Pastel-coloured wedges pattern the light wooden walls of this cafe in a former prison by Australian office Biasol: Design Studio. Jury Cafe is located within the bluestone walls of a Melbourne historical site: Pentridge Village – formerly Pentridge Prison.
According to the designers: “We wanted to respect its dark past as a prison, and we also wanted to breathe new life into the cafe for its patrons to enjoy.” The prison was decommissioned in 1997. As an interior design project, Jury presented several unique challenges to our studio: we wanted to respect its dark past as a prison, and we also wanted to breathe new life into the cafe for its patrons to enjoy. Making reference to the building’s history, the local studio named the project Jury Cafe. The designers added pale timber struts and plywood furniture to the bare concrete space, adding accents with pastel and monochrome paintwork. Along with these ideas of colour, we used a mix of raw materials, plywood, structural timbers and concrete that allowed us to form a geometric colour pattern within the feature wall of Jury. This structure created a playful effect, one that brought the site to life and allowed it to move on from its dark past, as well as embrace a sense of fun for the future.
