Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve | Lovell Chen

The extraordinary volcanic landscape of the Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve—a raised outer rim enclosing a lake and islands—is located in south-western Victoria. On the main island is a circular Mid Century visitor centre, designed by Robin Boyd. Complex interrelated factors informed our less-is-more approach to the refurbishment of the Centre and reinvention of the PWD-designed amenities block — including the significance/history of the Reserve, the wishes of the traditional owners, the need to work with and protect Boyd’s legacy, and a commitment to sustainability. We worked hard with stakeholders to keep the story of the building alive: the ‘why’ of its design, the clarity of its pure architectural vision and the continuing value of Boyd’s approach in supporting renewed meanings and directions. A co-design process was established with traditional owners Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation, and an we argued for retention and reuse of the amenities block, now a flexible education space.