Shelley Jane Penn (born 1965) is an Australian architect, educator, urbanist and built environment advocate based in Melbourne.

Education

Penn was educated at Kilvington girls grammar and completed her architectural training at

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state of Victoria. Its ...

in 1988, graduating with honours. She is also a graduate of the

Australian Institute of Company Directors The Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) is a non-profit membership organization for directors. The AICD is a founding member of the Global Network of Director Institutes (GNDI). History The origins of the AICD can be traced ba ...

(AICD) course.

Professional career

Practice

In 1993, Penn established the firm Shelley Penn Architects as a hybrid practice initially specialising in residential design and shifting focus to include consultation to government and the private sector on public projects from 1999. Her work has been awarded and exhibited nationally and internationally.

Government

Penn has held several positions within state and federal government and in 2014 was recognised as a leading figure in Public Policy within the top 100 Women of Influence by the Australian Financial Review and Westpac Bank. In 2006, she became the first Associate Victorian Government Architect, and a member and then Chair of the

National Capital Authority The National Capital Authority (NCA) is a statutory authority of the Australian Government that was established to manage the Commonwealth's interest in the planning and development of Canberra as the capital city of Australia. Timeline of th ...

from 2009 to 2014 and the deputy chair of the

Heritage Council of Victoria The Heritage Council of Victoria is a statutory authority in the Australian state of Victoria responsible for the protection and conservation of the state's history. It is responsible for maintaining the Victorian Heritage Register The Vict ...

from 2008 to 2012. She has undertaken numerous consultancies as a strategic advisor and reviewer, including conducting major reviews for government including co-chairing the ''2011

Barangaroo Barangaroo ( – ) was an Aboriginal Australian woman best known for her interactions with the British colony of New South Wales during the first years of the European colonisation of Australia. A member of the Cammeraygal clan, she was the wi ...

Review'.'' She has served on multiple Victorian, South Australian and New South Wales local and state government Design Review Panels for projects of all scales.

Professional advocacy

Penn is an active member of the architecture industry's peak body, the

Australian Institute of Architects The Australian Institute of Architects, officially the Royal Australian Institute of Architects (abbreviated as RAIA), is Australia's professional body for architects. Its members use the post-nominals FRAIA (Fellow), ARAIA (Associate Member) an ...

, including having held numerous positions on local and national committees and task forces. After a two-year term as an elected member and Honorary Secretary of the Australian Institute of Architects National Council, in May 2012 Penn was elected as the council's 73rd National President. She was only the third woman elected to the role after Louise Cox in 1994 and Melinda Dodson in 2009. Her election as president was particularly notable given that only a small group of sole practitioners are elected to the volunteer role despite more than half of the institute's members identifying as sole practitioners. She is a Life Fellow of the institute. In addition to advocacy through representation, Penn is an active contributor to professional discourse. She has been a panellist in numerous public debates, published in many leading professional journals, including ''

Architecture Australia ''Architecture Australia'' is a national magazine covering the practice and works of architects and architecture in Australia. It is published bi-monthly by Architecture Media, and is the journal of the Australian Institute of Architects. Histo ...

'', ''Architecture and Design'', ''Monument'' and ''Artichoke'', and is a regular contributor for ''

Parlour A parlour (or parlor) is a reception room or public space. In medieval Christian Europe, the "outer parlour" was the room where the monks or nuns conducted business with those outside the monastery and the "inner parlour" was used for necessar ...

''; an online forum for the advocacy of women and equity in architecture.

Educator

Penn is currently an adjunct professor in architectural practice at

Monash University Monash University () is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Named after World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the ...

and associate professor in architecture at

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

's Melbourne School of Design. She has also taught, co-ordinated and guest-critiqued bachelor and master's students at Monash, RMIT, Deakin and Melbourne University, since her own graduation in 1988.

Awards and recognition

In the

2021 Queen's Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours for 2021 are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded ...

