VISION 42 — CIVIC STAR
The geometric, pleated facade really produces
a faceted, light responsive result.
The inclined glass gave us an opportunity to control
the amount of light coming in the building by carefully
selecting the angle of the facade. Convention and
exhibition centres have generally always been about
how big can you make it, how much stuff can you put
into it? This centre is unique because we don’t have
that space, so each of the rooms works harder.
This centre works exceptionally hard to deliver value and
capability to the Adelaide community. The weight of the
building is a huge factor – four stories of car park have
been down there for 30 years and we have some very
heavy pieces of kit right at the top of the building. We
have seats and seating bays that lift up and transform
into a flat fall. We’ve got rotating drums, and they’re all
heavy objects, and they’re a long way up off the ground
so the design and the strengthening of all the structure
below became paramount.
“Being in this building is
absolutely like you’re part
of Adelaide’s landscape.
The light-bulb moment
on this project was how
we were going to get these
buildings to contribute to
the city fabric. ”
SIMON TOTHILL, ARCHITECT