Compass 2022 Video - Bilya Koort Boodja Centre for Nyoongar Culture and Environmental Knowledge

Architectural wall cladding made from COLORBOND® steel in the colour Monument® is helping foster community at a mysterious new indigenous centre.

Bilya Koort Boodja Centre for Nyoongar Culture and Environmental Knowledge in Northam, Western Australia is a cultural centre for local indigenous communities to share their wisdom.

Nyoongar elders contributed strongly to the building’s design and colour scheme.

The choice to use wall cladding made from COLORBOND® steel in the colour Monument® came from working closely with Nyoongar Elders who are culturally tied with the nearby Avon River.

Architects iredale pederson hook (iph) say, “The building opens out to the river and closes down to the town with a solid facade that is muted by the dark Monument® colour. We chose that colour because we wanted a sense of shadow that adds to the building being somewhat of a mystery.”

Though a COLORBOND® steel Matt finish was considered, a Classic finish was deemed more enticing because its “Shimmering qualities create a notion of curiosity.”

iph says the cladding made from COLORBOND® steel in the colour Monument® has helped provide a unique voice for the local indigenous community by being such a large part of the Centre’s identity.

“The community were really sophisticated in their understanding of materiality and texture. We spoke with them about it in the context of how the profile would relate to an abstract landscape, of being viewed as a ‘tree’, creating shadow that changes throughout the day.

“We orientated it to create a sense of vertically because we wanted its shadows to cast like a series of tree trunks, which you can see from the other side of the river, through the existing trees.

“From a distance, there’s this abstract, shadowy object and then as one moves up towards it, it becomes this beautiful thing that moves beyond just colour.

“It creates that sense of intrigue as more detail of the COLORBOND® steel surface is revealed.”

When asked what his favourite thing about the project is, Iredale says Bilya Koort Boodja has provided a voice for the local indigenous community. “If we talk about helping to improve the community or assisting the community to have a voice, that's very much what this building is doing”.

“There's a notion of repair, bringing together the various family groups, allowing them all to have a voice where previously they hadn’t. This building gives them the opportunity to tell their stories first-hand”. 

“The process and outcome for Bilya Koort Boodja taught us that Aboriginal culture is a living thing. It's not static. It's not locked in time.”

To learn more about the project, please watch the video from Compass 2022 presented by COLORBOND® steel.

See more videos from Compass 2022

• Cradle Mountain Visitor Centre - Environmentally Conscious Design
• Penguin Parade Visitors  Centre
• Delivering Responsible Design - Tone Wheeler
• Sustainability and Climate Action at BlueScope
• Energy Efficiency and Roofing
• Social and Affordable Design - Melissa Bright (Studio Bright)