About Workshop Architecture

  • Workshop Architecture was founded in 2008 by James Staughton and Tony Styant-Browne and since 2016 has been co-directed by James Staughton and Simon Whibley.

    As a team of 10 we are a vibrant architectural, interior design and urban design practice. We have an established reputation for an innovative, interactive design process for both public and private sector clients where the design solution emerges from a shared vision.

    We are committed to intelligent strategic design, to the principles of environmental sustainability, to positive client and consultant relationships and to the effective delivery of our projects. It is on these principles that the mutual design and development aspirations of each project are built.

    We are dedicated to a contemporary position in architecture, along with a commitment to the craft of architecture with the knowledge that well-crafted buildings, resulting from the intelligent and inventive use of materials, allow the embodied aspirations of each individual project to be fully realised.

    Our receipt to date, of 12 AIA Architecture Awards, the Victorian Premier’s Sustainability Award for Design, various industry awards and recognition by the Architects Registration Board of Victoria for excellence in the delivery of architectural services, are testament to these qualities.

  • James Staughton, Director

    B Arch (Melbourne)
    Dip Design (Copenhagen)
    Associate (GBCA) RAIA
    Director Workshop Architecture Pty Ltd
    25 years professional experience
    Specialist Expertise: Architecture and Interior Design

    Born in Melbourne in 1969, James has completed both a Bachelor of Planning and Design and a Bachelor of Architecture at the University of Melbourne, graduating with honours in 1994. This was complemented by a Diploma of Design from the Danish International School in Copenhagen in 1991. James is registered as an architect in the State of Victoria and is an active member of the Australian Institute of Architects.

    In 1999 James co-founded the multi award winning partnership Staughton Architects and merged with Anthony Styant-Browne Architect to form Workshop Architecture in mid-2008. James has operated in the dual roles of Design and Project Director during this time having worked with various clients in the residential, institutional, commercial, urban design and public art sectors. He has also initiated numerous office and IT procedures to form an inventive and technologically efficient design and business environment.

    James is a keen contributor to both the architectural profession and to architectural education. He is currently chair of the AIA Awards Committee, has sat on award juries as both member and chair and was a long-time member of the AIA Sisalation Prize Steering Committee, which directed the annual publication of the Take architectural research journal. James is also a regular guest critic and design studio leader at both the University of Melbourne and at RMIT University.

    Simon Whibley, Director

    MArch (RMIT)
    BArch (Uni. of Auckland)
    AIA A+Member
    Director Workshop Architecture Pty Ltd
    20 years professional experience
    Specialist Expertise: Architecture and Exhibition Design

    Throughout his career Simon Whibley has combined architectural practice experience with exhibition design, creative curatorial projects and ongoing involvement in architectural research and design teaching.

    In 2005, Simon co-founded the architectural practice, Antartica, and in 2012, he founded the architectural and design practice Simon Whibley Architecture. Simon has designed and directed an array of residential, community, health, recreation and urban design projects over the last 10 years.

    In addition to the delivery of many built projects, Simon has furthered his knowledge through post-graduate research in urban design, obtaining a Master of Architecture by research at RMIT’s Urban Architecture Laboratory. The research focused on the intersection of architectural and urban design. Simon currently teaches in the RMIT Architecture Programme, and recently edited an issue of Architect Victoria focusing on design issues across Victoria. He is now the editorial committee chair for this well regarded publication. Simon has served as a jury member in the Victorian Architecture Awards for the Regional Prize, and he is also a board member of Platform Contemporary Public Art Spaces.