Adrian Lambert buggers off

Bad news folks; Adrian is leaving us. It’s nothing personal (or so he assures me!) rather an alignment of family factors that is too hard to ignore. And timing is of the essence, he and Helen are heading back to Blighty ahead of the birth of their second child.

Adrian has been with us for yonks – like all great histories the exact date of our meeting is lost to the mists of time, let’s just say it was about a decade and a half ago. He started at Acorn as an broom wielding, tea making, scum sucking assistant. He will leave as a photographer pure and simple. A photographer whose technical skills are matched by his sensitive creative aesthetic.

Most people we’ve told about the “change”, as we’re calling it, have been lost for words. A couple of them managed to sputter out something that decoded to “what in blazes are you going to do?!” Our old mate John H. Browne texted in this comment; “Why?”

Tragically at this writing these questions remain essentially unanswered. On Jan 20th we’re having a send off, if we don’t know any more by then we’ll just make something up. Drop us a line if you’d like to be there.

Oh yeah, comments are on, please leave any wishes and reminiscences here.

Adrian Lambert

Adrian Lambert checks out his prospects in the northern hemishere



Get the Scoop on 2020

…Had a cherry of a shoot a few weeks ago and really wanted to share it. Now that the Spring edition of Scoop is hot off the press, I’m able to lift the lid on what was a blindingly fun series of sessions with some of Western Australia’s finest thinkers and do-ers. 

These and a few other pics sit behind interviews about the hopes, dreams and vision of these fine folks for a betterer Western Australia by the year 2020.

When approached by the chaps and chapesses at Scoop, they had this great idea for a natural looking window lit photoshoot in a lovely old studio, unfortunately that’s not ours, not that ours ain’t a damn fine piece of space mind, but I really wanted it to still have a natural thing going on so I set my cogs winding.

I wanted the reader to see hints of studio equipment, to get a sense of sincerity that would contrast with some studio artifice. Art Gallery of WA Director Stefano Carboni looks nonplussed about his missing arm and architect Gemma Smith is waiting for her ride into the future at a bus-stop-in-the-studio. If you’re a good looking bloke with a face that can tell a story like CEO of the Aboriginal Legal Service of WA, Dennis Eggington, then that may be all that’s needed for a mighty pic.

2020 Vision portrait of Bradley Woods of Australia Hotels Association.
2020 Vision portrait of Dennis Egginton CEO of Aboriginal Legal Service. The most interesting part of the behind the scene’s process was the book that Professor Samina Yasmeen, Director of Centre for Muslim States and Societies, is holding. The arabic script is translated from the title of the Peter Allen song, “emoH ailartsuA llaC llitS I”. You got that, right?. 

Samina didn’t want the script to appear as a label for herself or people that have immigrated, but as the title of the book. I hoped it might hold some interest as it may well be the first time some people had seen how the word “Australia” appears in Arabic script. Thanks Langford Islamic College, in particular Sh. Muhammad Agherdien, for kindly translating and writing it out for me.

Good on yer Darren Smith, for your fine assisting, not to mention your idea to have eco-educator and hotelier Sharni Graham shovel soil across our studio. Even bigger good-on-yers for cleaning it up thirty-odd times! 

So if you want to see the Hon Brendon Grylls MLA shouting his head off at me, Tim Kenworthy, a 21yr old CEO standing on his hands, not to mention a few other interesting peeps, drop into your local caff, order yourself a decaf flat white with 1 big sugar if you are like me and have a nosey through Scoop issue 57 Spring 2011.

2020 Vision portrait of Gemma Smith, Architect at Hocking Heritage Studio.
Still reading? OK, let’s play a game. One of the sitters was upgraded to business class, so to speak, and doesn’t appear in this feature. Instead he has his own feature in the next edition of Scoop. I’ll give the first person to pick it a sweetie if they comment. ;) 2020 Vision portrait of Stefano Carboni, Director of the Art Gallery of Western Australia


shout, shout, let it all out

Bizircus

Been a while since we’ve had the energy to send an email blast. We’ve launched a new website and switched to a new blast provender since we did it last. And we’ve been filling in our spare time doing a spot of photography too!
Watching the stats come in for a relatively little campaign reminds one of all the help needed to make it happen.
There’s the gang at the nuthouse keeping the writhing database tamed and updated. Thanks Shirley, Adrian, Darren, Jack and Henry!
Then there’s Mrs Graffin, designer to the starstruck who whipped up our beautiful trio of templates (subscribe and collect the whole set).
Glenn, Judy and James at OM4 brought the whole shebang to virtuality with their usual patented blend of patience and panache.
John Browne, despite his retiring nature, will not escape mention. Those who know him will understand why. Those who don’t have their research cut out for them. This time Gen Y kiddies, Mr Google ain’t gonna help ya.
Anyway you can check it out here. If ya like the look of it sign up. We got more wild infotainment comin’ your way. If you like …

Get the picture



Our Feedburner account

Our Feedburner account has been irretrievably chewed up and spat out and stomped on by the friendly Google chewing spitting stomper. If you are subscribed to our blog via RSS you’ll have to re-subscribe.



Spread Eagle

Friendly neighbours West Coast Eagles‘, Nic Natanui, Daniel Kerr and Dean Cox seem to enjoy their photo sessions with us dispite those macho glares. In celebration of their 25 years in the game we upped sticks and toured our studio across the road for their 2011 catalogue shoot.


