ACAHUCH
The Australian Centre for Architectural History, Urban and Cultural Heritage provides an international perspective on research and teaching in architectural history and heritage with a particular emphasis on Australia and the Asia-Pacific.
News and Events
Co-directors
Academic Staff
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Dr Amanda Achmadi, Melbourne School of Design -
Dr AnnMarie Brennan, Melbourne School of Design -
Dr Karen Burns, Melbourne School of Design -
Professor Qinghua Guo, Melbourne School of Design -
Associate Professor Alison Inglis, Faculty of Arts -
Dr Andrew Jamieson, Faculty of Arts -
Professor Gini Lee, Melbourne School of Design -
Stuart King, Melbourne School of Design -
Dr Susan Lowish, Faculty of Arts -
Dr Giorgio Marfella, Melbourne School of Design -
Dr Kate MacNeill, Faculty of Arts -
Dr David Nichols, Melbourne School of Design -
Associate Professor Anoma Pieris, Melbourne School of Design -
Dr Alberto Pugnale, Melbourne School of Design -
Associate Professor Andrew Saniga, Melbourne School of Design -
Professor Robyn Sloggett, Faculty of Arts -
Dr Sara Wills, Faculty of Arts
Post-Doctoral Researchers
Advisory Board
HDR students
| Name | Topic | Supervisors |
|---|---|---|
| Allan Willingham | The Tennis Court: An Architectural History | Philip Goad |
| Ammon Beyerle | Participation in Architecture : Agonism in Practice | Karen Burns |
| Andrew Murray | The Influence of British Émigré Architects on Western Australian Architecture and Planning, 1945-1975 | Hannah Lewi and Phillip Goad |
| Anneke Prins | Actualising the Virtual: Re-engaging the Sensing Body through the Manipulation of Atmospheres | Paul Walker |
| Annette Warner | Systems of performng beauty: the aesthetic agency of Gordon Ford's natural garden | Gini Lee |
| Anthony Worm | Free and Architecture and Goff | Paul Walker |
| Astrid Andrea Ortega Esquivel | Managing urban and landscape heritage through the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) approach: the case study of Valparaíso, Chile | Anna Hurlimann |
| Claire Miller | How does society become complicit in its own oppression through the mechanism of spatialised fear and politics? | AnnMarie Brennan and David Nichols |
| Claire O'Boyle | Buildings for Curious Minds: An Investigation of Architecture and Design Practices for the Finnish Kindergarten Setting | Hannah Lewi |
| Elizabeth Musgrave | John Dalton: Architect of Sunlight, Shade and Shadow | Phillip Goad |
| Fiona Johnson | A Comparative Study of Civic Space Design in the Contemporary Settler Societies of Australia and New Zealand | Jillian Walliss and Hannah Lewi |
| Hamid Khalili | Re-Investing Reciprocity between Moving Image (Cinema), Design and Architecture through the 'Architect's Gaze' | AnnMarie Brennan and Greg Missingham |
| John Castles | The Impact of Building Standards on Contemporary Construction | Giorgio Marfella |
| Jonathan Lovell | Dogma to Data: Ritual and Transcendental Experiences in immersive Multimedia Environments | AnnMarie Brennan |
| Kristal Buckley | Understanding Global Heritage: Key Issues | Kate Darian Smith and Philip Goad |
| Libby Richardson | Ornament and Surface Decoration in Contemporary Melbourne Architecture | Hannah Lewi and Philip Goad |
| Lu Zhang | Abstract Tradition and Its Potential in Theorised Design: A Critical Analysis of Contemporary Practice in China and Japan since 1990. | Jianfei Zhu |
| Marcus Fajl | The Fate of Ornament in Early Twentieth Century Architecture | Hannah Lewi and Karen Burns |
| Nesha Naidoo | Parks, playgrounds, promenades, pageants and piazzas: the changing ideas of designed public spaces in Melbourne 1850–2000 | Richard Gillespie and Julie Willis |
| Philip Goldswain | Photographic Cities: Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, 1893-1917 | Hannah Lewi and Andrew Saniga |
| Rebecca Clements | Sustainable and Policies: Japanese Vicinity Parking | David Nichols |
| Ruth Redden | Heritage and sustainability: how to ensure historic buildings are culturally, environmentally and economically sustainable. | Hannah Lewi and Philip Goad |
| Scott Woods | Face: An Aesthetico-Political Paradigm in American Architectural Theory 1984-2009 | Paul Walker and Phillip |
| Sharon Shafer | The Utopian Paradox of High-Rise Housing in Australia between 1945-2010 | Peter Raisbeck and Julie Willis |
| Simona Castricum | What if Safety became Permanent? Gender Nonconforming Experiences of Architecture - Space and Practice | Karen Burns |
