A Melbourne mausoleum that redefines cemetery architecture in Australia has been judged the national winner of the 2007 Cement Concrete and Aggregates Australia (CCAA) Public Domain Awards.
The Luciano Rossetti Mausoleum, at the Springvale Botanical Cemetery, south-east of Melbourne, was this week announced the overall winner of the prestigious design competition.
Held every two years, the national Public Domain Awards recognise the innovative and functional use of concrete to enhance the public domain.
The Luciano Rossetti Mausoleum is a new community building that provides 1,400 burial spaces for the local Italian community. Designed around a triangular courtyard, the Mausoleum features a series of semi-enclosed galleries defined by dramatic black and white precast concrete walls with cut-out profiles that project light and shadows across the interior spaces.
The winning project was designed by Harmer Architecture and constructed by Galvin Constructions.
Architect Philip Harmer says the project breaks with tradition to deliver a contemporary Australian vision of cemetery architecture.
“Mausoleum design, particularly in the USA, is largely based on historic styles,” says Harmer.
“When we first investigated this type, we found few contemporary exemplars anywhere in the world except for one in Spain by Enric Miralles.
“So this project really gave us an opportunity to re-interpret what a mausoleum should be.”
Harmer says the key question was how to semi-enclose the galleries. They needed to provide partial protection but be open to the elements, so orientation was critical. At the same time, he wanted each separate gallery to make its own statement.
The 2007 Awards Jury hailed the design solution as “a truly exciting example of the use of standard precast concrete panels to maximum dramatic effect - defining spaces, projecting shadows and inviting reflection while, simultaneously, suggesting vitality.”
“We chose concrete for its longevity and durability. It gives the project the ‘monumentality’ it requires,” Harmer says.
“Precast also had obvious structural and practical advantages. Our desire from the outset to individualise each of the galleries gave us the opportunity to explore different colours and finishes, and moreover play with the shapes.
“We’ve experimented a lot with large cuts-outs to create what looks like a continuous pattern of openings, rather than a series of solid panels butted up against each other.”
Harmer says while the design represents a departure from tradition, it does maintain a subtle link to the past.
“People still relate to the galleries in a way that reminds them of perhaps cloisters in an old Italian monastery,” he says.
Mausoleum Photos: © Trevor Mein - meinphoto