Architecture that listens.

According to directors Alec Tzannes and Amy Dowse, the practice is a product of rigorous research and a distinctive set of values extending far beyond aesthetics.

“Our work culture is collaborative and transparent in the studio, attracting the best talent and nurturing their capabilities,” Alec says. “We encourage opinion and discussion about design ideas. We lead design by assessing against our core values, a deep knowledge of the disciplines we offer, a history of design excellence, and our distinctive methodologies.”

This internal culture reflects how the practice engages with clients, with a focus on listening, integrity, and delivering lasting outcomes. “Our studio workplace culture mirrors our client relationships and how we work - ethically, transparently, and effectively,” Alec says. “We minimise time wasted even though we deeply investigate and have clear vision on the projects we undertake.”

This creates an environment where architectural design is not a gesture, but a responsibility. The studio has long been influenced by First Nations thinking, particularly the principle of Caring for Country. “Two core beliefs particularly resonate with our values - learning from and caring about the environment we are changing through design, and understanding the decisions we are making from a non-anthropocentric perspective,” Amy says.

“We extend insights from our First Nations colleagues in co-design processes and integrate this knowledge with urban and building physics to lower the carbon footprint including construction and operational aspects of our projects.”

The firm’s commitment to sustainability and regenerative design has informed both client projects and their own workplace. Six years ago, the team relocated to a single-floor studio in Surry Hills, creating a workspace that is open, light-filled and collaborative. “We adapted and rebuilt the interiors to establish through our own studio interior the values and ideas we support,” Alec says. “The studio blends conserved historic fabric and recycled solid timber furniture we designed for our previous studio into new elements.”

The space facilitates both creativity and clarity of thought. “Our designers see the wide range of work encouraging their development and fostering more flexibility in the resourcing of projects.”

Long before sustainability became an industry imperative, Alec says Tzannes was quietly leading in the field of heritage conservation and adaptive reuse. “We established this practice working in heritage conservation areas - we think we have an advanced design culture in relation to adapting historically significant infrastructure and buildings at every scale - from precinct wide design to building and objects of significance,” he says. 

This work reveals a considered approach to time and value - ideas that are central to the studio’s framework of regenerative design. “We design with the intent to minimise waste and demolition and to ensure our work is designed and built to last, a concept we refer to as ‘Enduring’,” Amy says. “We optimise property development to the benefit of our clients as well as to reduce the risk of demolition and the release of embodied carbon back into the environment.”

Looking ahead, the outlook is optimistic about the direction of architecture in Sydney. “The Sydney design scene is truly national and international,” Amy says. “We compete with the best in the nation and the world. The future for design in Sydney, and spreading to other parts of Australia, is positive. We have also noticed an increase in public appreciation of good design, with Sydney comparing well with the international cities Sydneysiders frequently visit.”

Yet through all change - technological, environmental, and cultural - the role of the designer remains vital. “The constant is the knowledge, skill and judgement of the designer,” Alec says. “Technology affects how we do things and even what to do. But ‘why’ we do things and the impact we make is still what truly adds value for our clients and the broader community.”

With Sydney lifestyles often preoccupied with pace, the quiet confidence of Tzannes offers something more enduring: a thoughtful design legacy shaped not by trends, but by trust.