| Soon-Tzu Speechley | The Classical Language of Architecture in British Malaya, 1786-1941 | Paul Walker and Julie Willis |
| Tania Davidge | Encountering Architecture | Karen Burns |
| Timothy Moore | The instruments of transitional architecture: locating the value of short-term temporary projects in long-term urban frameworks | Karen Burns |
| Victoria Kolankiewicz | A Social History of Quarrying in Melbourne | David Nichols |
| Yinrui Xie | Architecture as a Sign System: A Semiotic Study of China's Christian Universities | Paul Walker and Julie Willis |
Our ACAHUCH researchers are actively involved in teaching across the undergraduate and graduate programs here at the Faculty.
The Master of Urban and Cultural Heritage (MUCH) is an industry-focused, cross-disciplinary program open to graduates who are passionate about the social and cultural dimensions of the built environment in the twenty-first century.
The program focuses on heritage in a global context, with key features including the exploration of new approaches to digital technologies and heritage, issues of heritage significance as well as the social and economic impact of cultural heritage in relation to reconstruction and across the tourism industry.
Graduate profile: Amanda Valenzuela Pallamar
What was your favourite subject in the program to date and why?
I loved “Representing and Remembering place”. It was a very interesting subject that allowed me to look into the concept of “place” from so many different perspectives.
What attracted you to the Melbourne School of Design?
I wanted a Master that combined strong practical and theoretical approaches to heritage and doing research about the different Master programs the one that MSD had to offer was the most attractive one.
So far, what are the most valuable skills that you have learnt?
The most important skill the Master has given me has been to be critical, reflective and to understand the complexity of the concept of “heritage” today.
PhD supervision
Many of our researchers offer PhD supervision across a broad range of research areas. Get in touch to enquire about supervision opportunities.
MicroCerts
ACAHUCH offers a comprehensive suite of professional development short courses in urban and cultural heritage through the Melbourne School of Professional and Continuing Education (MSPACE).
The ACAHUCH Melbourne MicroCert series is designed for professionals of diverse backgrounds seeking to expand their applied skills in Urban and Cultural Heritage. Our four online short courses draw upon the world-leading research, teaching and industry expertise within the Centre.
Whether you’re looking to upskill, expand your knowledge or take the next step in your career, our innovative and engaging courses will help unlock your potential so you can thrive in a continuously evolving world.
ACAHUCH offers a comprehensive suite of professional development short courses in urban and cultural heritage.
Join the Next Drop-in Information Session
Click above to see available dates for registration of upcoming information sessions.
The ACAHUCH Melbourne MicroCert series is designed for professionals of diverse backgrounds seeking to expand their applied skills in Urban and Cultural Heritage. Our four online short courses draw upon the world-leading research, teaching and industry expertise within the Centre.
Whether you’re looking to upskill, expand your knowledge or take the next step in your career, our innovative and engaging courses will help unlock your potential so you can thrive in a continuously evolving world.
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Statutory Heritage
An ideal introduction to urban and cultural heritage practice, statutory heritage schemes, and the key players in the field. -
Introduction to Values-Based Heritage
Gain an understanding of the leading approach to heritage management. -
New Approaches to Heritage Significance
Learn cutting-edge techniques for assessing the cultural significance of heritage places. -
New Tools for Documenting Heritage Fabric
Discover the technologies changing the ways that historic buildings, structures and materials are documented.
| Study Mode | Duration | Skills Area |
|---|---|---|
| Online | Each MicroCert is taught over 3 weeks (30 hours) + 1 week for assessment (7.5 hours) | Sustainability |
FAQ's
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What is a Melbourne MicroCert?
