National
Archives
of Australia
Preservation Facility
The building complex consists of two boxes arranged around a central circulation spine providing flexible access to records storage on one side and records management and preservation on the other
client - doma group
value - $70 million
design life - 70 years
The facade of the records storage box references the Australian landscape by depicting a weathered, uneven, randomly disposed and sunburnt surface that may evoke a granite outcrop catching a rising or setting sun. The key element in preserving the nation’s records, the passage of time, is suggested by this reference to the ancient landscape.
The architectural dialogue in respect of the design of the archives building is to reflect not only the importance of being able to safely and securely store government documents, but also to express national symbolic significance and responsibility as keeper of the nation’s collective memory.
