Philip Smith Centre

Sustainability led conservation and activation

Image © Nearmap

Sustainability led conservation and activation

The refurbishment of the Philip Smith Centre at the University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a great example of sustainability-led conservation and improved accessibility combined with nuanced adaptation for modern uses, achieved with minimal intervention. The original internal planning of the building was conceived as a physical expression of progressivism, as applied to education in Tasmania, and we approached its conservation in terms of restoring this aspect—capturing and nurturing the building’s spirit as well as its design and materials.

Our brief

Freestanding and positioned at the highest point of a steeply sloping site on the UTAS Domain Campus, the three and four level brick building was designed for the Hobart Teacher’s Training College in 1908, initially by the Public Works Department. It was remodelled by architect Rudolph Koch to make it more compatible with nearby Domain House, and was constructed in 1909-10, opening in February 1911.

Philip Smith accommodated various successive tertiary education bodies, until it was sold as part of the government’s disposal of the campus. Highly valued by the local community, the building was acquired by Glebe Residents Association and became home to community groups. UTAS re-acquired Domain Campus in 2010, and the Philip Smith Centre in 2020.

This project is the first element in the implementation of the University’s masterplan for the whole site, and represents a return to its spiritual home. Commencing with the preparation of a conservation management plan, the vision for UTAS was for adaptation and restoration to provide a facility that incorporates the requirements in comfort and technology of contemporary teaching spaces.

Details

Client

University of Tasmania

Date

2020 - 2024

Status

Completed

Original Architect

Public Works Department, remodelled by Rudolph Koch

Location

Hobart/Nipaluna

Traditional Owners

Muwinina People of the Nipaluna nation

Image © Rosie Hastie

Before Works

Accretions and dilapidation obscuring the spirit of place

Image © Rosie Hastie

Sustainability Commitments

In the face of the changing climate, the ability to creatively reuse existing buildings and extend their longevity is a priority. This project demonstrates our approach in creating an architecture that celebrates the spirit of the place, minimises harm to the environment and provides a comfortable, healthy environment for occupants. Building physics are embedded in our design process, providing the evidence to support innovation and creativity with measurable sustainable outcomes.

Our approach was to start by reducing the demand, then generate what we could from the site. The building is serviced by an existing power supply and we designed within these constraints, avoiding expensive and intensive upgrades of the infrastructure. Demand was managed through upgrade of the building performance and a detailed comfort analysis to understand how the building performs, ultimately reducing the number of spaces requiring air-conditioning and subsequently the building’s overall energy usage. Furthermore, we introduced photovoltaic panels to the roof, concealing these within the hidden slopes to maintain its presentation.

Before Works

Image © Rosie Hastie

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"Too often, the soul of historic buildings is quietly erased—not by time, but by well-intentioned interventions. As codes and compliances evolve, architecture becomes burdened with layers of compromise. The clarity of the original design is lost beneath modifications that bend the structure out of its intended shape.

These buildings, once eloquent in their purpose and artistry, are reduced to ghostly echoes of themselves. But at the Philip Smith Centre in Hobart, we chose a different path. Rather than impose a new story upon an old one, we peeled back the noise. We returned to the original plan—not to romanticise the past, but to honour it. The result isn’t nostalgia, it’s recognition. The architecture speaks clearly again. Its proportions, materials, and intentions can be read and appreciated as they were meant to be.

In a world where the past is often drowned out by the present, this project is a reminder: sometimes the most powerful act of design is to listen, and to restore what was always there."

KAI CHEN, DIRECTOR AND FOUNDING PRINCIPAL

Our Response

Our design was driven by an understanding of the progressivist principles of the original design. Progressivism was grounded in a belief that education should stimulate psychological and social well-being in students and promoted a hands on, or experiential, approach to learning. This was translated into a very clear plan of generous teaching spaces with large windows for natural light, large double-height verandah on each end providing fresh air and an interior scheme of minimal ornament with dust resistant finishes such as painted hard plaster walls and pressed metal ceilings.

Our first step was to peel back the layers of interventions. The original plan of the classrooms was restored to provide teaching spaces and the art room in the attic level adapted to provide an office/teaching space self-sufficient with its own amenities for flexible use. Light control and acoustics were carefully considered with a focus on natural light and views to the landscape and sympathetically incorporating absorptive finishes. The later infills to the verandahs were removed to reinstate the original volumes providing breakout spaces for students. Thermally, the verandahs were treated as tempered zones providing a buffer the east and west sides of the building. An operable guillotine window system was carefully integrated with the restored cast iron lacework, providing the option to close them off to warm the building in winter, or open them up to cool the building in summer.