GCOH Committee

A registered architect, Pia has been in private practice for the last 17 years on the Gold Coast. In 2008 she started the journey of her own practice with her architect husband Richie, together they are Willemsen Architecture. A full service design firm, working across all stages of the building process from design concept, detailed documentation, project management, interior design to building handover. In her practice she focuses on creating uplifting and meaningful buildings, with a distinctive passion for design quality and livability.

Pia is also a member of the Regional Affairs Committee for the Qld chapter of the Australian Institute of Architects, representing the members of the Gold Coast and Northern Rivers region.

Francis has more than 20 years’ experience across a wide range of architectural projects in various sectors including commercial, health, residential and tourism.

Francis graduated with a BArch from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, where she is registered. As an associate in a leading South African architectural practice she gained valuable experience on commercial and health projects. She relocated to Australia in 2002 where she has practiced since, working in a wide range of sectors and projects. Francis has managed MODE’s Gold Coast studio since 2016. Before that she worked at Fluid Architecture for 5 years. Her passion for architecture and the design process, as well as her depth of experience in leading teams, results in excellent outcomes for her clients.

Philip Follent was Gold Coast City Council’s first City Architect (2003 -2008), later appointed Queensland Government Architect (2008-2011). Philip became the inaugural chair of the Queensland Board for Urban Places and inaugural member of the Queensland Design Council. He became the founding Head of the Soheil Abedian School of Architecture at Bond University in 2011. Philip’s architectural practice has won numerous awards, and he has been declared Lecturer of the Year at Queensland University of Technology across all campuses. He also received the Excellence in Teaching Award in the School of Sustainable Development and Architecture at Bond University. Philip is Chair of the Swell Sculpture Festival, executive member of Friends of Currumbin and Tugun Progress Association and a tireless advocate for sustainable city shaping and environmental stewardship.

Wayne is the Principal Registered Architect/Director of Habitat Studio Architects of which he established out of an urge for creative freedom and to maintain a high level of design on projects that connect with & consider the environment in which they are sited. Environmental sustainability of architecture is part of the process rather than an option. After Graduating from the University of Newcastle in Environmental Science, Wayne went on to complete his Master of Architecture at the University of Queensland. He gained experience at some of Queensland’s larger & more renowned award winning architectural firms with exposure to a broad range and scale of projects from high end residential & beach houses, through to medium & high density models, mixed use & commercial. Through his work at Habitat Studio he is passionate about design quality & considered outcomes in the built environment.

Sally is an Associate Director at Turner & Townsend and an experienced project management professional with 18 years in the building industry. She has an extensive track record managing the delivery of challenging and complex projects up to $1.2bn in value within the Government, Health, Mixed-Use, Residential, Education and Commercial sectors, nationally and internationally. Sally moved to the Gold Coast five years ago and since then has been involved in the delivery of some of the Gold Coast’s most iconic buildings and projects including The Jewel, The Star Gold Coast redevelopment, The Darling Hotel and the Broadbeach Community Precinct. She is passionate about delivering exceptional outcomes for her clients and landmark projects for the Gold Coast, which enhance the landscape and liveability of the City.

Sally is the project management lead for Turner & Townsend on the Gold Coast and a member of the Gold Coast Property Council Committee.

Associate Professor Karine Dupré from Griffith University Architecture & Design is a registered architect (Finland) and member of the Planning Institute of Australia. A strong advocate of problem solving through design and community engagement, she is also enthusiastic about cross-disciplinary approaches and partnerships. She has extensive experience in building heritage, feasibility and development studies for regions, urban renewal and sustainability, and has become an expert for the Australian outback. She was a finalist of the Gold Coast Woman of Year 2019 for her passion about teaching architecture.

Leah is a goal oriented, registered architect with 20 years’ experience, nationally and internationally, in architecture, urban design and project management of residential, commercial, healthcare, retail and industrial projects. Skilled in driving multi-disciplined teams to deliver diverse projects in the construction industry and local government, Leah has proven ability in building strong relationships with key client groups and consultants to achieve best practice outcomes. Leah has a commitment to advocating and facilitating excellent design and heritage outcomes in our City. She is a member of the Queensland Government Urban Design and Places Panel and for 3 years has been chair / member of the Gold Coast Northern Rivers Awards jury. Leah believes Open House is a great event to foster passion, equity and understanding of important buildings and spaces within our city.

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After spending 20 years working in some of Australia's most well recognised five-star hotels and resorts, Jane opened her own sales and marketing consulting business in 2011. Stranger Strategies is a consultancy specialising in service industry marketing for clients wanting expert strategic marketing advice on an ad hoc, project or long-term basis. Some of these long-term clients have included Starwood Hotels & Resorts Asia Pacific (now Marriott APEC), the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation (OCRF) and Shangri-La International Hotel Management.
Jane is a member of Destination Gold Coast and is pleased to be able to bring her marketing expertise to the talented team at Gold Coast Open House.

David is a passionate & supportive advocate of the built environment, with design & operations experience in local and national architecture practices. He is a dedicated industry professional, with an emphasis on people and culture, and is currently the Owner/Director of pad recruitment.

David has over 10 years blended experience within the architecture and property development industry, with cross sector working knowledge of commercial, public, and residential buildings. David graduated with a BIntB, BArch & MArch from Bond University, Abedian School of Architecture. He has worked for practices such as BVN, HASSELL, MODE and Bureau^Proberts. Additional to working in architecture practice, David worked in asset management for a property developer overseeing a mixed use commercial portfolio of buildings throughout the Gold Coast, Brisbane, Northern Territory and Victoria.

David's passion for architecture has grass roots beginnings when his family started building houses on the Gold Coast in the late 1980s. He is excited about good design that captures a sense of place, spaces that can evoke memories and phenomenological experiences that architecture brings, such as touch, sound, materials, light and shadow - an encounter of our senses.

Daniel is an architectural graduate living and practicing on the Gold Coast. Prior to co-founding Knight Wilson in 2019, Daniel spent 10 years working in a number of architectural practices both locally and internationally.
While living in Brisbane he completed his Bachelor and Master of Architecture, graduating in 2015 from the Queensland University of Technology.
He has worked on projects ranging from bespoke furniture, residential and interior design, to larger scale retail, commercial and mixed-use developments.
Daniel is particularly interested in looking at the relationship between economically sensitive building practices and bespoke architectural projects, focusing on design outcomes that are embedded in human experience.

Rayne Fouché completed his studies at University of Queensland in 2010. Rayne then worked in small practices for the next five years before starting Fouché Architects in 2015 with his wife Larissa. The focus of their work has been centred around small and medium scale residential architecture, hospitality and childcare. Rayne has been intently focused on delivering joyful yet cost-effective projects to his clients, which come from all walks of life. Rayne is an advocate for past and present Gold Coast architecture that celebrates the spirit of place.

James is a cost manager at Turner & Townsend living and working throughout the Gold Coast/South East Queensland and Northern New South Wales. James obtained is Bachelor of Urban Development from The Queensland University of Technology, graduating in 2011.
James has spent 10+ years working in the construction industry in both professional quantity survey practices and for main contractors. His experience covers a number of sector including, but not limited to Retail, Commerical, Residential and Government projects.
James has been grown up calling the Gold Coast and Northern New South Wales home and is passionate about it's future.