By Emma Xerri
Now at the Melbourne Museum, the annual Top Designs exhibition, in a continuing partnership with the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA), has 87 creations on display this year, carefully selected from a highly talented pool of more than 1000 VCE applicants.
Among the young artists on display is Waverley Christian College graduate Joshua Roberts, whose piece titled the MOON Project responds to a need for contemporary design and exhibition spaces for emerging designers and artists.
“My piece is a space for young designers and creators to be able to thrive in their work and their practice, and a spot to exhibit their works,” he said.
“I started off with a love for art galleries and reflecting on how fun it is to visit different exhibitions and the sense of calmness it gives me.
“I was also thinking of my own struggles in having access to big spaces where I could do my work and be productive. So, the piece came from a combination of those two needs.”
Having only previously dabbled in architecture through his visual communication studies, the MOON Project served as Joshua’s first endeavour into model building.
“I had never done anything like this before,” he added.
“I’d done vis com projects in architecture, but I’d never built models. I’d never done the physical stuff. So, that was a challenge – in learning all the new methods and how to deal with the new materials and equipment – but also really exciting to see my project realised.
“There were a few times where I was a bit hard on myself for not being able to get things right the first time, because I’m very much a perfectionist.
“But I learnt to just be confident in myself and know that mistakes are part of the process.”
And Joshua’s risks more than paid off.
Now a master in manipulating wood veneer, plastic and spray paint, Joshua is furthering his architectural passions at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), and he hopes his work can serve as an inspiration for current and future VCE students hoping to earn a spot in the exhibition, just like he was inspired by those before him.
“One of my friend’s [work] was exhibited in 2020, so to know that they had done it was really cool because it made me realise that it was something that was achievable.
“There’s 1000 applications and it’s an exhibition of only 87 people, so I think it’s a really cool opportunity to have my work on display, and a huge honour to be surrounded by so many other insanely creative people.
“And having my piece in that exhibit space with all the other amazing works makes it look even better.
“I hope that students attending the exhibition can be inspired in what they can do in their own VCE endeavours, and realise that the possibilities are endless.”
Top Designs is open to the public at the Melbourne Museum until Sunday 14 July.
