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S3335142/sandbox
Storey Hall, Melbourne, Australia
General information
Type	Theatre
Architectural style	Deconstructivism
Location	Melbourne,Victoria, Australia
Coordinates	37°48′33.23″S 144°57′50″E
Construction started	1994
Completed	1996
Cost	AUD$10.5 million
Client	RMIT University
Design and construction
Architect(s)	ARM
Main contractor	O'Dea and Kennedy

Story Hall is a 20th century building, that is part of the RMIT University. Located on Swanston Street in the Central Business District (CBD) of Melbourne, Australia. The initial building was constructed in 1887 as a meeting hall , which had then been renovated and officially opened in 1996 . The project had been undertaken by the architectural firm of ARMand constructed by O'Dea and Kennedy of Palmerston Street, Carlton. The clients being RMIT University, the new Story Hall became multipurpose theaters that consists of gallery spaces, cafe, lecture theaters, 750 seat auditorium and office spaces Story Hall became a significant structure due to the history of the previous ‘Meeting Hall’ and because of the design intent it has put RMIT on the international architecture scale.

Key Influences

One of the key influences in the design of Storey Hall is the use of scientific theory on tile patterns by Roger Penrose . Penrose’s tiling pattern has been incorporated into the design, with the street façade being highly decorative with complex geometric forms and materials that lack ornament. The most striking feature of the Façade is the rhombus shaped tiles that start to come out of the façade which sit on a concrete wall. The colours that were used on the street façade are bright and make a bold statement with the neon green referencing the Hibernian Hall’s Irish heritage and of the building’s former use by the Suffragette movement early in the nineteenth century .The interior also uses the Penrose tiling system with patterns and geometry with the foyer containing rough concrete walls and columns with a curved stairwell . The main auditorium’s ceiling is decorated with brightly coloured geometric Penrose tile patterns and textures which reflect the rest of the building.

Storey Hall is both architecturally and historically significant as it has won numerous awards and combines both the historical and traditional aspects of Hibernian hall to create a complex and daring building.

Storey Hall incorporates the Deconstructivism style which became popular in the late 1980s and contrasts significantly with the highly ordered and rational postmodern building next to Storey Hall, Hibernian Hall. The De-constructivism style looks at contradiction and complexity and argues against purity, clarity and simplicity which is found in post-modern architecture and turns its back on minimalism. Deconstructivism took a confrontational stance towards architecture and architectural history, wanting to disjoin and disassemble architecture .

Storey Hall was highly successfully in using computer and digital fabrications to enhance the design and was one of the first buildings in Melbourne to incorporate digital fabrication in its design in the 1990s.

Gallery

Entry area from Swanston Street

Penrose’s tiling pattern on the façade

Section drawing

Plan drawing

Awards

RAIA National Interior Architecture Award, 1996

RAIA Victorian Architecture Medal, 1996

RAIA William Wardell Award for Institutional Architecture, 1996

RAIA Marion Mahony Award for Interior Architecture, 1996

National Award Dulux Colour Awards, 1996

External Links

• Deconstructivism wikipedia website
• Architecture Australia Storey Hall Review