Informed by the disturbing rise of global crises requiring innovative solutions to urban space and housing, Shelter Union presents experimental projects by Australian and international artists and architects.

The exhibition and accompanying programs explore new ways of negotiating and inhabiting contemporary built environments that respond to the experience of living in contemporary Sydney and beyond. The exhibition’s fundamental thesis is universal and its scope is global. Shelter Union critically engages with the social and political realities of how we live now, as interpreted through the work of interdisciplinary practitioners using non-traditional materials and methods.

The exhibition articulates, through art, architecture and a fusion of the two, alternative living solutions in an age of unsettlement. It features new projects by Artéria (Portugal), Coconut Collective, Teddy Cruz (USA), Richard Goodwin, The Lot, Studiobird, Urban-Think Tank (Venezuela) and Jesper Wachtmeister (Sweden), in addition to a major photographic project presented in association with The Big Issue.

Visitors to the exhibition can expect to experience experimental architecture practices formulated through different mediums including immersive installations, sculptures, video, photography, audio and research material.

This exhibition challenges traditional notions of architecture and art, stimulating ideas of architectures purpose and how practitioners are pushing boundaries. Shelter Union brings transdisciplinary practice to the forefront, asking audiences to reimagine the social, environmental, economic, and political fabric of our cities and how we will continue to live in urban settings.  

Project partners: The Big Issue, UNSW Built Environment.

Exhibition curatorium of UNSW Art & Design researchers led by Lucy Ainsworth.

The Lot is seeking submissions from the public about what they think should happen to Millers Point, Barangaroo and surrounding areas for their work Unauthorised Access. Proposals will be publicly displayed on their puspose built structure at Cylne Reserve from 16 May. More information.

Public Programs

What: Matthew Bird lecture
When: Thursday, 14 May, 5pm
Where: Courtyard Gallery

Melbourne-based architect Matthew Bird, principal of Studiobird, will present a talk about his work Palanquin, part of the Shelter Union exhibition, within the broader context of his experimental and hybrid architectural practice. 

What: Saturday, 16 May, 3pm
When: The Lot artist talk
Where: Clyne Reserve, Miller’s Point

The Lot will be at the site of their public artwork Unauthorised Access to discuss the themes of their work and collect your ‘unsolicited proposals’ for the Barangaroo development site. 

What: Richard Goodwin performance 
When: Every Thursday during the exhibition, 10.30am
Where: Starting at Barangaroo, Hickson Rd

Every Thursday morning for one year, Richard Goodwin will retrace the footsteps of Joseph Cindric, a WWII veteran who pushed a handmade steel trolley around Sydney’s CBD during the 1970s and 1980s. Goodwin will push his own trolley around the city in protest of the development direction of Sydney, specifically Barangaroo.

Utzon Lecture Series

Presented by UNSW Built Environment

The Utzon Lecture Series was officially launched in March 2010 by Jan Utzon the son of renowned Danish architect Jørn Utzon. 

Held on am monthly basis at the UNSW Kensington campus in Sydney, the Utzon Lecture series focuses on the presentation of ideas from leading contributors of international significance in the design, delivery and management of the built environment.

What: 'Architecture Beyond Experience’ Professor Michael Benedikt from The University of Texas at Austin, USA 
When: 27 May, 6pm
Where: The Law Theatre, Ground Floor, UNSW Law Building

What: ‘Inaugural Donald K Turner Address – Sedimentary City’ Emeritus Professor Brit Andersen from The University of Queensland 
When: 24 June, 6.30pm
Where: The Law Theatre, Ground Floor, UNSW Law Building

What: ‘Architecture, Institutions and Change’ Professor Dell Upton from UCLA, USA 
When: 8 July, 7pm
Where: Eternity Playhouse Darlinghurst, 39 Burton St, Darlinghurst

What: ’Towards 2026: off-site fabrication innovation emerging from completing Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia Basilica’ Professor Mark Burry from The University of Melbourne 
When: 12 August, 6.30pm
Where: UNSW Built Environment, Lecture Theatre TBC