The Urban Developer
AdvertiseEventsWebinars
Urbanity
Awards
Sign In
Membership
Latest
Menu
Location
Sector
Category
Content
Type
Newsletters
Untitled design (8)
FULL PROGRAM RELEASED FOR URBANITY-25 CONNECTING PROPERTY LEADERS ACROSS THE ASIA PACIFIC
FULL PROGRAM RELEASED FOR URBANITY-25 WHERE THE PROPERTY INDUSTRY CONNECTS
VIEW FULL AGENDADETAILS
TheUrbanDeveloper
Follow
About
About Us
Membership
Awards
Events
Webinars
Listings
Resources
Terms & Conditions
Commenting Policy
Privacy Policy
Republishing Guidelines
Editorial Charter
Complaints Handling Policy
Contact
General Enquiries
Advertise
Contribution Enquiry
Project Submission
Membership Enquiry
Newsletter
Stay up to date and with the latest news, projects, deals and features.
Subscribe
OtherStaff WriterSun 11 Dec 16

Gerald Matthews: 'Positive Psychology' Should Be Key In Design

TUD+ MEMBER CONTENT
iStock-618651132_620x380
SHARE
print
Print

Born and raised in Adelaide, Gerald Matthews started his career as an architect in 2000 joining his father’s practice Matthews Architects. As a graduate architect he started his career on a drawing board, not a computer, and it taught him the value of careful thinking, patience and visual communication.

As his career progressed, Gerald gravitated towards complex projects, including houses, office buildings, aged care facilities and schools. In 2006, he was appointed an Associate and the following year he moved to London to work with British firm HLM Architects. There he assisted in establishing a new office in Wales and worked on a series of large scaled mixed-use developments, a major hospital and a large high school.

By Gerald Matthews

Designing modern places of learning is a complicated but highly rewarding process...especially when you get it right. Creating positive emotion and an environment that encourages this emotion should always be the driving force in these types of projects.

Whilst living in the UK in 2007 I was lucky enough to work on a new high school for Newport Schools in Wales. During the design process I was introduced to the work of Ken Robinson. This was where I first began to properly understand that creative thinking is the most important aspect of mental development but also the most challenging.

Fast-forward eight years and my company Matthews Architects has just completed the new St Peter’s College Middle School (Adelaide). The lessons I learnt around positive emotion, engagement, relationships and accomplishment became the mantra of the project and were woven into every design decision.

When designing the state-of-the-art Middle School we set out to really maximise natural light, which in reality formed an integral part of our approach. On top of this we incorporated visual stimulation and a layout that lent itself to greater engagement.

There is no doubt that positive psychology is embodied into spatial and experiential outcomes in design. Using colour, texture, light, sound, visual connections, views, movement and volume allows these spatial experiences to be carefully created.

From inception to completion the whole project was a pleasure to be involved in and one that we had free license to gain the best result for the ultimate custodians of the building – the students. We worked seamlessly with Kennett Builders and because of our highly collaborative approach the project was finished six-weeks ahead of schedule.

Being involved in such a challenging yet rewarding project is extremely pleasing and we are keen to see how we can take the lessons we learnt to other large-scale projects around Australia. The philosophies from this project of course don’t simply just apply to places of learning...places of work should also take many of the same considerations into account.

At the risk of sounding too much like an architect I would like to finish on a point that most people feel slightly uncomfortable talking about because no one knows where and how fast it is moving. In a world where people can carry devices and have access to an unfathomable amount of information the importance of knowledge retention has been surpassed by three things:

ResidentialAustraliaArchitectureSector
AUTHOR
Staff Writer
"TheUrbanDeveloper.com is committed to delivering the latest news, reviews, opinions and insights into the best of urban development from Australia and around the world. "
More articles by this author
ADVERTISEMENT
TOP STORIES
Exclusive

Freecity’s $300m PBSA to Prove Worth of Modular at Scale

Leon Della Bosca
7 Min
Exclusive

Billbergia’s John Kinsella: Whiskey, Fun and a Fear of Heights

Vanessa Croll
8 Min
Exclusive

Paperwork to Plate: The Rise of Brisbane’s Midtown

Taryn Paris
6 Min
Wel Co's Thornhill Park, 40km west of the Melbourne CBD.
Exclusive

Waiting for Victoria: Why Wel.Co says State Planning isn’t Working

Marisa Wikramanayake
6 Min
Woods Bagot Principal Alex Hall and Penny Place Adelaide
Exclusive

Amplified Affordability: Woods Bagot Cracks Housing Cost Code

Leon Della Bosca
8 Min
View All >
Sponsored

Beyond Bricks and Mortar: Creating Connected Communities with Technology

Partner Content
Surfers Paradise Jinding Revised DA hero
Development

Tide of Tower Tweaks to Stack Up Gold Coast Projects

Phil Bartsch
Wesley Mission Uniting Church Affordable Housing Scheme Curtin ACT
Build-to-Rent

Wesley Mission Plots $46.5m ACT Housing Precinct

Leon Della Bosca
The church wants to rezone its half-hectare block so the 98-home scheme, which includes a build-to-rent component, can m…
LATEST
Technology

Beyond Bricks and Mortar: Creating Connected Communities with Technology

Partner Content
3 Min
Surfers Paradise Jinding Revised DA hero
Development

Tide of Tower Tweaks to Stack Up Gold Coast Projects

Phil Bartsch
4 Min
Wesley Mission Uniting Church Affordable Housing Scheme Curtin ACT
Build-to-Rent

Wesley Mission Plots $46.5m ACT Housing Precinct

Leon Della Bosca
3 Min
Irongate Minchinbury Cold Storage
Industrial

Irongate Adds Cold Storage Deal to $350m Industrial Play

Vanessa Croll
3 Min
View All >
ADVERTISEMENT
Article originally posted at: https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/gerald-matthews-positive-psychology-design