20. Design and building on Country

What do you need to know to prosper as a people for 65,000 years or more?

Alison Page is really obsessed with training up a new generation of Aboriginal designers and that’s been a driving force behind her book, Design and Building on Country: First Knowledges for Younger Readers, co-authored with anthropologist and architect Paul Memmott.

It’s a rework of Design and Building on Country, published in 2021 as part of Thames & Hudson’s First Knowledges series.

In this short talk, hear...

• How did lego get Alison into design?
• What does it mean to design with Country?
• How can design be used as a form of storytelling and knowledge-keeping?
• What does 'form follows Country' mean in the context of design education?
• What is 'biomimicry' and how did First Nations people use it in design?
• How can traditional Aboriginal design principles be applied in contemporary Australian architecture and urban planning?
• How can design reconnect people with a sense of belonging and community?

Alison then talks Dillon Kombumerri, a principal architect and co-creator of the 'Connecting with Country' framework. They discuss the growth of Indigenous presence in design, the challenges of integrating cultural principles into urban settings, and the importance of designing for both cultural expression and environmental sustainability.

Speakers

Alison Page is a First Nations artist, designer and filmmaker who co-creates with Aboriginal communities, organisations and cultural practitioners, to bring the power of Indigenous storytelling to public spaces primarily to awaken the memory of Country.

Hailing from Yugambeh and Quandamooka Country, Dillon Kombumerri is a Professor of Practice at the Cities Institute. He is also Principal Architect for the Government Architect NSW and has over 30 years of experience bringing his own unique indigenous perspective to re-imaging the built environment.

Credits

This episode was recorded at UTS House as part of SXSW Sydney 2024.

UTS House at SXSW Sydney 2024 explored future trends and emerging technology from leading academics and industry experts in a series of interviews and panel discussions across the week.

Impact Talks at UTS is produced by UTS Impact Studios, with sound engineering by Alison Zhuang.