Mclldowie Partners designed an eight-story podium building at the center of a new Jewish cultural hub for Elsternwick in Melbourne, Australia.

Housing the performing arts and co-working spaces, the project will include both the Kadimah Jewish Cultural Centre and National Library, as well as the Jewish Museum of Australia.

The building is made to celebrate Jewish life and culture while bringing Melbourne’s major Jewish institutions together.

Formally, the project includes a clearly defined podium for the museum and educational spaces. Above, the tower will include a series of co-working spaces.

The podium was made to respond to the existing rhythm of Selwyn Street, featuring a textured concrete facade that aims to respond to the human scale of the street and reflect the passing of time.

Mclldowie's proposal would connect to the existing Jewish Holocaust Centre, Sholem Aleichem College and Classic Cinemas.

“Forming a new cultural precinct with two world-class museums in the Jewish Holocaust Centre and the Jewish Museum of Australia, with enthusiastic support from the City of Glen Eira, will enrich our community and visitors keen for a taste of Jewish Life,” says Barry Fradkin OAM, president of the Jewish Museum of Australia: Gandel Centre of Judaica.

Kadimah president Renata Singer notes that, “as the home of Yiddish culture in Melbourne for more than a century, we are eager to enter a new chapter seeing our current centre make way for a dynamic new locale, welcoming our community and beyond to be immersed in a wonderful place for art, music, theatre, performance, learning and exhibitions."

The building project includes exhibition and education spaces, a 300-seat auditorium, co-working areas, and a plaza.

The Jewish Arts Quarter should be realised in the next two to three years, with the first development under approval and the Jewish Holocaust Center redevelopment underway.