Colleges of Science, Australian National University

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RESEARCH BACKGROUND: Lyons Architecture - where Carey Lyon is a principal architect - was commissioned to design the Colleges of Science at Australian National University. The primary challenge of the project is to bring together two previous disparate research schools into a single integrated environment while keeping the two identities distinct. RESEARCH CONTRIBUTION: The project is an artistic and functional expression of bioscientic elements and the concept of collaboration within the parameters of the super-performative needs of a contemporary laboratory research building. The project demonstrates Lyons' ongoing research and experimentation into architecturally technical projects, folding together the deeply conceptual and the deeply functional in complex syntheses. RESEARCH SIGNIFICANCE: After winning a Commendation for Public Architecture at the 2012 Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) ACT Chapter Awards, it subsequently won the Public Architecture award and Urban Design Commendation in 2014. AIA Awards are the most prestigious in the design and construction industry in Australia and vital to public and peer recognition of outstanding contributions in the fields of architecture and the built environment. The project was also shortlisted in the 2012 World Architecture Awards. It was a major component of the World Architecture Festival: the world's largest architectural awards program. Over 1800 architects, designers and press from more than 60 countries attended. There were over 700 entries from more than 60 countries. Lyons' project was among the 301 entries shortlisted and exhibited at the festival. In addition, the project received peer review in professional architecture journals ArchDaily (Nov 2012) and Dezeen (Oct 2012).