Ian Stapleton (architect)


Ian Stapleton is an Australian heritage architect and a partner at Lucas, Stapleton, Johnson and Partners Pty Ltd. a heritage architectural firm in Australia. Stapleton has carried out and contributed to heritage projects throughout Australia, including the Woolloomooloo Finger Wharf, Walsh Bay Redevelopment, the Sydney GPO and Officials’ houses at Port Arthur, Tasmania. He is also active in the National Trust of Australia, the NSW Heritage Council and Australia ICOMOS. Stapleton has also published works on Australian architectural styles and is a visiting lecturer at various Sydney schools of architecture and building.
Stapleton's 2013 renovation of the childhood home of cricketeer Don Bradman won a New South Wales National Trust heritage award.

Early years

Stapleton was dux of his year at Wolaroi College, Orange, New South Wales, and studied Architecture at the University of Sydney, whilst living at Wesley College, University of Sydney.

Career

Stapleton was first employed as an architectural cadet for the NSW Public Works Dept. He worked in the Special Projects Section of the NSW Government Architect’s Branch.
In 1997 he took a job with Fisher Lucas, a partnership of Clive Lucas & Fisher Hudson, Sydney Architects. He planned the restoration and rejuvenation of thirteen terrace houses in the Woolloomooloo urban regeneration project; the restoration of Glenlee, Menangle, for the MacArthur Development Board; Willandra, Ryde for the Ryde City Council and Bronte House for Waverley Municipal Council.
In the early 1980s, with his partner, Maisy Stapleton, he published a series of articles in the Sydney Morning Herald on building restoration and Australian house styles.
As part of his work, Stapleton conducted research on the history of buildings. By the late 1980s and early 1990s Stapleton had joined a number of institutional and government heritage committees; he was president of Australia ICOMOS from 1992 to 1994, and worked on the organization's Burra Charter, which focused on the continuing use of historic places.
From the early 1990s, Stapleton took part in two large Sydney heritage conservation projects: the Woolloomooloo Finger Wharf and the Sydney General Post Office. At Woolloomooloo the old wharf was repiled and converted to hotel and apartment use. The commercial use of what had been public space was subject to criticism in the press.
Stapleton designed the restoration of the old buildings of the Sydney GPO, which were strengthened for earthquake and converted to hotel, function and retail uses, whilst maintaining the historic content and providing a new post office on George Street. In association with the Buchan Group, Melbourne, he helped to create a large roofed urban space in the buildings’ courtyard.

Other selected restorations

Stapleton's work has won many Australian Institute of Architects’ merit awards and the Adrian Ashton Award for Architectural Journalism. His firm has also won several National Trust Award.