Penn was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

for "significant service to architecture and design in the public realm, and to professional institutes".

Selected appointments

* 2019 - Jury, TAS Chapter Awards,

*2017-: Monash University Architect *2017- : Non-executive Director, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art *2017- : Panel Member, State Design Review Panel, NSW *2012-: Advisory Panel Member, Women's Property Initiative *2012-2016 : Panel member, Capital City Design Review Panel, Adelaide *2016-2018: Council member, Melbourne High School * 2012– : Panel Member, Victorian Design Review Panel * 2014–2016: Council Member, Williamstown High School * 2009–2014 Member then chair, National Capital Authority * 2012–2014: Chair, Architecture Advisory Board, Faculty of Architecture, University of Melbourne * 2012–2013: National President, Australian Institute of Architects * 2013: Jury Chair, National Architecture Awards, Australian Institute of Architects * 2011–2012: Board Member, Architecture Media * 2008–2012: Deputy Chair, Heritage Council of Victoria * 2009–2012: Board Member, Linking Melbourne Authority * 2009–2012: Honorary Secretary, Australian Institute of Architects * 2012: Chair of Juries, Victorian Chapter Awards, Australian Institute of Architects * 2011: Jury Chair, ACT Chapter Awards, Australian Institute of Architects * 2006–2010: Associate Victorian Government Architect, Office of the Victorian Government Architect * 2010 Chair, Premier's Design Awards, State of Design Victoria * 2006–2009: Board Member, Architects Registration Board of Victoria * 2002–2004: Member, Victorian Design Advisory Council * 2000–2001: Design Director, Office of the NSW Government Architect

Work (built)

* Richmond Warehouse, Melbourne (Awarded the Residential Alterations and Extensions Award of Merit at the 2000 Royal Institute of Architects Victorian Awards) * Fitzroy Terrace, Melbourne * Institute of Postcolonial Studies, Melbourne * Overcliffe House, Potts Point, in collaboration with Clinton Murray Architects (Awarded the Residential Architecture Award at the 2002 Royal Institute of Architects NSW Awards) * Eastern Beach house, Port Fairy, in collaboration with Clinton Murray Architect (Finalist, Best Residential Design, 2008 Timber Design Awards)

Work (public discourse)

* "Gender Salary Gap Not So Great", ''ArchitectureAU'', 13 February 2013 * "Women in Architecture", ''ArchitectureAU'', 3 July 2012 * "Fitzroy Community School Creative Space", ''Architecture Australia'', (September 2011) * "Habitat 21", ''Architecture Australia,'' (May 2011) * "Housing in Victoria", Architecture Australia (March/April 2007) * "Why architecture matters", ''Architecture Australia'' (January/February 2007) * "Urban Parasite", ''Monument,'' (December 2002/January 2003)

References

External links

* Shelley Penn Architects practice website
People: Shelley Penn
profile on the Office of the Victorian Government Architect website * "Shelley Penn profile", profile by Bluescope Steel Profile Magazine
People: Shelley Penn
profile on the Wheeler Centre website * "Build Life Skills First", an interview with Shelley Penn on the Financial Review website * "Introducing Shelley Penn (Part 1)", an interview with Shelley Penn on ArchiTel * "Introducing Shelley Penn (Part 2)" an interview with Shelley Penn on ArchiTel * "Shelley Penn" in Clark, Justine; Davidge, Tania; De Guia, Elyica; Jeffery, Anna; Wilson, Bernadette eds (January 2013). "The Women of Victorian Architecture". ''Architect Victoria'': 6–7. http://www.architecture.com.au/docs/default-source/vic-chapter-publications/summer.pdf {{DEFAULTSORT:Penn, Shelley Living people 1965 births Members of the Order of Australia Australian women architects Architects from Melbourne Architects in government 21st-century Australian architects 20th-century Australian architects 20th-century Australian women 21st-century Australian women Australian architecture writers