Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung of the Kulin nation
Victoria
To belong, connect, share & find sanctuary are universally & innately understood. With this in mind, St Mary’s Coptic Church, seeks to offer an inclusive & generous building for parish & public alike.
Found atop Kensington’s main shopping strip, the St Mary’s site featured an existing heritage church interfacing a busy intersection to one side and residential neighbourhood to the other. The project required complex multiple and overlapping uses, including a contemporary chapel, priest’s offices, Sunday school rooms, kitchens, a community hall and childcare centre. Given this brief, the shared priority was to establish a strong and vibrant communal network both within and beyond the site.
The building plan wraps three edges of the site, with the northern wing unfolding per the geometry of the existing church. The design organises the site to prioritise community-first design principles, maximising the interactive aspects of the building & providing space for worship, gathering, meals, play, & quiet contemplation.
The community at St Mary’s Coptic Orthodox Church are ecstatic to have moved into our new multipurpose building. The new hall has allowed us to comfortably hold much needed fellowship after our services. Our new chapel feels warm and inviting by harmoniously combining contemporary and traditional elements. We now have a state of the art kitchen that can cater for all our events, and a café and canteen that services the community and raises funds for the parish. The building has addressed many issues that our community have struggled with and now caters for the community from youngest to oldest.
Mel Bright, Principal and Design Director
Annie Suratt, Associate
Rob McIntyre, Director for Design Realisation
Ryan de Winnaar, Director of Practice
Emily Watson, Director of Architecture
Jaxon Webb, Associate
Robert Hillman, Associate
Pei She Lee, Architect
Amy Tung, Graduate of Architecture
Checkpoint Building Surveyors, Building Surveyor
Gallagher Jeffs, Project Manager
Eng+ Consulting, Structural Engineer
ECM Group, Services Consultant
Frater Consulting Services, ESD Consultant
UPco, Planning Consultant
Rider Levett Bucknall, Quantity Surveyor
Openwork, Landscape Consultant
Lovell Chen, Heritage Consultant
Glowing Structures, Lighting Consultant
Acoustic Logic, Acoustic Consultant
One to One Connect, AV Consultant
KU Children’s Services, Childcare Consultant