The Istana – A’Beckett Street, Melbourne

Originally titled ‘Dynasty Melbourne’, the development was more fittingly renamed ‘The Istana’ (Istana being Malay for Palace). Completed in December 2014, this ‘urban palace’ high rise apartment development consists of 350 residential apartments on 20 levels. Construction comprised of a mixed use ground floor including retail tenancies, four levels dedicated to parking and tenant amenities (15m swimming pool, sauna, gymnasium, BBQ areas and movie theatre).

CK Architecture’s approach was to orientate the building to maximise the nearby green space of Flagstaff Gardens. Inspired by contemporary architecture, the design incorporated elements from a nearby old factory, responding to streetscape by complementing the heritage features including a bold massing and façade design, composed at the lower levels with articulated formal elements. Reinforcing the contemporary nature of the building, the façade treatment used a mix of precast texture surfaces combined with perforated metal podium façade panels and bold vertical elements resulting in a striking tower design.