This is a two-stage design competition open to multidisciplinary design teams that include a registered architect. Teams can include Australian and international members and may bring together various design and broader creative disciplines to propose a project that explores new terrain for an architecture commission. The ambition of the Commission is to offer an opportunity for architecture and design to be enacted and experienced in their broadest sense. To this end, the Commission encourages proposals that are thought-provoking, issues-led, relevant and resonant and that can facilitate or instigate conversations, dialogue, immersion or reflection. Design proposals are invited to explore various trajectories including (but not limited to) a space to celebrate culture, an experimental work of speculative architecture, an exploration of possible futures, an investigation into ecology, a landscape intervention, a sensorial environment, a place designed for playful interaction, or an immersive space for rest.

The winner of this competition is Yhonnie Scarce and Edition Office. Their submission entitled ‘In Absence’ invites contemplation through its engulfing form and voids above. The 2019 Commission is the recipient of the 2020 National Award for Small Project Architecture (National Architecture Awards), the 2020 Kevin Borland Award for Small Project Architecture (Victorian Architecture Awards), and the 2020 Small Building of the Year (Dezeen Awards).