We’re thrilled to announce the completion of Aspire Melbourne!

With construction commencing in early 2020, the project not only represents a landmark building for Melbourne’s west end, but also an incredible accomplishment for all our collaborators in terms of scale, craftsmanship and overcoming adversity.

It was important for Aspire to respond both to Melbourne’s specific context, heritage, and culture as well as acknowledge its evolution into a true mega-city – a new jewel in the crown of Melbourne’s skyline.

600+ high-amenity apartments were sought to maximise natural daylight, views, and passive Environmentally Sustainable Design principles to ensure a passive connection to the elements resulting in excellent commercial sustainability.



Architecturally Aspire references the historic flagstaff erected within the nearby Flagstaff gardens to communicate between the town and the port, the concave and convex glass facades of Aspire reinterpret the fluttering of the flag.

“This metaphor of the flagstaff has inspired the design of Aspire as a contemporary sculptural object. Boolean techniques give the tower its form with a fabric-like skin that almost billows softly in the wind.”



– Callum Fraser



With the project finally complete and residents moved in, we’re honoured to be able to finally fly our flag on this one.



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We’re thrilled to announce the green light for Adelaide CBD’s vibrant transformation with 5 towers project, Grote & Gouger. The State Commission Assessment Panel granted planning approval for the major development at 237 Grote Street, the former Australia Post site, during its 170th meeting.


Adelaide is unique in the world as the only city built inside a park. The project integrates urban built environment with natural surroundings. Extensive landscaping is incorporated throughout the precinct to improve quality of life for residents and visitors.

Grote & Gouger is a vibrant urban precinct celebrating lifestyle, wellness, local culture and landscape. It’s also Adelaide’s most significant climate positive development.

To achieve the highest levels of regenerative design, we prioritised both comfort and resilience. Efficient use of daylight, natural airflow, shading systems and indoor-outdoor living areas come together seamlessly to address human needs and the impacts of climate change. A deep commitment to carbon neutrality commences during construction, continuing into ongoing operations to minimise the precinct’s long-term ecological footprint.

The design concept draws inspiration from the rich heritage of Adelaide, specifically emphasising the principles of order, symmetry and the repetition of elemental and local materials. By carefully analysing the existing architectural language, the project incorporates similar design elements to evoke a sense of continuity and connection to the past.

The use of locally sourced materials pays homage to the region’s heritage while contributing to the sustainability and authenticity of the design. The former Walton’s biscuit factory on Grote Street, built in 1904, has been sensitively integrated into the new architecture.

Grote & Gouger’s public realm includes a pedestrian-focused street interface, vibrant laneway and central plaza. Together these elements create a dynamic urban experience to explore, with activities programmed throughout the year aligned with the hotel, work club, wellness offerings and public gardens.

Five towers, ranging between 15 and 28 storeys, will be completed in phases by 2032. This will create 600 new homes (15% to be affordable housing) and over 3350 sqm of publicly accessible space for the local community.

Client: Gurner Group

Town planning: Ekistics

Landscape architecture: TCL (Taylor Cullity Lethlean)

Visualisation: NFLab

The Elenberg Fraser team is celebrating a number of recent awards shortlistings.

Provenance: Architecture for community living

Provenance has been shortlisted in Gaggenau Kitchen of the Year 2023 and the Interior Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) Residential Multi category. It was also named a Finalist in the Polytec Design Awards 2023.

Stepping into Provenance is an immersion in the harmony of architecture and interiors, a blend that spans three levels.

At the heart of each house-sized apartment is an expansive kitchen embracing togetherness. Natural stone kitchen and island benchtops are crafted for culinary enthusiasts. Large operable windows are strategically placed for natural ventilation, flooding residences with sunlight all year round.

“Each of the 12 apartments possess their own unique character, emulating the spaciousness and personality of traditional house design. From keen gardeners to gastronomes and entertainers, lifestyle is central to the Provenance philosophy,” says Isaac Chen, Associate.

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Slattery Melbourne: Wellness meets new ways of working

Slattery has been shortlisted in the Interior Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) Colour category and the Designers Australia Awards (DIA) Place category.

This new workplace exemplifies a shift in thinking away from the conventional office where space was territorial, and meetings were conducted behind closed doors. Designed with a space for all work modes in mind, whether it be a communal lounge, a private nook or perched on a stool next to the bench in the kitchen area.

