Upper House (South Brisbane, Australia) is a 33-storey multi-residential project by Koichi Takada Architects that has been honoured by many global awards programs in 2024. Both juries and the public have commended Upper House for its conscious choices, introduction of natural materials, biodiverse plantings, respect for people and planet, as its shapely form.
“Highrise lifestyle has become detached and disconnected – from the community, from nature, from one another,” says Koichi Takada. “With Upper House, we are looking to challenge that and establish a new model for vertical living that is about connection.”
The building delivers 188 luxury apartments inside expressive architecture that references the Moreton Bay Fig treea 5-storeyartwork on the façade shares a message about Australia’s indigenous people, the world’s oldest known living civilization.
Upper House is the first completed collaboration between Aria Property Group and Koichi Takada Architects and the architecture is designed to celebrate Brisbane’s natural beauty, relaxed urban lifestyle and mild sub-tropical climate. Punctuating the city skyline with a timber pergola and tropical rooftop oasis, Upper House has 1,000m² of progressive wellbeing amenities that bring residents together.
“Throughout the development, a thoughtfully curated artwork strategy showcases the work of emerging and established artists, with a collection that gifts sublime beauty and enjoyment to residents and a sound investment to the body corporate. The five-storey high façade features the artwork ‘Bloodlines Weaving String and Water’, by renowned Waanyi artist Judy Watson, while the backlit folded metal façade comes to life at night with mesmerising references to memory and cultural practices, orienting the building to Country and contributing authentic stories of place to the surrounding urban context. This project shows what can be achieved when an ambitious architect, art curator, and developer work in alignment.”
Photos credit: Mark Nilon, Scott Burrows, Tom Ferguson
