Kenilworth Designer Dunny Competition

Kieron Gait Architects was recently one of 12 finalists in the Kenilworth Designer Dunny Competition. The aim of the competition was to design an iconic public toilet that would both instill a sense of pride within the community and act as a landscape marker for tourists entering Kenilworth.

The jury shortlisted The Red Paddock with the following citation:

The Red Paddock – Kieron Gait

An extraordinary and lateral approach to the brief characterises ‘Red Paddock’. The authors’ exploration of analysing and synthesizing the brief questions the whole notion of the necessity for using ramps to access the height necessary for flood proofing. The ‘silo-like’ amenity components do not need mounds to alleviate the travel distance. Instead, as a collection of sculptural pipe like structures, they sit on, and within, a rich tapestry-like ‘picnic rug’. This immediate landscape proposal consists of various patterned ‘red trees’ contrasting the surrounding green context in a vigorous and complementary way. Like ‘Noahs Ark’ this proposal acts defiantly to the floods rather than reaction. Flood doors offer protection and a ‘bora ring’ like gabion stone-wall protects against flotsam. The large rural utilitarian pipe structures are periscopes for those on the toot to view the sky, mountain and tree tops via mirrors on the underside of the top mounted weather vanes. The pipes are also perforated to let in patterned light furthering the experience within the pipe.