Tasmania
This project is unique. The essence of the Convict Memorial has been to create a dramatic new memorial, a hanging four-sided 8m high tower of LED screens, which uses smart technologies to visualise the lives of 75,000 men, women and children transported to Van Diemen’s Land between 1803 and 1853.
Designed as a place of reflection and interaction, this innovative project is underpinned by Australia’s largest historical dataset with the aim of ‘bringing to life’ the personal details of all the individuals who were ever transported as convicts to Tasmania. The project uses AI to digitally reunite Tasmania’s UNESCO Memory of the World registered convict archive with the Hobart Penitentiary in which those records were once housed, in the very space where male convicts were formerly housed. To the best of our knowledge, this is the very first time that anything of this nature has ever been attempted, anywhere.
Award for Small Project Architecture
Unshackled’ unlocks the stories of Tasmania’s convict history and invites viewers into an immersive experience within the confines of the eerie 1860 Courtroom 2 at the Hobart Penitentiary. This is a project which demonstrates in a visceral way, the power of technology when combined in an intelligent way with the built environment.
The digital panels and projections are simple yet highly effective in creating a deeply engaging environment. The addition of small design gestures, such as strip lighting under furniture, accentuates existing components of the courtroom, creating additional drama and intrigue.
This small project opens a door to new interpretations of Tasmania’s past and holds the attention of users in its interactive functionality. Most importantly, in the context of these awards, it will bring new and welcome attention to some of Tasmania’s most significant historic buildings.”
The Convict Memorial uses smart technologies to visualise the lives of 75,000 men, women and children transported to Van Diemen’s Land between 1803 and 1853. Designed as a place of reflection and interaction, this innovative architectural project is powered by Australia’s largest historical dataset. It uses AI to digitally reunite Tasmania’s UNESCO Memory of the World registered convict archive with the building in which those records were once housed. The project doubles as an exercise in adaptive reuse designed to support the National Trust owned property in which it is housed as well as the dataset that drives it.
Robert Morris-Nunn AM, Design Architect
Dik Jarman, Project Architect
Steve Thomas, ROAR FILM, Digital Design Director
Mat Daniels ROAR FILM, Digital artist, creator of digital content
Prof. Hamish Maxwell Stewart, Historian, this project represents 20 years of Hamish’s research coming to fruition
The Australian Institute of Architects acknowledges First Nations peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the lands, waters, and skies of the continent now called Australia.
We express our gratitude to their Elders and Knowledge Holders whose wisdom, actions and knowledge have kept culture alive.
We recognise First Nations peoples as the first architects and builders. We appreciate their continuing work on Country from pre-invasion times to contemporary First Nations architects, and respect their rights to continue to care for Country.
