Project overview

The design undertaken by James Cubitt Architects (JCA) for the Australian Consulate-General, Bali was governed by a number of site related responses owing to the shape, proportion and adjacent buildings impacting on how the building was to operate. The long narrow site is surrounded by two-storey private offices and government buildings, with a distinct architectural aesthetic, common of both Denpasar and Bali in general. The resultant building plan focused on a long narrow building maximising the opportunity available within the site but also addressing the tropical location. The approach enabled the building to utilise natural light to both enhance the overall internal amenity but to also offer genuine operation cost reductions through reduced dependency on artificial light.

Like much of the architecture in the region, the Consulate-General design was strongly influenced by the climate and environmental conditions reflective of Bali. The building mimics the pitched roofs of traditional Indonesian architecture, using large roof overhangs to not only shelter the building from both sun and rain but in turn create covered verandas that through the roof angle and extent of overhang, offer visual privacy from the surrounding buildings. This was an important consideration for DFAT with a strong emphasis on security. Allowing the architectural response to passively and subtly address this ensured the building still remained welcoming.

The building utilises a number of local materials, particularly local stone which offers warmth, texture and a softness to the materials palette and reinforcing the amalgamation of landscape and architecture as being integral to the aesthetic of the building. Landscaping is integrated from the outset, combining both hard and soft. JCA’s response was driven by landscape as being symbolic of both Australian and Indonesian culture. Within the Australian ideology this is through the garden as a social space, within Indonesian culture it serves a more symbolic connection with nature - highlighted by the Buddhist shrine that forms part of the overall compound.