Melbourne MicroCerts are the University of Melbourne’s unique microcredential offering. Aligned to industry and workforce needs, these small, highly accessible courses equip you with in-demand skills and knowledge for your job now, and help you build a diverse skill-set for the future. As the world of work continues to evolve, Melbourne MicroCerts keep you relevant.
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Where can I find further details on each course?
Please visit the Melbourne MicroCerts website:
- Statutory Heritage
- Introduction to Values-Based Heritage
- New Approaches for Heritage Significance
- New Tools for Documenting Heritage Fabric
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Who are they for?
Each Melbourne MicroCert is suitable for professionals from a wide range of sectors with an interest in urban and cultural heritage.
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How are they taught?
Fully online delivery offers a convenient way to develop your skillset, and you will utilise innovative learning technologies, such as virtual field trips, and engage with leading heritage practitioners.
Within a multidisciplinary cohort of professionals, you will utilise innovative online learning technologies such as interactive digital seminars and virtual field trips with leading heritage practitioners, as well as undertake self-directed learning activities. As informed by the research and industry links of ACAHUCH, you will explore key case studies from leading scholars and practitioners from Australia and across the world.
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How are they linked to industry?
Each Melbourne MicroCert in the Urban and Cultural Heritage series draws upon the extensive experience of ACAHUCH staff in research, education and engagement in the fields of urban and cultural heritage and architectural history.
ACAHUCH has an active and engaged advisory board of leading practitioners within the heritage sector across Australia. Researchers in ACAHUCH are engaged in heritage policy, planning and practice with cultural and collecting institutions, government agencies, heritage professionals and others across the sector in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.
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Are the they recognised as continuing professional development (CPD)?
Depending on your circumstances, each of the four Melbourne MicroCerts in Urban and Cultural Heritage may be recognised as continuing professional development (CPD) by the following bodies:
- Australian Institute of Architects (AIA)
- Planning Institute of Australia (PIA)
- Australian Institute of Landscape Architecture (AILA)
- Certified Environmental Practitioner Scheme (CEPS)
- Law Institute
- Professional Historians Australia
- UK Institute of Historic Buildings Conservation (IHBC).
You will need to discuss and confirm this with each organisation directly.
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Can I enrol in just one MicroCert?
Each course can be taken as a standalone Melbourne MicroCert, or you can complement it with any other Melbourne MicroCert in the Urban and Cultural Heritage series.
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Are there pathways to further study?
The Urban and Cultural Heritage series of Melbourne MicroCerts is designed to provide a pathway – otherwise known as advanced standing – into the Master of Urban and Cultural Heritage (M-UCH).
To do so, you will need to have completed all four Melbourne MicroCerts in the Urban and Cultural Heritage series, as each one is equivalent to one quarter of a standard subject, and then apply for credit towards the Master of Urban and Cultural Heritage.
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How often are they offered?
ACAHUCH anticipates delivering each Melbourne MicroCert in the Urban and Cultural Heritage series at least once per year.
We also encourage you to make an inquiry about future dates and delivery modes.
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What is the geographic focus?
The MicroCerts are designed for learners from across Australia and the world. The framework of values-based heritage management is widely adopted. The only exception is Statutory Heritage, which emphasises Victorian state and local heritage schemes in their national and international context.
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Are the courses delivered online or on campus?
All the MicroCerts are available to be taken fully online. An alternative iteration of the MicroCerts involving hybrid delivery with a mixture of online and face-to-face learning may be offered in the future.
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How do I obtain further information or make an enquiry?
Please contact the dedicated Student Support Team with your queries.
ACAHUCH fosters important research in architectural, planning, cultural and urban history and heritage conservation. It also contributes to and produces a range of research publications.
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Citizen Heritage: Digital and Community-based Histories of Place
This project explores new digital technologies to enhance the visibility of lesser-known precincts of urban heritage.
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Designing Australian Schools: A Spatial History of Innovation, Pedagogy and Social Change
Designing Australia’s Schools is an historical, cross disciplinary study of innovations in the design of Australian primary and secondary schools across the twentieth century.
