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The Victorian-era National Hotel found itself in a new century, in the Chinese quarter of Victoria Street, disconnected from the community it is now a part of. The National has been re-imagined to respond to its present context in which 21st century China has shaken its image of a quaint, exotic and mysterious land; presenting instead a more contemporary and vast manufacturing and economic power.
Calling for an architecture of utilitarian sensibility, everything is robust and unpretentious, everything serves a purpose. The Victorian shell was stripped of 100 years of renovations, down to its bones and internal workings. The space was then divided into ‘provinces’ and governed by one central commanding body: the bar. Monumental, the bar forms a wall stretching the length of the building from the inside to out, enabling staff behind to easily survey and serve patrons in any of the 5 ‘provinces’. Each with its own vernacular, unified yet different.
We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples of the Kulin Nation, the Traditional Custodians of the land upon which The National stands. We recognise their continuing connection to land, waters, and culture.
The Victorian-era National Hotel found itself in a new century, in the Chinese quarter of Victoria Street, disconnected from the community it is now a part of. The National has been re-imagined to respond to its present context in which 21st century China has shaken its image of a quaint, exotic and mysterious land; presenting instead a more contemporary and vast manufacturing and economic power.
Calling for an architecture of utilitarian sensibility, everything is robust and unpretentious, everything serves a purpose. The Victorian shell was stripped of 100 years of renovations, down to its bones and internal workings. The space was then divided into ‘provinces’ and governed by one central commanding body: the bar. Monumental, the bar forms a wall stretching the length of the building from the inside to out, enabling staff behind to easily survey and serve patrons in any of the 5 ‘provinces’. Each with its own vernacular, unified yet different.
Location
Richmond, VIC
Builder
Ficus Constructions
Photographer
Andrew Wuttke
We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples of the Kulin Nation, the Traditional Custodians of the land upon which The National stands. We recognise their continuing connection to land, waters, and culture.
Always was, always will be Aboriginal land. Breathe acknowledges the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation, the Traditional Custodians of the land upon which Breathe stands. We pay our respects to their Elders, past and present.
