(T)OWN Brand

Henry’s Dream

This is Henry Ford, the inventor of the mass production, branding genius and dabbler on the potential on the ‘Town’ as a place to live and participate in public life. His idea was the ‘Town’ as a complete world, a place for work, a place to live, a social condenser and a civic realm. His singular idea of ‘Town’ has been usurped with a dis-aggregated model of expansive growth. Ford Australia’s imminent abandonment of it’s Broadmeadows site presents an opportunity to re-examine the idea of ‘Town’ in the context of contemporary Melbourne. You will design a Neighbourhood Activity Centre (NAC) and rail station for the Growth Areas Authority (GAA) within the former Ford site. The studio will examine and analyse the city at large. We will visit and learn from buildings and town centres. We will use models and iterative design processes.