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Encyclopedia of Australian Architecture
The first comprehensive reference text to be published on Australian architecture. Unique in its breadth and depth, and revealing new knowledge on architects, their buildings and the ways they designed and built them.
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Making Landscape Architecture in Australia
This book on the history of landscape architecture in Australia, the first of its kind, profiles the people who have shaped the nation's landscape.
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Migration Cultural Diversity and Television
This project documents the evolving history of popular television and its contribution to national discussions about migration, cultural diversity and citizenship across six decades. Now hosted at UTAS.
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The Routledge International Handbook of New Digital Practices in Galleries, Libraries, Archives, Museums and Heritage Sites
The Routledge International Handbook of New Digital Practices in Galleries, Libraries, Archives, Museums and Heritage Sites presents a fascinating picture of the ways in which today's cultural institutions are undergoing a transformation through innovative applications of digital technology.
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Animating the Archive
The aim of this project is one of outreach to and engagement with cultural organisations to probe the future of innovative uptake of mobile and media technology.
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Architecture and Industry: The migrant contribution to nation-building
Linking immigrant social histories to industrialisation through an explicitly spatial analysis, this project explores the post-war architectural, rural and industrial landscapes of Australia as shaped by the labour of displaced persons.
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Bauhaus Australia
Bauhaus Australia: Émigrés, Refugees and the Modernist Transformation of Education in Art, Architecture, and Design, 1930 to 1970
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Campus: Building Modern Australian Universities
The commitment to the environmental quality of university campuses is central to the modern contemporary tertiary experience and represents a growing multi-million dollar public investment in higher education infrastructure.
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Rethinking Modern Asia-Pacific Architectures: New Aesthetic Pedagogies International Workshop
A forum for critical reflection on the histories, pedagogies and practices of architecture in the Asia-Pacific.
ACAHUCH also aims to engage with academics, practitioners and researchers from across the world. Starting in 2020, ACAHUCH began partnering with Critical and Curatorial Practices in Design, a research subject at the Melbourne School of Design, headed by Professor Alan Pert and Professor Philip Goad on a series of lectures and seminars during the COVID-19 Pandemic to foster further international partnerships.
ACAHUCH fosters important research in architectural, planning, cultural and urban history and heritage conservation. It also contributes to and produces a range of research publications.
Recent Publications
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Back to the Past: future challenges for better, safer, building design and construction
Giorgio Marfella & Jeanette Barbaro, 2019 | This article looks at the evolution of the built environment in Melbourne, and considers the origins and appropriateness of the current system of building regulation in Australia
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NUCLEUS meets the Minimum: Ernest Fooks, the small house and the flat in post-war Melbourne
Philip Goad, 2019 | An exploratory article for the RMIT Design Archive journal examining the interest in the minimum house demonstrated by Viennese émigré Ernest Fooks, and how these interests translated to the Melbourne context.
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The theoretical inapplicability of regionalism to analysing architectural aspects of Islamic shrines in Iran in the last two centuries
Faramarz Pour Hassan, Miles Lewis, Qinghua Guo, 2013 | This study examines the ways in which Western Orientalism, even in regionalist language, has failed to present a comprehensive image in analysing architectural works in developing countries, like Iran, in which internationalism did not change every aspect of architectural forms.
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Perspecta 9/10 and the Emergence of a Postmodern American Architecture
Annmarie Brennan, 2016 | Beginning with an overview of Perspecta 9/10, this paper will examine how the medium of the student-edited architectural magazine assisted in promoting the idea of an American architecture during the mid-1960s.
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Robin Boyd and the Vernacular
Philip Goad, 2019 | An exploratory article for the RMIT Design Archive journal exploring Robin Boyd's rationale behind his writing and architecture, its links to the vernacular, and its influence on the single-family house.
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Telling Transnational Histories of Women in Architecture, 1960–2015
Karen Burns, Lori Brown, 2020 | This essay uses an emergent transnational research project — a global encyclopaedia of women in architecture — as a site for unsettling the terms, chronology, and geography of feminist histories of architecture
Graduate Research Papers and Theses
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Boom Mannerism: The Architectural Practice of Gerard Wight and William Lucas from 1885 to 1894
Jennifer Fowler, 2020 | An analysis of the Boom era firm of Wight and Lucas from 1885 to 1894, in the context of the historiography of the Boom Style and its impact on the built environment of Melbourne.
