Shara Clarke Aboriginal Cultural & Education Centre

The project developed in collaboration with Uncle Lenny Clarke of the Kirrae Whurrong. Interested in developing his land adjacent to the Hopkins River in memory of his late daughter Shara Clarke and of his father Uncle Banjo Clarke who said,

“Music is the language of all cultures”.

The proposal is for a destination concert hall that holds concerts from the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. With an ethos of sustainability of land and culture at its core, the project grew into a place where the farming of Indigenous plants alongside educational music and arts programs would occur.

• The main theatre’s structure is designed to be disassembled for expansion or re-use. It uses sustainably sourced timber rather than steel. The greenhouse proposal uses recycled glass.
• Working with the landscape, key line planting restores the soil and the hydrologic cycle, storing more water in the ground. There is planned reforestation for carbon offset payments and native grass regeneration.
• Compost generated from festival food and restaurant waste, supports the reforestation and the restaurant’s native edible garden.
• The greenhouse performance space provides a micro-climate for regenerating native
  and international plants, sold at markets.
• The design disturbs the existing site very little.

Framlingham Aboriginal Reserve has had a declining population since the 1960s. The project responds to Uncle Lenny Clarke’s vision to provide an alternative for his people to the colonial prison system by reinvigorating the area with commerce, learning and the arts.
Indoor and outdoor performance spaces are named after famous Framlingham elders, Archie Roach and Reginald Saunders. They bring revenue to the community that will support the Banjo Clarke Academy where locals and guests can learn from an indigenous connection to country.
A series of transformable Artist in Residence pods will provide spaces for the artists to grow their own knowledge of Country while invigorating the site with their ideas.

• Expression of indigenous culture and values.
• New typology for engagement with Country.
• Commercial opportunity for the community.
• Support of Arts Victoria’s Creative Community.
• Rejuvenation of the natural landscape.