Wangun Amphitheatre is an exemplar of culturally responsive co-creation. The project deftly creates an accessible, all-weather facility for the community to come together and is the first self-determined cultural venue for Gunaikurnai communities.
It shows a deeply considered response to both brief and site, delivering a captivating and thoughtful architectural solution where the whole is so much more than the sum of its parts.
The PTFE canopies which collectively define the amphitheatre, and symbolise the five Gunaikurnai clan shields, are delicate, elegant and playful; never quite touching each other whilst providing protection from the elements. What could easily have been a perfunctory structural solution manages to be both sculptural and functional conveying an effortless intuition.
The project demonstrates the reward for an investment in extensive and deep community engagement, creating a place of both beauty and purpose.