Paul Memmott

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University of Queensland

Brisbane, Australia
https://www.uq.edu.au

Biography

Professor Paul Memmott is a trans-disciplinary researcher (architect/anthropologist) and the director of the Aboriginal Environments Research Centre (AERC) and the Indigenous Design Place (IDP) at the University of Queensland.

Memmott’s field of research encompasses the cross-cultural study of the people-environment relations of Indigenous peoples with their natural and built environments including: Aboriginal housing and settlement design; Aboriginal access to institutional architecture; Indigenous constructs of place and cultural landscapes; vernacular architecture; Native Title; and social planning in Indigenous communities, homelessness and family violence.

The contribution to public knowledge from his book “Gunyah, Goondie and Wurley: Aboriginal Architecture of Australia” resulted in three national book awards in 2008, including the prestigious Bates Stanner award of the Institute of Architects and the Stanner Award of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. His books on Aboriginal housing include “Take 2: Housing Design in Indigenous Australia” (2003) and “Humpy House and Tin Shed: Aboriginal Settlement on the Darling River” (1991).

In 2021, Memmott received the Order of Australia Award “for distinguished service to ethno-architecture and anthropology, to Indigenous housing and cultural heritage, and to tertiary education.” His career has spanned over 50 years.