Peddle Thorp
Encyclopedia
Peddle Thorp is an architecture firm based in Melbourne
that has designed many of Australia
's landmark buildings. Among the buildings it has designed include: the Melbourne Aquarium
, Vodafone Arena; Rod Laver Arena; Skilled Stadium; and ANZ Headquarters. The firm also designed the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre
, which was used in the 2006 Commonwealth Games
, and the TEDA football (soccer) stadium
in Tianjin, China
.
The firm has also produced highly innovative design features such as the roof opening at the tennis centre at Melbourne Park, which was one of the first in the world to use this approach. This allows play in all kinds of weather. http://www.mopt.com.au/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-18//229_read-35/
Despite its success, Peddle Thorp has been criticised by architectural critics such as Norman Day
for producing buildings of little value.http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/06/18/1087245116456.html?from=storyrhs Day's views have been contested by Peddle Thorp's design director Peter Brook.http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/07/06/1089000135869.html. The dispute reflects a broader tension in architectural circles about its role in the commercial sphere. The dispute was seen publicly when a group of architects opposed Peddle Thorp designed changes to Harold Holt swimming pool in 2007.http://www.butterpaper.com/vanilla/comments.php?DiscussionID=803 The dispute lost ground when the original architect Daryl Jackson praised Peddle Thorp's revised designs. The highly successful commercial architect Barry Patten
, who designed the Sidney Myer Music Bowl, also faced similar criticism from Day and other critics during his career. He was later seen as one of Australia's greatest architects. http://www.architectureaustralia.com/aa/aaissue.php?article=16&issueid=200307&typeon=3
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
that has designed many of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's landmark buildings. Among the buildings it has designed include: the Melbourne Aquarium
Melbourne Aquarium
Melbourne Aquarium is a Southern Ocean and Antarctic aquarium in central Melbourne, Australia. It is located on the banks of the Yarra River beside and under the Flinders Street Viaduct and the King Street Bridge.-History:...
, Vodafone Arena; Rod Laver Arena; Skilled Stadium; and ANZ Headquarters. The firm also designed the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre
Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre
The Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre is an international sporting venue located in Albert Park, Victoria, Australia. The centre was opened on the 24th of July 1997 at a construction cost of A$65 million. The cost was funded by the State Government of Victoria and the City of Port Phillip...
, which was used in the 2006 Commonwealth Games
2006 Commonwealth Games
The 2006 Commonwealth Games were held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia between 15 March and 26 March 2006. It was the largest sporting event to be staged in Melbourne, eclipsing the 1956 Summer Olympics in terms of the number of teams competing, athletes competing, and events being held.The site...
, and the TEDA football (soccer) stadium
TEDA Football Stadium
TEDA Football Stadium is a professional football stadium in Tianjin, China. It is the home of Tianjin Teda F.C. The stadium holds 37,450 people and was built in 2004...
in Tianjin, China
Tianjin
' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...
.
The firm has also produced highly innovative design features such as the roof opening at the tennis centre at Melbourne Park, which was one of the first in the world to use this approach. This allows play in all kinds of weather. http://www.mopt.com.au/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-18//229_read-35/
Despite its success, Peddle Thorp has been criticised by architectural critics such as Norman Day
Norman Day
Dr Norman Kingwell Day is an architect, educator, and writer.-Architecture:He has designed and built in Australia and Asia, notably in Melbourne, Canberra, Dili, East Timor and in Vietnam...
for producing buildings of little value.http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/06/18/1087245116456.html?from=storyrhs Day's views have been contested by Peddle Thorp's design director Peter Brook.http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/07/06/1089000135869.html. The dispute reflects a broader tension in architectural circles about its role in the commercial sphere. The dispute was seen publicly when a group of architects opposed Peddle Thorp designed changes to Harold Holt swimming pool in 2007.http://www.butterpaper.com/vanilla/comments.php?DiscussionID=803 The dispute lost ground when the original architect Daryl Jackson praised Peddle Thorp's revised designs. The highly successful commercial architect Barry Patten
Barry Patten
Barry Beauchamp Patten was an Australian architect and Olympic alpine skier.He was born in McKinnon, Victoria....
, who designed the Sidney Myer Music Bowl, also faced similar criticism from Day and other critics during his career. He was later seen as one of Australia's greatest architects. http://www.architectureaustralia.com/aa/aaissue.php?article=16&issueid=200307&typeon=3