Buchan principal Alessandro Paladin is a highly experienced project leader with diverse expertise spanning mixed-use, residential, education, and civic projects across Italy, China, and Australia. He leads Buchan’s Perth design team, focusing on complex mixed-use, retail, hospitality and multi-residential developments throughout Western Australia.

What does good design mean to you?
Good design communicates on two levels. One is functional — you need to be able to find the entry to a building; it has to be legible and recognisable. The other is emotional – it should communicate a feeling. If a building provokes a reaction, an emotional response, then it works; it becomes part of the collective memory of a city. If it blends in to the point that it becomes invisible, it may have missed that scope. A well-designed building relates to and represents its users – but in the end, it’s not up to the designer to decide how they will absorb it in their culture. 

You are in the Perth studio – how is mixed-use and residential design evolving in the west? 

Regulatory changes have led to an overall increase in quality. Codes can lead to design that takes the path of least resistance, whilst good design is made by variety and a critical approach that questions the rules and that’s an emerging trend. At Buchan, we’re interested in forging a contextual response that is based on culture, not form, and I enjoy that challenge. Build-to-Rent is also growing as a more flexible and attainable housing option – we’re seeing more opportunities for this model locally. 

What do you think are the benefits of apartment living? 

Historically, people in Perth are not used to living in apartments, but there are a high number of immigrants in Western Australia now who have grown up living in apartment blocks. That was my experience as a kid growing up in Italy and my time living in Asia. Density, whether it’s a curated mixed-use development or a mixed-use part of a city, is all about walkability and amenity. Once you make it walkable, you create a community, because you are seeing the same faces every day, creating a sense of belonging.

Is data helping us design better spaces and places?  

Data and data science is a specific interest of mine. Data can inform both design and research, helping us to make better-informed decisions. It impacts the cultural overlay we embed in our design process. Who are the users of a building and what makes them different or special? On a project we’re working on, four per cent of the local population identified as Filipino, but the number of people that speak Tagalog at home is twice that. Buchan is doing a lot of work in the Philippines, so we looked at the learnings we could bring here to create that sense of belonging. We also use machine learning to make predictions – for example, pedestrian movement in a masterplan, or the collaboration patterns within an organisation. That overlay is applied to inform the design and guide the decision-making processes of our clients. 

What do you enjoy about working at Buchan? 

I benefit from working with my peers across our studios and getting exposure to emerging trends in other States and other countries. This exposure to different cultures, provides a unique perspective to the understanding of cultural context. I’m currently working on the masterplan for a town centre in a new suburb housing the young families of people who grew up on the surrounding large rural properties. How do you provide the type of urban communal space that will allow them to engage in those activities that defined their rural lifestyle and in turn, their culture? It’s challenging and satisfying work. 

Photography: Jes Lindsay