Alex is the Managing Director of the Practice and graduated from the University of Sydney with distinction in 1990 receiving the Sir John Sulman Prize for Architectural Design. Alex has contributed to the design of many significant public and educational projects over 25 years. In addition to management tasks, Alex is Project Director on a wide range of Commercial, Educational and Public projects and contributes to design and management review of all projects in the practice.
For me, Architecture is an enduring art which brings with it a responsibility for honesty and integrity. It should be based on fundamental ideas of space, representation and construction.
This is a philosophy that draws from the discipline itself and responds to the real demands of the practicing architect. It is not necessarily pragmatic, for there is often a need to include the poetic and spiritual within our work. At its heart it has a belief in the transformative power of architecture and its ability to change our surroundings in a positive and responsible manner.
The idea of the public project underpins much of my work and I see this as an important role for an architect – places for learning, discourse and meeting, buildings that bring people together and transform their perception of the world.
Any successful project must have ideas that respond to need, vision and function. It is the architect’s role to understand and synthesise these often-competing demands into a new expression. Ultimately it is the ability to transform these demands from abstract concepts into a physical entity that lies at the heart of the architect’s responsibility.
Robert has been with the Practice since 1990 and became a Director in 2002. A graduate of the University of Sydney, he has contributed to a diverse array of projects throughout his time at TKD Architects.
With a particular interest and extensive experience in educational and institutional projects, Robert works with a wide range of clients across NSW and ACT. He has been involved in developing new learning hubs and educational extensions that align with modern pedagogies. His ability to collaborate closely with clients has led to the transformation of many educational spaces, consistently delivering projects that exceed expectations.
Mel is a Principal of the Practice and has led our Interior Design Team for over eleven years. Initially studying Architecture, she transitioned to Interior Design after discovering her passion for the profound impact that well-designed and beautiful spaces can have on individuals, families, and communities.
Graduating with the University Medal in 1996, Mel has been involved in all aspects of interior design, including client liaison, design, documentation, and contract administration for projects of various sizes. After gaining experience in London and Sydney with firms of different scales, she ran her own practice for 15 years. Driven by a desire for collaborative practice and a love for diverse project types, Mel chose to join TKD Architects.
With over 20 years of experience, she is an active communicator who excels at working with stakeholders and clients to successfully deliver exceptional projects.
Interior Design within Architecture
It is a strong belief of mine that the architecture and interior design of any project should be one integrated solution and seamlessly considered from the start of any project. Interior design should be humanistic in approach and focus on a sensory, wellbeing and functional outcomes whilst meeting the brief. The blurred lines between what is architecture and what is interior design is exciting, dynamic and where great design happens. It is where TKD as an architectural company with a strong interior design focus has an advantage and can deliver well considered, holistic projects that are beautiful to experience.
George Phillips has over twenty-five years’ experience in heritage architecture and has worked on many significant historic buildings and sites in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland. His experience includes adaptive reuse, building fabric conservation, building refurbishment works, the preparation of conservation management plans, urban heritage studies, feasibility reports and heritage assessments.
I embrace history as a creative resource. I find inspiration in the history and significance of each place to achieve creative solutions that give it a living and sustainable future. I always tailor our approach to respond to the unique qualities of each site and our clients’ needs. I enjoy working collaboratively with our clients to help them realise the potential of their historic properties.
Lachlan is a Principal and project lead for many of our residential projects. Since joining the practice in 2004, he has successfully delivered a diverse range of residential designs, from compact and intricate homes to large-scale developments in both urban and regional settings.
Beyond his project work, Lachlan actively contributes to the practice through mentoring, training, and participating in social events and marketing efforts. He is also passionate about architectural photography, capturing stunning images of our finished projects. His multifaceted involvement enhances our team's creativity and cohesion.
Design and building have been a passion of mine since childhood and there are no better opportunities for synthesising these two than in the practice of architecture. Whether it was my early, childhood experiments in cobbling together a go-kart or a major building today, the joy of taking ideas and drawings through to a living, functioning reality has not diminished.
Architectural design is not to be created in a vacuum but comes from a relationship with and understanding of the client, their brief, the character of the site and any other influences on the project all of which contribute to a bespoke, sustainable and quality outcome. I seek a collaborative and inclusive process as it is my experience that this collective curation of ideas and expertise leads to the most-considered and enduring result for the project. I’ve had the privilege to work with great clients on their exciting homes and look forward to every new possibility and the continuing process of the design and building of architecture.
