Art Works
Since its inception, our practice has collaborated with artists, supported arts and cultural industries and communities through strategic advice and governance, and have authored a number of art works in our own right. Most notable of these are the OverLogo project (with Lou Weis), the RED BOX project (with Olivia Lennon) and Jan van Schaik’s Lost Tablets project.
Projects
Master-Planning
Our work is underpinned by broad contextual approach, which endears us to master-planning and urban design. Our projects, large or small, are designed to improve their physical, environmental, demographic, cultural and economic context. We have been commissioned to produced development plans, urban analysis and master-plans for Zoos Victoria, Melbourne Water, Places Victoria, The City of Geelong, Nakheel, TDIC, The Dehan Group, the Shengjing Group and the Department of Treasury and Finance.
Exhibition Spaces
We have been working with artists and arts administrators at design and governance levels for over 12 years. Recently we have designed a series of exhibitions in collaboration with curators. Through our work with curators we have been developing ways of enhancing the themes and ambitions of curators and galleries in a more spatially explicit way without disturbing the importance place that art occupies in our cultural institutions.
Residential
Since 2007, MvS Architects has completed a series of residential projects. Our house for Stefano de Pieri and his family received an architecture award and was featured on the Sacred Spaces TV series. We also redesigned an apartment and the foyer of the iconic Hero Apartments in Melbourne’s CBD, as well as an apartment and a double-storey terrace, both in heritage-listed buildings. Our residential projects often include art curation, detailed furniture design, and bespoke lighting solutions.
Public Buildings
We have been designing public buildings since 2000, approaching each project as unique set of problems and opportunities requiring a tailored and innovative approach. Amongst our public clients we count The Victorian College of the Arts at Melbourne University, Melbourne Water, Zoos Victoria, Places Victoria, the Victorian Department of Treasury and Finance. In April 2025 doors opened on Australia’s National Centre for Environmental Art which we have been working on since 2015.
Retail Design
Our retail experience ranges from a single cafe in Melbourne’s Docklands to the planning of a mega-mall on reclaimed land in a marina development in Qinuandao, China. Many of our educational projects have retail components, as did the mixed-use project that we prepared schematic design for, in Grocon’s. Swanston Square development. Our work for the Sugar Station chain required a robust design language to provide brand consistency between an eclectic set of locations while meeting the constraints of high traffic shopping.