Tarrawarra Abbey in Yarra Glen, Victoria Place of Worship Building, Australian Architecture, Australia, Images
Tarrawarra Abbey in Yarra Glen, Victoria
Australian Monastery Building Development ? design by Baldasso Cortese Architects
9 Jul 2018
Tarrawarra Abbey
Design: Baldasso Cortese Architects
Location: Yarra Glen, Victoria, Australia
Tarrawarra Abbey

Tarrawarra Abbey is a Cistercian Monastery set on 400 hectares of grazing land at Yarra Glen in Victoria?s beautiful Yarra Valley, 60 kilometres North-East of Melbourne.

The devastating bushfires of Black Saturday, on the 7th of February 2009, saw searing grass fire, driven by fierce winds, blaze across the property killing 40 head of beef and destroying several hectares of pasture. The fire passed dangerously close to buildings in which several members of abbey?s community sought shelter.
Following a review of the fires, a brief was developed to build a secure fire shelter where the abbey?s monks and other members of the farm and community could take refuge in the event of future fires. The result is a concrete bunker growing out of a gentle slope, sited in close proximity to some of the farms residential buildings. The building is made of boarded insitu concrete, slightly folded and bent as it grows out of the slope. Formwork using oregon boards laid horizontally was used to obtain an organic finish to the grey colour of the concrete, which is expected to soften as it weathers and ages.

A sloped planted green roof ma...