Thornton

Kangaroo Point’s close proximity yet separation from the city has sparked an increase in high end, innovative developments pushing the standards of design and contributing to the suburb’s bold personality. The vision for Thornton was to deliver a work of residential architecture that would rival the best city museum or art gallery, complimenting the riverfront skyline while providing unparalleled views and living. The site featured a heritage building to be retained and promoted as part of the overall development. The surrounding area of Kangaroo Point also featured several large-scale towers to be considered, ranging from 10 to 23 stories.

The existing heritage building was repositioned to the west end of the site to allow for Thornton’s tower. Repositioning the house ensured the house retained its river frontage and views while allowing a more prominent, visible position. Screening to the North, East and South avoids overlooking surrounding buildings. Thornton’s façade consists of a double-skin glazing system with a fritted graphic applied to the outer glass skin. The pattern provides shade and privacy screening, while awning-style openings allow natural ventilation into the double-skin cavity. The changing degrees of the openings provide articulation up the tower face and enhance the building’s form.

Thornton’s façade is highly functional and a striking visual marker in the city-scape. Through genuine collaboration, Thornton has emerged as something greater than the sum of its parts. The architecture embodies a building of enduring quality and value that serves as an exemplar of progressive residential development in Brisbane. It is akin to a gallery or public building in its contribution to the cityscape and is designed to carry through generations. The high performance operable fritted IGU (double glazed) glass façade mitigates the heat of Brisbane’s climate while creating a beautiful and striking ‘skin’ for a building that truly breathes.

Thornton’s design is distinguished by the calibre of its creators, each a leader of their field; Architect Liam Proberts, Gallerist Philip Bacon AM, Chef and Restauranteur Thierry Galichet, Artist Ralph Wilson and Developer John Livingstone. A curated arrival sequence, defined by landscape and art, creates an identity and experience that is synonymous with returning home to Thornton. Thornton offers its residents the means to bring their most prized collectables into their new home. Guided by Philip Bacon, Thornton incorporates world class art display and lighting systems to enable individual residences to be experienced as gallery houses. The embedded technologies enable hanging and rotation of artwork as well as gallery level lighting and viewing capabilities. Kitchen functionality and joinery details have been designed by Thierry Galichet to perform for either the home cook or professional chief, positioned to take full advantage of the river and CBD aspect.