests, with full height glass doors presenting a gesture of openness, flowing seamlessly to stair and elevator connections within the embassy. Separate paths flow through to the lift lobbies, to the consular service areas, and a representational waiting space allowing for the clear separation of these key flows dependent on the user.
Acting as the threshold to the formal and ceremonial areas, a waiting room celebrates Australian furniture designers and First Nations artists with an arrangement of bespoke furniture and speciality rugs. The entrance flows into a grand ceremonial processional space, designed to reinforce a relationship of openness, clarity between the two countries, and the common values of freedom and democracy.
A large central atrium rises seven storeys to a skylight, framing views above and filtering natural light to the spaces below. This central atrium gives rise to an axial arrangement of representational spaces where every visitor is granted an equally immersive experience.
The main representational spaces are defined by strong materiality with Australian timber panels organised around a series of textured horizontal bands that transition from rough to smooth. This mirrors the protective qualities of the bark during the eucalypt forest's cycle of growth, burn and regrowth. Intricate metallic filigree screens mediate the interplay of light and shadow in social breakout and office spaces.
The workplace component of the embassy on Levels 3 – 6 accommodates 13 government departments. A key element of the workspace design was the staff hub, a series of breakout spaces vertically linked by a feature stair within the controlled access zone, encouraging staff to move easily between departments and social spaces. This environment is an open, warm, light-filled space to naturally gather and engender workplace cohesion.
The interior design of the open workspaces with ample daylighting promotes a calm and ordered atmosphere. The U-shaped plan and side core arrangement ensure efficient floorplates, allowing departments to adapt to changing requirements.
Furniture
A collaboration with the Design Institute of Australia identified a number of leading furniture designers from Australia. Incorporating both contemporary and historically significant designs, the embassy’s furniture selection celebrates the essence of Australian design. Crafted using sustainable materials and finishes, the pieces embody a future-forward aesthetic and informality.
The representational waiting space is defined by re-interpretations of Robin Boyd's iconic designs from the 1960s, such as the sofas based on Boyd's design from the iconic Walsh Street.
Key pieces
Other key pieces include an executive boardroom table custom designed by Simon Ancher using reclaimed hydro timbers sourced from Tasmania, elegant armchairs by Franco Crea, sofas for the head of missions office by Bassam Fellows, armchairs and sofa for the public spaces by Justin Hutchinsons and Kett, along with Adam Goodrum Molloy chairs with custom seat pads and tables that feature in staff breakouts in the atrium.
Domain Park Chair
KFive / Robin Boyd
Johanna Occasional Chair
Kett / Justin Hutchinson
Molloy Chair
Nau / Adam Goodrum
Hoshi Armchair
Tom Skeehan
Mila Armchair
Franco Crea
Salon Sofa
Bassam Fellows / Craig Bassam
Autobahn
Derlot
Ora Desk Lamp
Ross Gardam
Bloom Floor Light
Resident
Ceto Floor Lamp
Ross Gardam
Torched Timber Coffee Table
Simon Ancher Studio
Clipped Wing Side Table
Simon Ancher
Clipped Wing Sideboard
Simon Ancher
Lecturn
Nathan Day
Art Commissions
The embassy’s interiors are complemented by commissioned art and hand-crafted Australian designed bespoke rugs showcasing leading Australian artists, designers, and manufacturers, and celebrates the essence of Australian design.
Commissioned sculptures and artworks
Melbourne based not-for-profit Agency Projects in collaboration with Brisbane based UAP convened a selection panel composed of Australian industry experts and key representatives to review, evaluate and select artists. The commissioned pieces include three outdoor sculptures and three interior installations, emphasising Australia’s rich Indigenous heritage and depicting the stories of vibrant diaspora communities.
Callum Morton, Bull
Canadian-born Australian Callum Morton is a renowned public artist and director of Monash Art Projects. His five-metrer-tall sculpture named Bull, the Embassy’s 2017-2018 competition winner, commemorates Australian veteran Leslie 'Bull' Allen. Using Ballarat quartz, it symbolises Australia's geological, economic, and cultural history, emphasising the Australia-US alliance.
Janet Fieldhouse, Sister Crossing
Fieldhouse's proposed Embassy sculpture, Sisters Charm, symbolises protection and power, inspired by her connections with First Nations people in the US. The sculpture features feathers symbolising weaving, memory, and celebration; a canoe denoting a seafaring journey and ocean separation; and mangrove roots signifying growth, renewal, and the artist's heritage.
Patju Presley, Wakura
Patju Presley, a senior Pitjantjatjara law man from Tjuntjuntjara, South Australia, has created a vibrant large-scale painting for the Embassy. Known for his deep knowledge of Western Desert geography and Tjukurpa, Presley’s dynamic and movement-filled style symbolises his spiritual connection to the landscape and ancestral heritage.
Sonja Carmichael, Ungaire & Elisa Jane Carmichael Quandamooka Gulayi
Sonja and Elisa-Jane Carmichael, Quandamooka artists from Stradbroke Island, create works that highlight intergenerational stories and weaving practices. Their art draws on a deep connection to water and uses natural fibres and discarded materials like ghost nets. Their proposed Embassy artwork is a large-scale interpretation of a bound bunch of swamp reed, Ungaire, representing the traditional gathering process for making a Gulayi, a traditional women's bag.
Based on environmentally sensitive practices and ancestral research, including studies of bags in the Smithsonian, the sculptures use copper rods and patinaed copper mesh to connect traditional practices with contemporary techniques, emphasising the importance of heritage and environmental stewardship.
Dr Abdullah M I Syed, Woven Distance
Dr Abdullah M. I. Syed, a Pakistan-born contemporary artist working between Sydney, Karachi, and New York, creates Woven Distance, symbolising the Australia-US partnership. His artwork, made of interwoven metal rings, references time, space, and cultural connections, blending traditional tapestry techniques with contemporary design to reflect interconnectedness despite geographical distances.
Specialty Rugs
Australia’s rich artistic heritage is also celebrated at the embassy through specialty rugs based on First Nations artworks, which are located in key representational spaces. Through close collaboration with artists and their representatives, a unique design process involving interior designers and rug manufacturers captured the unique essence of each selected artwork, which was translated into captivating hand-tufted wool rug designs.
Take a closer look at the process of rug making with this video made with Regina Pilawuk Wilson who also created a piece, Syaw (fish-net), seen in the Embassy waiting area.
A dedicated gallery space displays the embassy’s permanent collection as well as changing exhibition of artworks, sculptures and audio-visual displays.