An artistic play of colour therapy, influenced by the work of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, is combined with planting and circadian lighting to create a workspace that nurtures its occupants.

“Post-COVID, there’s been a new approach to working, spending a little more time at home and wanting the office to feel more like home,” says Melissa Leung, Associate Director. “This fitout reflects the change in the way people want to work with considerably more options and fluidity than ever before.”

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We extend our thanks to the dedicated project team, clients, jury and all involved. This recognition serves as a reminder of the impact that collective effort can achieve and stands as a testament to Australia’s vibrant design community.

See the full list below:

IDEA 2023 – Colour, Slattery Melbourne, Shortlisted

Designers Australia Awards, Slattery Melbourne, PLACE category, Shortlisted

Polytec Design Awards – Residential, Provenance Camberwell, Finalist Award

IDEA 2023 – Residential Multi, Provenance Camberwell, Shortlisted

Gaggenau Kitchen of the Year – Multi-residential, Provenance Camberwell, Shortlisted

The pandemic forced many of us to adopt new ways of working, enjoying extreme flexibility and work-life balance unlike anything previously experienced.

Lunchtime walks in the park, playing in the backyard with the kids, and running errands between Zoom calls saw us re-evaluate our lifestyles and how work should fit into them (instead of the other way around).

As we slowly emerge from the pandemic, the physical workplace is adapting and evolving to meet new societal paradigms.

Associate Arif Mokhtar and Senior Interior Designer Laura Graham identify 8 insights for the future of workplace that not only support the workers who’ll use them, but also employers and building owners, local communities and the environment.

#1: 100% FRESH AIR

Traditional air conditioning only heats and cools but we’re focusing on cross ventilation and new mechanical strategies. These introduce fresh air and remove stale air, creating a much healthier environment to breathe.

At Market Lane, we integrated operable facades to open workspaces to landscaped terraces, while an underfloor mechanical system filters fresh air throughout the building – creating a healthier, and more energy efficient working environment.

#2: PRIVACY & PERFORMANCE

The future workplace should harness the power of data and new technologies. From touchless lifts to sensors that monitor use in real time, smart building systems enable new levels of privacy and performance.

Sensors integrated at Market Lane adapt brightness levels and colour, reducing the need for artificial light and its negative impact on occupants’ circadian rhythms.

Floors are climatically zoned while offering choice and control over requirements (considerations vital to employee engagement).

#3: GREEN SPACES & PLACES


We’ve become used to working from home over the last three years. Now we’re reluctant to return to CBDs and office buildings, giving up our ready access to the outdoors.

At Market Lane, we embedded landscape into the workplace through a series of terraces and frameless glass greenhouses which act as meeting rooms.

This seamless inside/out transition offers visual and spatial relief and areas of varied intimacy, while transforming the experience of workplace.

#4: SALUTOGENESIS

True wellbeing is not about cure, but prevention. Our focus is on creating salutogenic environments that promote collective and individual physical and mental health.

At Slattery’s Melbourne office, colour therapy, biophilic principles and circadian lighting all play a role in the design approach.

The director’s boardroom is drenched in blue, a conscious decision inspiring a sense of loyalty, tactfulness, trust, and peace to support values-driven decision making.

#5: EVOLVING WORK MODES


The ways in which we work are continuously evolving. Fundamental to workplace design is understanding today’s needs and aspirations while planning for unknown futures.

An activity-based model supports Slattery’s Melbourne team, centred around the premise that no employee ‘owns’ an assigned workstation. A variety of predetermined areas (with laptops for all) enables choice for tasks across learning, focusing, collaborating, and socialising modes.

Meeting spaces include rooms for both virtual and face-to-face catch-ups plus new ‘advisory rooms’ for client presentations and more intimate discussions.

#6: JOIN THE (WORK) CLUB

The days of Henry Ford’s 9-5 are over. We’re seeing an ever-increasing trend towards ‘flex’ workers choosing where and when they work.

Coworking spaces have been satisfying that niche for the last decade. Today, the rise of work clubs is meeting new demand, with building owners offering amenity never seen before in the commercial office sector.

