Frankston War Memorial
Public Realm
Year - 2014
Client - City of Frankston, Victoria
Scope - Sketch design through to contract admin
Location - Beauty Park, Frankston, Victoria
Budget - $1m
Team - CAStudios / SAALA in collaboration with GHD / Convic
There are three components of The Frankston War Memorial: Beauty Park Memorial Place, Beauty Park Memorial walk, and Baxter Street Avenue of Honour. Through careful consideration and consideration of these three interdependent components, the memorial project sought to provide connection with existing landscape and its urban and environmental elements and to enhance existing axis and vistas so as to provide a humble and dignified memorial for all the community to honour returned and lost veterans and victims of war. The aim of the overall master plan for the memorial site was to provide a journey that is bold, uplifting and sublime and which importantly respects place.
The Memorial Place is designed to achieve a sacred destination and sense of arrival after a processional walk through the park from the urban edge. The design was in part inspired by quintessentially Australian forms such as the folded and curved form of the Australian army hat, the ephemeral wet lands, soaks and parched clay soils, and the unique scar trees of Australian indigenous cultures.
Particular care was taken to merge the memorial with the landscape; for the memorial space to be experienced as emerging from the land, rising in a gentle elegant curve and then sloping back into the land. The resultant sloped and curving wall would at once be seen to reveal the names of honour and to embrace the visitor enabling moments of intimate contemplation as well as for the annual ANZAC day commemoration services. The memorial was carefully positioned to allow a momentary glint of bright light as the rising sun catches the bronze detailing of its top rim.
