“A big audacious project”, ARM triumphs in cultural competition
L-R: Joshua Morrin (ARM), Russell Kosko (RP Infrastructure), Mark Raggatt (ARM), Professor Mehmet Ozalp (ISRA), Orhan Kaba (ISRA), Salma Malik (RP Infrastructure).
The Islamic Sciences and Research Academy has announced ARM’s team as the winner of its design competition for the new Museum of Islamic Art Australia.
The first arts museum of its kind in Sydney, it will be a place for intercultural dialogue, nurturing a deeper understanding of Islam through educational and artistic programs, tours and excursions for schools and the broader community.
Launching the project in October 2025, ISRA director Professor Mehmet Ozalp called it “a big audacious project” that “galvanises our staff, our volunteers, and makes us work hard.”
Launching the project: Professor Mehmet Ozalp (left) with Khaled Sabsabi and Dr Nur Shkembi. Credit: Think Studio.
High profile, complex briefs demanding an intelligent, tailored solution are just the kind of project ARM seeks out.
“It’s rare to be asked to design a building that must be a work of art, and an enormous responsibility to create culturally significant places where people feel they belong and want to come back to,” said ARM director and Sydney studio lead Mark Raggat. “We’re gratified by ISRA’s confidence in our team and couldn’t be happier to open the year with such a culturally important project.”
ARM’s winning tower and garden concept is a vertical gallery that gives the museum a strong civic presence while embodying the brief’s core priorities:
- A building that is a work of art
- A place for transformative experiences
- A centre for community
- Flexible and efficient
- Accessible
- Cost-effective to build and maintain
- Capable of future expansion
Design and delivery are being funded by a $26.3 million NSW State Government grant under the WestInvest Community Project Grants initiative.
Credit: Think Studio.
ISRA is a non-profit, apolitical community organisation embracing a vision of reconciliation. It focuses on community development in religious, intellectual, social, environmental, and other key areas for both Australian and global societies. The new Museum of Islamic Art Australia will facilitate and nurture a deeper understanding of Islam through its rich contribution to the arts, culture and civilisation.