Khanh Pham

Hi, I'm Khanh.

I am an undergraduate architecture student at Swinburne University of Technology. I am finally at the end of this bachelor's course after 3 long years, and I have thoroughly enjoyed each and every experience. All the people I have met along this journey inspire me, and I always strive to challenge myself to do better, work harder, create more, and learn more.

I still have a long way to go in exploring this industry and even more to learn, and I hope in a couple years' time, I can look back on this milestone and say that I am levels above who I used to be.

Feel free to check out my work—I hope my story can inspire you, and I'm keen to hear yours too!

THE FRAME: X

Our capstone project is set in Newport. An area known as a transit suburb, but when dug deeper, the area has a much richer collective memory in theater, cinematography, and collective art. Our X factor, for our proposed museum draws on Newport's collective memory; we aim to celebrate it, imprint it into the face of Newport's identity and unmask the hidden talents and artistic culture hidden behind the curtains of Newport's industrial heritage.

THE FRAME: SCENE STREET

In a complete contrast to the urban fabric, Scene Street takes you into pitch-black darkness with retro displays lined up next to each other. As one of the primary exhibitions in our museum proposal, we wanted to give the user an extreme experience, stepping away completely from the outside world and having them fully immersed into the films and art that are embedded into Newport's history.

THE FRAME: UNREEL

A temporary, open-air exhibition that changes displays along with the events timeline of The Substation. One of Newport's architectural challenges was how flat the site was, so we decided to dig underground whilst keeping the top open to give off the same vibe as the bluestone quarries Newport was so proud of back in the day.

ΔMDC

Our proposal for the new renovation of Swinburne's AMDC building. The concept behind the design was the idea of prisms—the idea of how prisms diffract white light into different colors—and linking that idea to dispersing the porosity of students throughout the building as well as skill sharing between levels of study. We wanted to address AMDC's "million-dollar views," hence we proposed a glass, fragmented facade design, best responding to the skyline, sunrises, and sunsets that are visible from the AMDC.

PARAMECIA

In response to the monotonous daily office life that exists in South Yarra, we designed a hybrid sports centre. Stationed at 731-739 Flinders Street, we were gifted with a location with a beautiful interaction with the waterfront. Looking to house all types of people from students and migrants to middle-aged, our proposal features social housing along with low-impact sports facilities and a boardwalk to host events in the Yarra, when it becomes swimmable, of course.

Acknowledgement of Country

The School of Design and Architecture respectfully acknowledges the Wurundjeri peoples of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners and knowledge-keepers of the lands, waters and sky that surround us, where we work, learn, create, communicate and make place. We recognise that sovereignty has never been ceded and this always was and will always be Wurundjeri Country. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who continue to make a better world through design.

We extend our acknowledgement to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff, students, alumni, real-life clients, and knowledge keepers, who have contributed to our own education diversity and growth. We will continue to ensure that staff and students respectfully honour ancestral connection to Country and Place in everything that they do.

We are dedicated to the notion of design to make a better world and we acknowledge that making tools, shaping place, sharing stories, making meaning, wayfinding and collaborating have long been and continue to be both central and integral to First Peoples' cultures. We recognize that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ cultural contributions have continued relevance to design practice and commit to: reconciling ancestries of design and contemporary practice as well as pursuing culturally and professionally appropriate ways to engage with a diverse population of colleagues, industries and clients. In a time of treaty-making and voice we understand that there are overlaps between caring for Country and the sustainable production of goods, services, experiences, products and buildings.

Guided by the principles of respect, reconciliation, and reciprocity we undertake to indigenising and decolonising design practice by dismantling colonial structures and challenging biases that have marginalised Indigenous voices and design.

As students of SoDA you will be given opportunities to both engage with and educate yourself in Indigenous creative practices and cultural protocols through a lens of inclusivity, diversity, respect, mutual understanding, inter-cultural dialogue in all aspects of design practice. Indigenous people have been telling stories, making tools, and connecting to Country through visual media, placemaking and place marking for more than 60,000 years and these practices are part of an ongoing, evolving and live tradition.