in a perfect world i wouldn't be here
From The Graduate
Taught by Laura Bailey
Programme Public House Heritage Protection
In a perfect world I wouldn’t be here is a reimagined context for heritage protection. Following an in-depth study of the broader context of the decimation of the live music venue and pub as a type within Melbourne a provocation was made. What scenario may cause its continuance, a new heritage act and ownership model was formed to play out this scenario. This then through up a subsequent question as to what architecture would be enabled by such a change? The core statement of the project was imagining a heritage act and ownership model that championed use and living heritage as opposed the reverence for past events. This departed from the current framework of original fabric and exchange value that is currently evident in these sites. The result of this paradigm shift is the creation of an intimate architecture that sits as mediator between the inhabitants and the form allowing the users of the day to add their mark to the existing patina of the site. Through these exercises an archive was formed that summises the hotel and its existence, which at its heart is the offer of a new idea.
