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Hosted by Anthony Burke, Professor of Architecture at UTS and one of Australia's leading voices on how we might build better futures, Anthony Burke's By Design podcast explores the clever ideas and human stories behind the spaces, systems, and objects shaping our everyday lives.
Anthony is well-known as the host of Grand Designs Australia, Grand Transformations, Restoration Australia, and Culture by Design (streaming on ABC iview). His expertise and passion for design make this podcast an essential listen for anyone curious about how design impacts the way we live.
From prefab housing and smart homes to designing cruise ships or animal habitats and the future of the open-plan home, each episode dives deep into a theme through engaging interviews and real-life case studies from across Australia.
Every show ends with The Extraordinary Everyday, a short segment uncovering the cultural and social history of familiar objects: think plunge pools, corduroy, and even the humble welcome mat. With an informal, accessible tone, By Design makes design visible, relatable, and relevant for everyone.
Whether you're curious about architecture, interior design, urban design, product design, furniture or fashion design, sustainability, or the hidden stories behind everyday objects, this podcast reveals why design matters, especially in a rapidly changing world.
Anthony is well-known as the host of Grand Designs Australia, Grand Transformations, Restoration Australia, and Culture by Design (streaming on ABC iview). His expertise and passion for design make this podcast an essential listen for anyone curious about how design impacts the way we live.
From prefab housing and smart homes to designing cruise ships or animal habitats and the future of the open-plan home, each episode dives deep into a theme through engaging interviews and real-life case studies from across Australia.
Every show ends with The Extraordinary Everyday, a short segment uncovering the cultural and social history of familiar objects: think plunge pools, corduroy, and even the humble welcome mat. With an informal, accessible tone, By Design makes design visible, relatable, and relevant for everyone.
Whether you're curious about architecture, interior design, urban design, product design, furniture or fashion design, sustainability, or the hidden stories behind everyday objects, this podcast reveals why design matters, especially in a rapidly changing world.
24 Episodes
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Algorithms are sketching, rendering, optimising, and quietly reshaping who holds creative power. In this episode, we ask the uncomfortable questions: Is AI a tool, a collaborator, or a threat? What happens to expertise when clients can generate designs in seconds? And who really benefits when intelligence is automated?Guests: * Philip Allsopp, Co-Chair, RIBA Expert Advisory Group on AI, Generative Design and Data* James Loder, Wardle
Australia’s surfing story has been influenced from far beyond our shores, from ancient Peruvian reed boards to Hawaiian royalty and the design revolutions that shaped the modern surfboard. So how did we get from the earliest surf boards of heavy wooden planks to the sleek, high‑performance boards ridden today? Guest: Andrew McKinnon, Surf reporter and historian
Batik is a material that is both ancient and modern. In the final stop on our South Asian tour, we explore how small, ingenious design ideas are driving big change, exploring the rich tradition of batik - its royal roots, ceremonial uses, near‑decline, and bold return to contemporary fashionGuest: Josephine Komara, Founder Bin House
Kites aren’t just toys—they’re one of the most influential inventions in the history of science. Sure, they look playful drifting across a windy sky, but the humble kite has quietly powered some of humanity’s biggest breakthroughs. From early experiments to world‑shaping discoveries, this lightweight frame of fabric and string has been a surprising engine of innovation.Guest: John Murray, President, Australian Kite Flyers Society
Bamboo is nothing short of extraordinary - growing fast, bending without breaking, and carrying the strength of steel. In Bali, it’s more than a material; it’s a philosophy of design grounded in flexibility, resilience, and imagination.This is the second episode in our three part series Material Cultures, in which we meet designers who don’t just shape their materials, they listen to them.Today we’re in Bali, where bamboo becomes architecture: light, strong, fluid, and where craft and engineering meet in astonishing ways.Guest: Elora Hardy, Founder & Director, Ibuku IndonesiaWith special thanks to the team at Culture By Design (ABC International).
They’re squishy, often colourful, mobile pieces of furniture that are forever associated with the late 60s and early 70s. Growing up in the 80s you’re sure to have plonked yourself on one of these while you watched Magnum PI. We're talking about beanbags. Who on earth thought that this malleable, ball-filled piece of furniture would become the success story it did?Guest: Berto Pandolfo, Associate Professor of Product Design at UTS
1Just how creative can you get with wood? In the first of this new three part series we meet a master furniture maker in Mumbai giving new life to old timbers, letting the wood speak again. It’s our first stop on a South Asian tour with host Anthony Burke, revisiting some of his favourite conversations from filming Culture By Design across the region.Guest: Siddharth Sirohi, BARO studio MumbaiWith special thanks to the team at Culture By Design (ABC International). From Indonesia to India, and Sri Lanka to Vietnam, Anthony meets with the ceramicists, street artists, fashion designers, architects, furniture makers and weavers who are pushing the boundaries in developing sustainable, innovative, and ethical design, and tackling global challenges like climate change, resource scarcity and social inequality.Culture by Design Series 1 platforms India and Indonesia’s leading creatives and is available to watch on ABC iview.Season 2 is coming in May 2026, with a focus on Vietnamese and Sri Lankan design.
