Two young Sydney architects are dismissing boxy modernist design in favour of what has been dubbed 'Liquid architecture'.Tony Owen director at Tony Owen Partners came up with the term describing it as a combination of digital technology and environmental principles such as maximising sun and light and minimising artificial air conditioning to help shape the building. "We now have the tools to create complex geometric forms as affordably as traditional designs," he said.Owen is currently working on the Eliza apartments on Hyde Park in Sydney which will incorporate the principles of liquid architecture whereby each floor will be of a different shape over the 17 level building.Owen is also responsible for the spherical designs of Breeze in Drummoyne and the Brighton le Sands in Melbourne the latter which was almost not approved due to the building's curved contrast to surrounding apartmentsEOS, Bay Street, Brighton le Sands

Breeze, St Georges crescent, DrummoyneKevin Ng from MPR Design Group has also used this form of design in the architectural curves of Point Piper and Bronte House. He explains how he came up with the idea for Bronte House and was able to exploit natural ventilation as well as light.Bronte House"The design originated from the twisted form of a piece of paper, its twisted folds provide privacy from adjoining properties whilst opening up in strategic parts to capture views and maximise sunlight."He explains how architects benefit from the flexibility of curved architecture."As well as allowing us to create something interesting and unique, these designs give us the chance to experiment with different construction techniques and materials."Point PiperThe idea of curved architecture is not new as Sydney Morning Herald journalist Susan Wellings points out:"Over time, many leading architects such as Joern Utzon, Frank Gehry, Oscar Niemeyer, Sir Basil Spence and our own late, great Harry Seidler have experimented with curved surfaces - and a fair number of mediocre ones have had a go, too.But with the advances in computer graphics, making architectural waves is now within the range of many more designers."

Madeline Prince

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