Situated across Market Lane’s ground and mezzanine floors, FLEX is marketed as an “everyplace between home and work” which also operates as the building management group. The coworking space was developed by Hickory in collaboration with Six Degrees Architects (interior design) and Elenberg Fraser (base building architect).

Offering a curated social calendar, FLEX accommodates employee overflow, ensures the workspaces on the floors above maintain security and privacy and activates the building for tenants and the community.

#7: THE UPSIDE-DOWN BUILDING

Future workplace thinking takes everything we know about traditional office design and turns it on its head. Creating architecture centred around a long life / loose fit approach enables both flexibility and adaptability.

Innovations such as Market Lane’s integrated raised floor system are completely transforming the way we think about flexible workplace design.

Housing the mechanical, electrical and hydraulic services in a plenum beneath the floor facilitates easy workplace layout changes and sub-divisibility opportunities.

#8: GOOD DESIGN = GOOD VALUE

Good workplace design benefits everyone, from organisations and their people to building owners and operators. A testament to this is Market Lane, where all tenancies were leased prior to completion, and at the height of Victoria’s Stage 4 lockdown restrictions.

In conclusion, our approach to workplace and commercial office design integrates these aspects in combination with the bespoke needs and aspirations of our clients.

From fresh air to salutogenics, green spaces, flexibility, curated communities and smart technology, our aim is to make a positive and lasting impact on both people and planet.

Passivhaus Certified Designer Estelle Roman recently attended THRIVE2023 in Sydney.

The South Pacific Passivhaus Conference demonstrated the importance of well-conceived and consistent action in the building sector to successfully transition to a sustainable energy future.

Following, Estelle shares her key conference takeaways:

• 1 in 3 people are affected by mould in Australian buildings – Passivhaus eliminates this.

Thermal comfort + occupant health & wellbeing + low embodied carbon + energy efficiency + return on investment = why not and why not now?

Passivhaus commercial and build-to-rent typologies are underway, proving they can scale up to achieve quality and healthy workplaces and apartments for Australians.

Passivhaus can generate income and attract incentives. Also, building performance is only a minor portion of construction costs.

Passivhaus buildings use 80-90% less energy – a solution for a net-zero future. It’s easy to achieve affordable, healthy and comfortable buildings that mitigate the impacts of climate change.

Find out more about via the Australian Passivhaus Association here.

Our team recently visited the nearly-complete Aspire Melbourne project. Our regular site visits play a leading role in developing our teams’ practices and allow us to learn and see our designs come to life.

On the day, we looked at the progress of the high-rise residential apartments and common areas.

The top-level pool is one of the many highlights of the building, with double-height space and custom 2D tiles, offering a cavernous look and feel.

This new multi-residential project in Melbourne’s west-end responds to nearby Flagstaff Gardens, Melbourne’s oldest park, by intertwining local stories representing both the origins and future of the precinct.

Targeted to be completed in August 2023, we’re excited to see this project come to life.

We were thrilled to officially launch Fraser & Partners at an end of summer party in Melbourne. Fraser & Partners is a research-led studio that builds upon Elenberg Fraser’s track record of built work, experience and expertise.

An ethical imperative guides our new practice; every element of the built environment is to be viewed through the lens of the climate crisis.

“We’re in a climate crisis, and the revolutions that have taken place in other industries, such as agriculture, energy and transport, have left the built environment in their wake. It’s a huge challenge for our industry but also affords great opportunities,” says Fraser & Partners Director Reade Dixon.

“Born from a desire to address these challenges, our methodology at Fraser & Partners is deeper and fundamentally driven by research.”

Each Fraser & Partners project is driven by a bespoke platform, with a series of non-negotiables and ambitions defined in partnership with clients to realise the best triple-bottom-line outcomes.

The Fraser & Partners executive team (pictured above) comprises Reade, Callum Fraser, Scott Bampton, Matt Chamberlain, Lucas Menegazzo, Jarryd Pearson and Melissa Leung.

Visit www.fraserandpartners.com.au for more info.

Supporting a strategic evolution, enabling a positive culture and showcasing core values.

We’re thrilled to announce that the new Melbourne workplace for Slattery has been shortlisted in two national awards programs, the 2023 Australian Interior Design Awards (Workplace Design) and 2023 Dulux Colour Awards (Commercial Interior – Workplace and Retail).

