Perth designs win at AIDA

A Western Australian coffee shop and coastal home were among the winners in this year’s Australian Interior Design Awards (AIDA), while Hassell took out top national prize for its design of an Italian restaurant in Melbourne.

The 2020 AIDA event, which this year celebrated its 17th anniversary, was held online and live-streamed over Facebook in response to public gathering restrictions.

AIDA said this year’s awards focused on human experience, with considered design elements and rigorous craftsmanship used to show that the functional could also be exceptional.

Ohlo Studio’s design for  Willing Coffee in Guildford was awarded best commercial design in the state, while Sydney-based Decus Interiors’ Coastal Home project secured best residential design in WA.

Willing Coffee, which also has a cafe in Mount Lawley, was established by former champion track cyclist Tim Willing, who previously told Business News the idea to open two cafes stemmed from his passion for coffee.

Ohlo Studio is a South Fremantle-based interior architect, which also designed high-fashion retail store Dilettante in Claremont and Dough Pizza in Whitfords City.

Adelaide-based Hassell was presented with the premier award at this year’s AIDA event for its design of the Di Stasio Citta restaurant in Melbourne, which also won best commercial design in the state and (jointly) secured best hospitality design in the country alongside Richard Stanisich's Hotel Rose Bay in NSW.

“Hassell’s Di Stasio Citta is lauded for its sense of art and drama, with the creative way in which it allows space and its patrons to interact one of the key reasons it received a triple accolade,” AIDA said.

"It feels fresh, genuinely creative and is highly appropriate in terms of the theatricality of the dining experience.

"There exists a level of austerity to this project that's cinematic in the way it allows one to understand the design's concept and the way the space and its patrons work together.

"More impressively, its brave and bold approach also delivers a sense of intimacy despite the dynamism of the dining area, which results in a very personalised experience for patrons."

The Di Stasio Citta restaurant in Melbourne. Photo: Hassell

AIDA also noted the longevity and international appeal of the design.

The event is delivered in partnership between the Design Institute of Australia and Architecture Media's Artichoke magazine.