Australian architect Andrew Burns is behind the design of a new Australia House gallery and studio project which has opened to coincide with the 5th Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale in Japan.

Photographer: Brett Boardman

The new building replaces the original Australia House which collapsed soon after an aftershock from the 2011 earthquake and is located in Niigata Prefecture, Japan.

The Triennale is one of the world's largest international art festivals, held every three years in Japan.

Burns’ design proposal for Australia House was selected unanimously from among 154 international entries in an international design competition judged by Professor Tom Heneghan, Fram Kitagawa, General Director of the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale and Tadao Ando, Jury chair and Pritzker Prize winner. It was chosen as it was deemed to best reflect the Treinnale's themes of "Human Beings are part of Nature".

Photographer: Brett Boardman

Burns said that his design uses large screens and windows to connect visitors to the landscape outside and described the building as 'part farmhouse, part gallery, and part site specific artwork'.

"Architecture is not simply about shelter, or building, or fashion, or the person who designed it — architecture fundamentally shapes the way we live, how we experience the world, and our place within it,” said Burns.

"One's perception of the building alternates between the dynamic appearance of an art object and the familiar presence of a rural dwelling. The roof rises steeply to the daikoku-bashira, which becomes a charged element within the gallery space. The triangular form creates a long dimension and widening perspective within compact space. The internal spaces are calibrated to amplify the experience of landscape," he added.

Artist Brook Andrew was selected as the Australian artist to present in the Echigo-Tsumari Triennale this year, which lead to a collaboration between architect and artist during the final resolution of the building design.

Community leader Maruama-san at Australia House. Photograph by Brett Boardman

Madeline Prince

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