Australia’s swimsuit has a wilder history than you think. In this episode, we dive into the design evolution of our beloved togs, bathers, and budgie smugglers, from the days when inspectors patrolled the beach in search of exposed shoulders to today’s sleek, sun-smart designs. How has culture, modesty, technology and style shaped this iconic piece of Aussie design, and what does our swimwear say about us as a nation?Guest: Inger Sheil, Assistant Curator of Society and Water at the Australian National Maritime Museum
As women age, many joke about becoming “invisible”, but in Australia’s housing crisis, invisibility has devastating consequences. Women over 55 are now the fastest‑growing group at risk of homelessness, while the housing system fails to provide safe, secure, and dignified options that meet their needs. But there are those working on this problem now who say the solutions are not that hard to find.Guests: Dr Dionne Payn, Founder Women 4 HomesDr Samantha Donnelly, Lecturer in the School of Architecture, UTSTracey Tromph, older single woman living alone
Mirrors may show us our reflection today, but for centuries they were thought to reveal far stranger things.Forged through a perilous, mercury‑soaked process, these “everyday” objects hide a mysterious past that’s anything but ordinary.Guest:John Hawkins, antiques dealer
For years, designers pushed the gospel of “more light, more health.” Then LEDs arrived—tiny, efficient, and bright enough to turn night into a permanent noon—and we discovered a plot twist: human eyes (and brains, and hormones) were never built for this much brilliance. And animals? They’re even less impressed.In this episode, we dig into how our light‑soaked world has scrambled natural rhythms for creatures great and small, and how a new generation of designers is trying to un-muck the mess. From circadian‑friendly glow to wildlife‑aware street lighting, we explore how smarter illumination can help us all sleep better, migrate sanely, and live more in tune with the dark.Guests:Fiona Venn, Director of Specialist Lighting, WSPDr Kellie Pendoley, Director and Principal Scientist of Pendoley EnvironmentalDr Sheryn Pitman, Carrickalinga Dark Sky Community Project Lead
They are the silent force that guides us through our days, but how much do you know about the humble traffic light? More than just three colours that tell us when to slow down, stop or go, these machines weave complex movements of people throughout our cities. How do they work, what impact do they have and what is the future for traffic lights in a world of smart cars?Guest: Chris Miller, Spokesperson for Transport Victoria
Meet the movement reimaging the future, slowlyCraft is cool again. Across Australia — and far beyond — traditional design practices long considered “old fashioned” are experiencing a powerful resurgence. From tapestry as contemporary art, to handcrafted chairs, to the ancient weaving traditions of First Nations communities, slow, tactile craftsmanship is being embraced by a generation raised in a hyper‑digital world.Guests:Sophie Travers, CEO of the Australian Tapestry WorkshopGlen Rundell, Chair maker and co-founder of the Lost Trades FairAunty Karleen Green, First Nations weaver
Humans have been tracking time for millennia — but when did we decide to wear it? In this episode, we trace the evolution of the watch, from clunky ticking contraptions to sleek wrist‑bound supercomputers. How did a simple time‑telling bracelet become the indispensable gadget we can’t stop glancing at?Guest: Tania Edwards, Co founder of Collectability, a collecting consultancy and Trustee Emeritus of the Horological Society of New York
If buildings speak, the White House never whispers — and recent design overhauls have given it a whole new vocabulary. In this episode, we decode the aesthetic signals embedded in its latest transformations: the dramatic palettes, the opulent flourishes, the bigger‑brighter‑bolder touches that reshape how the building presents power. We ask what these stylistic choices reveal about the identity of a place long touted as “the people’s house,” and how shifts toward grandeur and gloss change the story it tells.Guests:Associate Professor Robert Wellington, Art historian, Australian National University, author Versailles Mirrored: The power of luxury from Louis XIV to Donald TrumpDr Edward Lengel, Former Chief Historian of the White House Historical AssociationNeil Flanagan, Architect and a public historian in Washington, D.C.Philip Wegmann, White House Correspondent for RealClearPolitics
Corduroy is back—and its story is wilder than you think. From its origins in ancient Egypt to royal courts, retro fashion, and now a modern design renaissance, this humble fabric has lived many lives. In this episode, we unravel how corduroy went from utilitarian to iconic, and why designers are embracing it in clothing and furniture today.Guest:Elaine Evans, Senior Teaching Fellow in Fashion Design Innovation at the University of Leeds
Is the open-plan home officially over? How has COVID and the rise of remote work reshaped the way we live; From privacy-friendly layouts to multifunctional spaces, discover why designers are rethinking open-plan living and what the future of home design looks like.Guests:Dr Libby Sander, Associate Professor of Organisational Behaviour at Bond UniversityEva-Marie Prineas, Lead Architect and Founder Studio Prineas
Can design save the planet—one soy sauce fish at a time? Meet the innovative minds behind a sustainable alternative to the iconic plastic soy sauce container. Discover how clever design is tackling single-use plastics, reducing waste, and reimagining everyday objects for a greener futureGuest:Angus Ware, Co-founder and Director at Heliograf
What happens when architects design for animals instead of humans? In this episode, we explore a bold new frontier where animal behavior—not human comfort—shapes the spaces we build. From wildlife sanctuaries to urban habitats, this surprising trend flips traditional design thinking on its head. How do professionals trained for people reimagine environments for paws, claws, and wings?Guests: Stuart Harrison, Architect - project Raptor Rehabilitation Centre, Healesville Sanctuary, VictoriaMike Drinkwater, Wildlife Project Officer at Taronga Zoo SydneyGrey Fisher, Senior Keeper at the Institute of Science and Learning, Taronga Zoo Sydney
Extraordinary Everyday: Backyard PoolsWhy do Aussies love a backyard pool? In this episode, we dive into its evolution—from retro status symbol to sleek, sustainable showpiece. Discover how pool design trends have shaped our summers, our homes, and our obsession with outdoor living. It’s a deep end of culture, creativity, and cool innovation!Guest:Professor Hannah Lewi, Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, Melbourne University
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