Esteemed Australian architect, Peter McIntyre has been honoured with two prestigious architecture awards for projects completed decades apart.

At 86 years of age, McIntyre’s award-winning ways began much before the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. His ‘McIntyre House’ project (completed 1955), has now continued this success nearly 50 years on by recently winning the ‘Best Enduring Architecture’ award at this year’s Victorian Architecture Awards.

He was also previously honoured with the 2013 Institute of Architects Commendation Award for the Richard and Elizabeth Tudor Centre at Trinity Grammar.

McIntyre believes test of time is the truest indicator of a building’s integrity of purpose, explaining that architecture should not merely respond to current trends.

Says McIntyre, “Time is the best way to assess a building's form and function. It is important that architecture does not merely respond to the fripperies of fashion, and the test of time is the truest indication of a building’s integrity of purpose.”

Above: While McIntyre is honoured to be acknowledged by his industry peers for McIntyre House, the project that he is most proud of is his latest achievement, the Richard and Elizabeth Tudor Centre. Images: AIA

The Richard and Elizabeth Tudor Centre at Trinity Grammar also won him Boroondara’s Best Institutional Design for the 2014 Boroondara Council Design Awards.

Working on a very concise brief from the headmaster, Richard Tudor who wanted a facility that was at the very heart of the school and embraced a liberated learning concept, McIntyre designed the library building where the aesthetic and functional elements are immediately apparent; however, one can also deeply experience the humanism inherent in the space.

The library is the heart of the school, frequented by students as well as serving as a meeting place for teachers and parents.

Well-conceived study nooks, fireside lounges, quiet study rooms in the café and outdoor courtyards are some of the physical aspects of McIntyre’s vision. The curvilinear nautiluses shell design spans across seven levels to below ground, covering some 5000 square metres of floor space.

The environmentally sensitive design incorporates geothermal tempered water, harvested rainwater and a gentle form of natural ventilation. Rainwater is collected from roofs and stored in underground tanks, which act as a cooling thermal system throughout the building. Images: Carmine La Scaleia

Peter McIntyre’s career highs include being a key part of the design team for the Melbourne Olympic Swimming Pool in 1952, as well as being lauded by critic Robin Boyd in 1950 when his design for an environmentally adapted Mallee Hospital was described as the beginning of a new Australian architecture.

Nathan Johnson

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