The Ian Potter Foundation National Conservatory is located within the Australian National Botanic Gardens in Canberra, Australia's capital. The garden's national collection of native plants is significant, and has been curated for education, botanical research and cultivation. Lightly poised within this garden setting, this new center will support the display, conservation and propagation of rare and threatened tropical plants, and provide a key attraction for the gardens. The design is informed by a central consideration: how can conservatories remain unique and memorable experiences in the age of climate change? This question is eloquently addressed in the context of Canberra's unaccommodating winter climate. Typically, the conservatory typology proposes light-framed, fully-glazed enclosures offering poor insulation during the winter cold, and exposing the interior to excessive heat gain in summer. This project proposes an approach that aligns the conservatory with the principles of botanical conservation, with the particularities in its immediate environment, and climate change.
展开▼