AIA WA Chapter Awards 2011

Around the middle of June every year the occupants of the nuthouse start sitting a little closer to the edges of their seats. It’s awards time, specifically the Australian Institute of Architects Awards time. All the buildings we’ve fallen in love with since this time last year have been judged by the peers of their creators, gowns are donned, trophies are polished and distributed.
Of course a large part of the excitement for us is bathing in the reflected glory of the projects we’ve been associated with! Can we share them with you?
A couple of buildings garnered awards across a number of categories, The State Theatre Centre by Kerry Hill Architects (above) won the Jeffrey Howlett Award for Public Architecture as well as the Julius Elischer Award for Interior Architecture.

Paul Wellington and Elizabeth Karol picked up commendations in Residential Architecture, Mondoluce Lighting Award and Sustainability as well as an Architecture Award in Interior Architecture for their beautiful Hamersley Road, Subiaco house (below).

Kerry Hill also had a win in Multiple Residential with Beachside Leighton North (left).
Katherine and Marco of vittinoAshe will be finding room among their knick knacks for the Iwan Iwanoff Award for Small Project Architecture (below). Watch out for this North Perth renovation in an upcoming issue of InDesign magazine.
Silver Creek House, Guilderton Other residential projects that received an award or commendation include Hartree + Associates Architects for a dramatic home featuring cast concrete and cantilevered upper floor in Pennell Road Claremont (above);

Officer Woods’ brilliant re-interpretation of the classic West Aussie beach house in Guilderton (left and above left) and

Walter Hunter and Penny Watson Architects’ wild re-model of Christian Lyon’s home in Peppermint Grove (below).

Phillip Griffiths Architects got a Urban Design commendation for William Street Renewal project, a part of the state government’s overhaul of the Perth Cultural Centre (left).

Taylor Robinson’s mastery of hospitality interiors had them taking home an interior architecture commendation each for Sentinel and The Boulevard (below left and below)

Our own tipping pool isn’t always on the money… in particular this office loved what Wayne Dufty at DNA Architects did with the Patrick Autocare logistics building out near the airport (left). DNA left empty handed, this time anyway. And of course we managed to convince ourselves that, despite some tough competition, Kerry Hill Architects were a shoe-in for the George Temple Poole for the STC. That prize was won by Hassell’s 140 William Street project.


Get hungry! Perth Dining in print

The Jet Set will have already noticed Robert’s photos of Greenhouse and Pata Negra in Qantas The Australian Way this month. Qantas’ award winning inflight magazine is running a Peter Forrestal penned piece on the current cream of Perth’s restaurants.



Tim Winton in print

Rob’s portraits of Tim Winton ran in the West Weekend last Saturday. Tim’s first play, presented by Black Swan opens at the State Theatre Centre on June 25 – more hereTim Winton



State Theatre Centre of WA

A mind-numbingly intense start to 2011 has been offset by the great projects we’ve been involved in. New client Kerry Hill Architects kicked off our relationship with a fantastic commission, photographing the new and entirely spectacular State Theatre Centre of Western Australia. This new building is the cornerstone of the state government’s makeover of the Perth Cultural Centre precinct. Kerry with colleagues Patrick Kosky and Simon Cundy have created a bit of a Tardis on an awkward “J” shaped site that connects Roe Street with the Cultural Centre. Their masterstroke according to Phil Goldswain in the March/April 2011 edition of Architecture Australia was the stacking of the main 575 seat theatre and the smaller Studio Underground theatre one on top of the other.

The building presents beautifully from the street, that however is only the beginning of the journey. The ground floor lobby is at once cavernous and intimate. Jewel-like focus is counterpointed with grand vistas that wouldn’t be out of place in a Kubrick film. Shifting scale runs through the entire complex; the staircase to the Heath Ledger Theatre lobby stretches out forever thanks to generous landings every seven steps, once at the top a low dark ceiling gives way dramatically to a three story high void in which sits the imposing drum that houses the theatre. There’s more. Much more. More than you, dear reader, could bear to have us write about. Best thing you can do is get down there and have a look. Book a show, it really doesn’t matter which one ’cause the building could well be the main act on your first visit.

WA State Theatre Centre


Spreading green goodness with Josh Byrne

We first came across “JB” a few years back whilst working for Gardening Australia Magazine. Our work was capturing the essence of the TV pieces for the print publication. Anyone who has worked alongside a film crew will know that the photographer is way way down the food chain and must patiently wait their turn for a brief audience with the star lest they spoil any precious audio.

The work is a lot of “hurry up and wait” interspersed with short bursts of very focussed photography. The relaxed feel of these images belies the large amount of observation, foresight and planning needed to execute each one in the few minutes allowed.

Josh Byrne - the green gardener
Ladybird Backyard chooks
The success of that work led to Josh recommending Adrian to Penguin Australia when penning his first book, “The Green Gardener” now in it’s umpteenth edition. For the book, Josh laid out modern permaculture principals for a suburban residential block in a simple easy to digest literary journey interspersed, bien sur, with some rather lovely photographs to illustrate the process, results and to show examples of the sorts of plants and designs one might employ in the quest of suburban green goodness.

Over the years, we’ve all become more than just associates, hard not to with Josh’s easy going and friendly nature combined with his passion for an approach to living that we at Acorn are all in sympathy with. Nonetheless, Adrian was flattered to be asked to Photograph Josh and his partner’s wedding, what a great day! …and where else but in Josh and Kell’s thriving (even in the heat of summer) garden.

Back in 2006 we photographed Josh’s mum Ros and stepfather, artist Ian de Souza’s home in Freo. If you have access to back issues check out Insite issue 10 for one of the most mind blowing properties we’ve come across, not to mention a glimpse of Ian’s bottom in his outdoor bathroom!

Recently we’ve been working on timelapse movies of a project Josh’s consultancy has brained for the East Perth Redevelopment Authority; the Urban Orchard and Wetlands parts of the Perth Cultural Centre makeover. Keep an eye out for a post on that work soon.

in the vege patch