Breathe Architecture for Habitus
Growing up, Jeremy McLeod always wanted to build bridges. Instead, as founding director of Breathe Architecture, he is bridging gaps in the Australian design industry.
Jeremy McLeod is adamant that this portrait not be about himself. According to the founding director of Melbourne design practice, Breathe Architecture, the industry feels like “a really tough team sport”, and the things that his practice has achieved to date would not have been possible without his “team of A players”.
To put this humility into context, Breathe Architecture has arguably had the most impact on the Australian design landscape out of any firm born of this generation. Since foundation in 2001, its mission has always been clear – and more than slightly ahead of its time. When it was first launched, the practice was one of just a handful of architectural practices that identified as sustainable. “When we built our first website we listed ourselves as sustainable architects. We were one of six architects when you searched ‘sustainable architects’,” says Jeremy. “It seemed obvious to us that there was a lack of understanding about sustainability and a lack of understanding about how to approach sustainability holistically. I think if you search ‘sustainable architecture’ now, Google never finishes. Everyone’s sustainable now…apparently.”
From a minority base, the practice has gone on to design high-profile and wide-reaching developments such as the now legendary Nightingale housing project, and reimagine the role architects can play in property development and financing.
- Kirsty Sier
