2014 National Architecture Awards: Commercial

Bread in Common by spaceagency Commercial Architecture: National Award Australian Institute of Architects

Jury citation

Bread in Common is a hip new restaurant located in an old automotive warehouse down a side street in Fremantle. Once notoriously famous for the port, the sailors and the pubs, Freo has seen its rich street life decline in recent decades, and now suffers from the 1980s insertion of a conservative university into the bulk of the city’s heritage buildings. With that, most independent retail and commercial endeavour has faded. The new bakery and restaurant – hence the name, Bread in Common – has creatively animated two adjacent historic, but somewhat mundane, buildings to deliver a work that buzzes with energy and actively engages its urban frontage. It gives renewed energy to its immediate precinct, an injection of life that Fremantle has sorely needed.

The architects have brought the old building fabric to life, both in the gritty street facade and in the rich and theatrical interior. The kitchen, the centre of the action, is out front – open and on view – while the massive baker’s oven is down the back with all the gear needed for commercial bread making. Diners sit in between, within the vast double-storey space surrounded by relics of its industrial past.

Solid rammed earth walls define the amenities area, with male and female toilets looking into small landscaped light courts – a beautiful, almost Zen touch. Above, a secluded mezzanine looks out over the main dining area and peeps through a looking hole to the kitchen below.
Bread in Common is an inspired piece of architecture and a runaway commercial success. It demands attention and has acted as a catalyst for many other start-ups around Fremantle’s history-rich Victorian streets.

Credits

Project
Bread in Common
Architect
Spaceagency Architects
Fremantle, WA, Australia
Consultants
Acoustic consultant Norman Disney Young
Builder Texo WA
Commercial kitchen Hisco
Fitout & cabinetwork Professional Innovators
Furniture designer Paul Morris-Join
Hydraulic, mechanical and electrical consultant Norman Disney Young
Silk-screen artist Angela Ferolla
Structural consultant Santillo Engineering
Site Details
Location Fremantle,  WA,  Australia
Project Details
Status Built
Type Restaurants

Source

Award

Published online: 6 Nov 2014
Words: National Architecture Awards Jury 2014
Images: Robert Frith

Issue

Architecture Australia, November 2014

Related topics

More awards

See all
"Cusp: A transition between two states" by Ella Meredith. 2023 Artichoke Prize Winners

The 2023 winners of the Artichoke Prize: Recognising student excellence in communicating interior design propositions.

George Street, Sydney by City of Sydney Winners revealed: 2024 Australian Urban Design Awards

Eleven projects were recognized in this year’s program, including four winners.

Most read

Latest on site

LATEST PRODUCTS