From Sean Godsell’s openable box of surprises to Amanda Levete’s ethereal tree-inspired canopy, the MPavilion has steadily established itself as a key staple on Melbourne's architecture agenda, marking the start of the Australian summer. This year for the installation’s third edition, MPavilion founder Naomi Milgrom invited celebrated Indian architect Bijoy Jain to design his own version of the Queen Victoria Gardens folly.
Heading acclaimed architecture practice Studio Mumbai, Jain has a strong following and solid reputation for top craftsmanship, elegant designs and collaborative working. His firm creates works of all scales from its western Indian base, where they employ artisans, specialist craftspeople, as well as architects and designers to bring a rounded, craft-based approach to their commissions.
True to their signature style, the architect and his team fashioned a structure out of bamboo (some seven kilometres of it, in fact) for this year’s MPavilion commission. Put together using stone and rope, the piece is inspired by traditional Indian structures, explains Jain – a tazia, a ceremonial tower created traditionally for festivals, sits next to the pavilion, marking its entrance. Taking things one step further, the architect also commissioned the pavilion to be prefabricated by a family owned business in India, who worked on it over the course of four months. The pavilion sits on a bluestone floor – the material was sourced from a quarry in Part Fairy, Victoria.
Apart from providing an architectural focus to the park’s green expanses and a visual delight for its visitors day and night (there are plans to light it in the evenings and dress it with music), the pavilion is also going to be a functional rest and event space. In fact, the organisers are planning to bring it to life for the duration of its stay through a packed programme of over 400 free public events, including talks, tours, performances and installations for art, fashion and music.
The structure was created this year out of seven km of bamboo, Australian-sourced bluestone and rope
As every year since its conception three years ago, the pavilion will act as a resting area for the park’s visitors, but will also play host to a number of events
Prefabricated in India by a family owned business, the pavilion was inspired by traditional Indian structures used in festivals
INFORMATION
The MPavilion is open until 18 February 2017. For more information, visit the Studio Mumbai website and the MPavilion website
Photography: John Gollings
ADDRESS
MPavilion
Queen Victoria Gardens
off St Kilda Road
Melbourne Australia
-
Lighting designer Andi Watson on creating Mitski’s sculptural stage for 'The Land'In Mitski’s live show and new concert film, a single beam of light becomes her dance partner. Lighting designer Andi Watson discusses turning shadow, movement and restraint into the architecture of feeling
-
Making mirrors with A Vibe Called Tech, the collective democratising designLast week, Wallpaper* Paris Editor Amy Serafin spent a day with a group of creatives led by Julie Richoz, making mirrors: here's what went down (and how to make your own)
-
A postcard from We Design Beirut: 'We’re learning how to break barriers and create dialogue'The second edition of We Design Beirut celebrated design, architecture, heritage and creativity
-
Doshi Retreat at the Vitra Campus is both a ‘first’ and a ‘last’ for the great Balkrishna DoshiDoshi Retreat opens at the Vitra campus, honouring the Indian modernist’s enduring legacy and joining the Swiss design company’s existing, fascinating collection of pavilions, displays and gardens
-
Neometro is the Australian developer creating homes its founders ‘would be happy living in’The company has spent 40 years challenging industry norms, building design-focused apartment buildings and townhouses; a new book shares its stories and lessons learned
-
Slides, clouds and a box of presents: it’s the Dulwich Picture Gallery’s quirky new pavilionAt the Dulwich Picture Gallery in south London, ArtPlay Pavilion by Carmody Groarke and a rich Sculpture Garden open, fusing culture and fun for young audiences
-
The Melbourne studio rewilding cities through digital-driven landscape design‘There's a lack of control that we welcome as designers,’ say Melbourne-based landscape architects Emergent Studios
-
Lego and Serpentine celebrate World Play Day with a new pavilionLego and Serpentine have just unveiled their Play Pavilion; a colourful new structure in Kensington Gardens in London and a gesture that celebrates World Play Day (11 June)
-
A Republic Tower apartment refresh breathes new life to a Melbourne classicLocal studio Multiplicity's refresh signals a new turn for an iconic Melbourne landmark
-
The Serpentine Pavilion 2025 is ready to visit, ‘an exhibition you can use’The Serpentine Pavilion 2025 is ready for its public opening on 6 June; we toured the structure and spoke to its architect, Marina Tabassum
-
A Japanese maple adds quaint charm to a crisp, white house in SydneyBellevue Hill, a white house by Mathieson Architects, is a calm retreat layered with minimalism and sophistication
