The Material City

Brickworks, Melbourne
I creatively directed and delivered “Material City,” a permanent sculpture celebrating the launch of Brickworks’ Material City book at their flagship Melbourne store.

The brief was simple yet ambitious: “We want the public passing by to stop and read the book from outside the shop.” To meet this challenge, I moved beyond conventional digital research, using paper folding as a hands-on method to inspire ideas. My aim was to reflect the essence of turning pages and explore the materiality of paper in a large-scale 3D format.

The final design featured a monumental 3D representation of a book, with each “page” segment doubling in size to mimic the act of turning a page. This progression symbolised the growth of imagination sparked by reading Material City. The sculpture incorporated upscale finished artwork from the book on its exterior, supported by an electroplated brass backing for a striking, high-quality finish.

Wrapping around the Brickworks Melbourne store, the structure became a landmark installation, repurposed to promote the book’s second release. My involvement spanned every aspect of the project: concept ideation, renders, production drawings, project management, installation, and the creation of a promotional video.

Client:
Brickworks
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