GroupGSA announces new Brisbane leadership, Plus Architecture rolls out big changes nationally and Matthews Architects promotes two team members in North Adelaide in this month’s round up of industry appointments.

GroupGSA announces new principal to lead its Brisbane studio

GroupGSA has announced the appointment of James du Plessis as principal to lead its Brisbane studio into an “exciting new phase of growth”, according to the architecture and design studio.

Du Plessis plans to help scale up GroupGSA’s portfolio across the state, leveraging his 23-year career in architecture and extensive expertise across education, commercial, residential and workplace sectors. A key focus will be addressing Brisbane’s housing density needs.

His appointment coincides with a suite of new senior appointments and promotions at GroupGSA.

In Victoria, Adrian Rivalland and Lindy Fetherston have been appointed associate directors, with Jay Griffin joining as an associate director in New South Wales.

Meanwhile, in Sydney, associates Pei Goh and Roberto Gutierrez have been promoted to associate directors, and Jordan Ottley was elevated to associate within the interior design team. In Melbourne, Patrick Kenny was promoted to associate within the Victorian architecture division.

Twelve new appointments at Plus Architecture

International architecture practice Plus Architecture has announced 12 promotions and appointments across Australia.

Of the 12 appointments, three are new hires, while the rest are internal promotions – which Plus Architecture director Ian Briggs says is part of the studio’s strategy to support staff to develop and take on new responsibilities.

“Promoting internally not only recognises the incredible work our designers are doing, reinforcing their abilities and building their confidence but in turn encourages them to support and mentor the wider team,” Briggs says.

In Sydney, Mark Ojascastro has been appointed principal. This appointment tasks Mark, who recently joined Plus Architecture, with growing and leading the studio’s interiors offering. Also in Sydney, Gloria Ha, Sun-Kyoo Kim and Hong-Thanh Nguyen have been promoted to associates. Ha will be at the helm of projects in the residential student accommodation sectors. Kim will continue to develop his expertise in the community and civic sectors, while Nguyen will work on sectors spanning boutique residential projects and master-planning mixed-use precincts.

In Perth, Prasad Nimma and Jerry Cherian have recently joined Plus Architecture as senior associates, while Tristan Whelan has been promoted to senior associate. Seasoned designers Nicholás Nieto and Bianca Lombardo have also been promoted to associates on the west coast.

Meanwhile, Nathan Anderson and Tracey Rose have both been promoted to associates in Plus Architecture’s Brisbane and Gold Coast studios.

In one of Plus Architecture’s newest studios in Hobart, Georgina Kemp has been promoted to associate. A Tasmania local, Georgia was appointed the Hobart studio lead, having worked in Plus Architecture’s Perth studio since 2017.

Matthews Architects announces two senior promotions

South Australian architecture and interior design firm Matthews Architects has appointed two staff members to associates. 

Sofiya Yunovidova, who has been with Matthews since 2017, and Brayden Josephs, who has been part of the team since 2019, are making vertical moves. Both will continue to contribute to large-scale projects, as well as to the ongoing operation and growth of the North Adelaide business.

See last month’s roundup of appointments here.