A Remarkable Local Collaboration – Nau 2019 Collection Shoot

Another layer is added to this thread of local history throughout the project with the dramatic circular courtyard, which defines the contemporary intervention, paying homage to celebrated Australian architect Roy Grounds’s seminal Hill Street House in Toorak. Furthermore, Heather says, the church’s former life as both an Anglican church and a Russian Orthodox place of worship suggested “the idea of melding European heritage with something fresh and Australian.” In this way, the Courtyard House and Church Space is an architectural response to many of the same ideas and forces that came together in the Nau shoot collaboration.

Just as the architecture and furniture coming together creates a new conversation, the act of styling and shooting the individual designs together forms new relations between the pieces that, in turn, bring to light elements of affinity or contrast. For Adam Goodrum, seeing his designs set within the Courtyard House and styled by Heather alongside the other pieces from the Nau 2019 collection, “the revelation was that, while I design strategically for both a commercial and residential context, certain designs that I saw as predominantly commercial really work in this residential space.”

This process, by which the styled shoot reveals new qualities of the designs, highlights the inherent creative power of trusted collaborators working together. The shoot marked the third time Heather and photographer Mike Baker had worked with Nau and parent brand Cult Design. Over time, the collection has grown, and Adam reflects that this is seen in the evolution of the work they have produced together. Heather agrees, “previous Nau collection shoots were more conceptual and studio-based,” she says, “so we felt that this time it was really important to place the new designs in an Australian home to reflect Nau’s passion for Australian design. We worked together to ensure the new range shoot would be a cracking showcase for this vision, and the commitment of its incredibly talented designers. Mike Baker’s admiration for contemporary design of honest materiality, when combined with practicality and beauty, ensured his shots really capture the spirit of Nau.”

Furniture, styling, photography and architecture – with Nau 2019, all express a range of shared ideas, intent and approach. From the house, whose design places past and present side by side, to the Nau ethos that brings together leading Australian designers, and the creative process and collaboration behind the collection shoot, Nau 2019 is an active celebration of Australian design, history and creativity.