This year’s Dulux Colour Awards winners, announced last week in Melbourne, demonstrate the capacity for colour to transform our built environment through innovative design, ambitious scope and masterful execution. Chosen from 113 finalists across New Zealand and Australia the winning projects were applauded for their exceptional use of colour across a vast range of scales and typologies.
Residential Interior Commendation
Project: Mount Mac
Architecture/Design Practice: Williams Burton Leopardi
Key Dulux Colours: Dulux Wigram and Te Kuiti
Photography: Caroline Cameron
Two of the winners I'm sharing with you today are from the Residential Category, where I was drawn to their beautiful use of dark and moody hues.
In recognising the outstanding designs, the judges acknowledged the people at the heart of each project – those creating them and those inhabiting them.
“Colour is universal but it means different things to different people,” says Dulux Colour Specialist Davina Harper. “This year’s suite of award winners epitomises the capacity for colour to transform spaces and elicit emotion in everybody.
“The level of ambition in each brief and the sophistication in the palettes designed to realise those architectural aims increases every year,” says Harper. “From a tiny apartment to a multi-storey community hub or a modest storage shed to a heritage theatre, the originality and brave employment of colour is outstanding.”
Residential Interior Commendation
Project: Mount Mac
Architecture/Design Practice: Williams Burton Leopardi
Key Dulux Colours: Dulux Wigram and Te Kuiti
Photography: Caroline Cameron
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Congratulations to the prestigious New Zealand Grand Prix winner, Shand Shelton, for their remarkable restoration of the St James Theatre in Wellington. A celebration of craftsmanship and collaboration, taking cues from descriptions of the auditorium in 1912, the project was a testament to the power of colour to enrich and enliven.
Grand Prix New Zealand Winner
Also, a commendation in the Commerical Interior - Public and Hospitality category
Project: St James Theatre, NZ
Architecture/Design Practice: Shand Shelton
Key Dulux Colours: Dulux Rosewood, Waiau Bay Half & Vintage Gold
Photography: Paul McCredie
Bringing a wealth of design-industry expertise to their endeavours, the respected panel comprised: Andrew Piva, Director of B.E Architecture; Brahman Perera, Inter-disciplinary Designer and Director of his eponymous studio; Lisa Lee, Senior Interior Designer of Snøhetta; Sarah Carney, Project Director of CTRL Space; and, Byron George, Director of Russell & George.
Residential Interior Winner
Project: Alma Road Residence
Architecture/Design Practice: Studiofour
Key Dulux Colours: Dulux Fernhill & Mt Aspiring
Photography: Shannon McGrath
As far as noteworthy directions, sage and blush hues emerged as a strong colourway in a range of projects and there were also numerous outstanding examples of commitment to a single colour. This demountable bookshop within the century-old Postal Hall at the heart of Perth’s State Buildings complex, is a wonderful example.
Commercial Interior - Workspace and Retail Winner
Project: Postal Hall
Architecture/Design Practice: Trower Falvo Architects with Alessio Fini
Key Dulux Colours: Dulux Mist Green
Photography: Ben Hosking
Find out more about the Dulux Colour Awards, and see the full list of winners here.