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At the intersection of heritage preservation, urban transformation, and everyday life in the twentieth-century Australian city
James Phillip Lesh, 2018 | A global urban history of the Australian city, an analysis of its urban and heritage places, and the preservationists who shaped those places through during the twentieth century.
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The architecture of Newman College, 1915-18: the office of Walter Burley Griffin
Jeffrey John Turnbull, 2017 | This new manuscript is developed from two volumes submitted for the degree of D.Phil, 2004, amended 2005, revised 2014, and 2017 exploring the work of Walter Burley Griffin at the University of Melbourne.
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Ballarat’s Pride: Leading Architects from 1857-1895
Erin Wood, 2020 | Inspired by the works of William Bramwell Withers, this thesis asserts the role of Ballarat’s architects beyond its borders, inviting a closer consideration of these architects and regional architectural practice more generally.
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The cultural significance of wood fired Scotch ovens and the poetics of olfaction as a preservation strategy for bakeries in Victoria
Domenica Presa, 2020 | An investigation of how baking has changed historically in Australia, from Australian Aboriginal origins to colonial settlement, the present day, and the return to craft baking techniques, typologies and preservation through the technique of olfaction as a heritage factor.
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Making Civic Space: A Comparative Study of Civic Space Design in the Contemporary Settler Societies of Australia and New Zealand
Fiona Claire Johnson, 2019 | This thesis explores the state of decolonising practice in design, examining the textual, conceptual, spatial and architectural modes of practice which together collectively ‘make’ civic space. It draws comparisons through two exemplary projects - Adelaide’s Victoria Square/Tarndanyangga and Wellington’s Waterfront.
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Depicting Boom Urbanism: A critical investigation of Kalgoorlie and Boulder, Western Australia, 1893-1903
Philip David Goldswain, 2019 | This thesis considers the spaces, events and processes of boom urbanism and industrialisation in the East Goldfields of Western Australia between 1893 and 1903 through a series of written and drawn investigations,.
Below is a database in development of links to associated Heritage bodies, industry resources and databases to assist in the better transmission of knowledge about Architecture, Urban and Cultural Heritage practices.
Community
- National Trust of Australia (Victoria)
- Victorian National Trust Advocacy Blog
- Links to other state and territory trusts
- DOCOMOMO Australia
- Robin Boyd Foundation
- Melbourne Heritage Action
- Royal Historical Society of Victoria
- History Council of Victoria
- Citizens for Melbourne
- Koorie Heritage Trust
- Open House Melbourne comprising previous Heritage Addresses and Speaker Series content
State Government
- Heritage Victoria (within DELWP)
- Aboriginal Victoria
- Heritage Council of Victoria
- Parks Victoria
- Working Heritage
National and International
- Australian Government: Heritage Homepage
- Australian Heritage Council
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre
- Australian National List of Heritage Organisations
- Blue Shield Australia
Key Heritage Lists
- Victorian Heritage Database comprising various state, local and community heritage lists.
- Victorian National Trust Classification Register
- Australian Heritage Database comprising various lists
- Australian National Heritage List
- Australian World Heritage List
- UNESCO World Heritage List
- UNESCO World Heritage List - in danger
- World Monuments Fund Watch
Professional Bodies
University of Melbourne
- Cultural Commons
- Digitised Collections Home
- Cross-Section Journal
- Cross-Section Photography List
- Architecture Building and Planning Library Glass Slides Collection
- Architecture Building and Planning Faculty Handbooks
- Architecture Atelier Collection
- Smudges Journal
- University of Melbourne Architectural Drawings - Buildings on Parkville Campus
- University of Melbourne Library - Map Collections
- University of Melbourne Master Plan Reports
- University of Melbourne Archives - Architecture
Video Resources
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The Burra Charter Turns 40
In 2019, the Burra Charter turned 40! As part of our acknowledgement of this significant landmark, Australia ICOMOS and ACAHUCH hosted panel discussions to celebrate and reflect on the document’s success and evolution, and to consider its capacity to respond to an evolving heritage landscape. The event involved hearty discussion between Professor Philip Goad and the panelists, Helen Lardner, Meg Goulding, Dr James Lesh and Emeritus Prof Miles Lewis.