We appreciate this industry acknowledgement and thank our team, Slattery, and all collaborators involved.

“The brief was simple: to create a workplace that prioritises our people,” says Sarah Slattery, Chief Executive Officer at Slattery. “It’s warm and welcoming, combining the aesthetics of an art gallery with five-star hotel luxury. The spaces respond to everything our needs – some we didn’t know we stopped until we stepped through the doors”.

“Our office cocoons people in a warm embrace, reminding them of why Slattery is a great place to work,” Sarah explains.

The Australian Interior Design Awards will be presented in Melbourne on 2 June while the Dulux Colour Awards winners will be revealed in Melbourne on 11 May.

Learn more about the project

More about the awards programs

Australian Interior Design Awards (AIDA).
Founded in 2004, the Australian Interior Design Awards recognise and celebrate interior design excellence via a credible, industry-based, backed by the Design Institute of Australia, the professional body representing Australian designers.

Dulux Colour Awards.
Now in its 37th year, the Dulux Colour Awards is an iconic awards program acknowledging the industry-leading work of architects, design professionals and students from Australasia for their creative and innovative use of colour in commercial and residential spaces.

This year, crafted ideas were to relate to openness, sharing, sustainability and prudence.

Warmest congratulations to our recent leadership elevations: Melissa Leung to Associate Director, and Daniel Hazmy, Kathleen Bainbridge and Sezen Donmez to Associate.

“Since the very beginning, Elenberg Fraser has fostered next gen design talent,” says Principal Reade Dixon. “Our practice was built around achieving impossible realities and empowering young architects in a mistake-friendly environment.”

“Our newest leadership elevations continue that culture, recognising ambitious and passionate team members that contribute to our philosophy and future direction as well as the wider industry.”

Meet our new leadership team members following.

Melissa Leung, Associate Director

Joining the practice as an Interior Designer in 2016, Melissa now heads up the interiors team nationally.

A hospitality specialist, she’s currently leading the redesign of the legendary Vue du Monde, located on the 55th floor of the Rialto Tower in Melbourne. She’s also part of the design team for the reimagined Marina Mirage, one of the Gold Coast’s most iconic landmarks.

Thoughtful, considered and approachable, Melissa’s elevation to Associate Director recognises her valuable contribution to our culture and the fresh perspectives she brings to the executive team.

Daniel Hazmy, Associate

Daniel joined the practice right out of university and has been a valued member of the team ever since.

Calm, measured and with a quiet confidence, he’s been leading delivery of the soon-to-be-complete Aspire Melbourne. He’s also undertaking a new project leadership challenge, as we prepare to break ground on a major Build to Rent project in Melbourne.

Daniel’s strengths lie in his ability to take the design intent through to completion, collaborating with the builder and consultants towards the best built outcome. He’s widely recognised as a safe set of hands to lead the documentation and delivery stages of large-scale projects.

Kathleen Bainbridge, Associate

A key member of the practice for the past five years, Kathleen has been leading the UNO Melbourne project, which celebrated a milestone recently, topping out at 65 storeys.

From data analysis and carbon accounting through to more holistic regenerative design, she brings valuable sustainability intelligence to our projects. She’s particularly interested in rewilding urban landscapes and restoring native habitats and ecology.

With her boundless energy, positivity and passion, Kathleen’s contribution to our work, our culture and our future direction are highly appreciated.

Sezen Donmez, Associate

Sezen joined Elenberg Fraser in mid-2021, backed by diverse project experience across geographies, typologies and scales. From major international airport projects to multi residential, office and retail, she thrives on cross-sector creative problem solving.

She’s worked in Istanbul, the UK and Australia, experiences that have shaped her personal design philosophy, including an ability to understand different people and cultures, and how they interact with the built environment.

Engaging, collaborative and open minded, she consistently seeks out opportunities to mentor colleagues, explore lessons learnt and participate in industry discourse.

“As designers we have a responsibility to positively contribute to the empowerment of our communities, cities and environments.”

Join Associate Director Melissa Leung as she explores ‘designed by the people, for the people’ at American Standard Design Catalyst L!VE 2023.

Melissa will also be joining fellow designers for a panel discussion.

Tuesday 14 Feb 2023
3.30-6.30pm SGT (GMT +8)

Register for the complimentary webinar here.