Distinguished international scholars in the field of architectural history will visit the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning and deliver a public lecture as part of a new Fellowship created in recognition of renowned architectural historian Professor Miles Lewis AM. The Miles Lewis Fellowship has been made possible by the generous support of the Vera Moore Foundation
The Miles Lewis Fellowship will support in perpetuity a series of annual or biennial fellowships for visiting scholars or practitioners in a field concerning architectural history, including; architectural and industrial archaeology but excluding art history, conservation, architectural theory or current architecture.
An international authority on urban conservation, Professor Miles Lewis has received several prestigious architecture and planning awards. Lewis studied architecture at The University of Melbourne, where he gained his doctorate in 1972. A professor of architecture at The University of Melbourne, Lewis' contribution has been acknowledged through several awards, including the Royal Australian Institute of Architects Robin Boyd Environment Award, the Walter Burley Griffin Award and the Royal Australian Planning Institute Award for Excellence.
Lewis was a founding member and later Chairman of the Australian National Committee to the International Council on Monuments and Sites. His expertise in urban conservation has been sought internationally. In 2001 he received the Centenary Medal for his contribution through the study of architectural history and the following year was honoured as a Member of the Order of Australia for his service to architectural history, heritage protection and urban planning.
The Fellowship funds travel to and from Australia, a professorial salary for a period between three weeks and three months, and other appoved expenses. The Fellow undertakes to deliver the Miles Lewis Oration, and to engage in an agreed program of research, teaching, or other activities.
The Miles Lewis Fellowship is by invitation only, though expression of interest may be sent to Theo Blankley at theo.blankley@unimelb.edu.au. A Fellow is appointed by the Dean on advice of a Committee including representatives of the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning; the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand; and the Vera Moore Foundation.
Recipients of the Miles Lewis Fellowship for 2020/2021
Dr Alex Bremner
Hailing from Daylesford, educated at Deakin University and reading for his PhD at the University of Cambridge (Gates Scholar 2001-04), Dr Alex Bremner joined the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Edinburgh in 2005.
His research specialty, history and theory of Victoria architecture, is interspersed with studies in architecture and empire, national identity and its relationship to the broader built environment, and religious architecture (particularly Anglican and Nonconformist cultures in Britain and its 19th c. colonies).
Author of Imperial Gothic: Religious Architecture and High Anglican Culture in the British Empire c.1840-70 (Yale University Press), which received the Alice Davis Hitchcock Medallion for 2013 from the Society of Architectural Historian of Great Britain, the William M. B. Berger Prize for British Art History (2014), the Historians of British Art Book Prize (2015), and was shortlisted for the Whitfield Prize, Royal Society (2014), Alex is also a recipient of the Hawksmoor Medal (Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain) and the Founders’ Award (Society of Architectural Historians, USA) for outstanding scholarship in the field of architectural history.
Currently, Alex currently serves as an editor for ABE Journal (Architecture Beyond Europe) and has serves as Editorial Advisory Committee member of the Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians (2015-2019)and a Deputy Editor of Architectural History, the journal of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain (2012-2014). He is the recent recipient of a Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship (2019-2021) to complete a monograph study of Edwardian civic and state architecture.
Dr Alex Bremner will be the Miles Lewis Fellow for 2020.
Dr Rosemary Hill
Dr Rosemary Hill Dr Rosemary Hill is a writer, historian and independent scholar with an interest in biography, material culture and the connections between them.
She has written two prize-winning books: God’s Architect, a life of the Gothic Revival architect, A W N Pugin and Stonehenge, a history of one of Britain’s greatest and least understood monuments. Her last book, Unicorn: The Poetry of Angela Carter, was published in 2015. She is currently completing a study of antiquarianism in the Romantic period.
She is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and the Society of Antiquaries, a member of English Heritage's Blue Plaques Panel, a trustee of the Pugin Society and a Quondam fellow of All Souls College, Oxford.
Dr Rosemary Hill will be the Miles Lewis Fellow for 2021.
