New urban garden, Laak Boorndap, coming to the Melbourne Arts Precinct

The Victorian Government has released new designs and a new name for the 18,000sqm urban garden in the centre of the Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation.

The name, Laak Boorndap, has been bestowed to the garden by Traditional Owner, Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Language Elder, Aunty Gail Smith, to recognise and honour the beautiful place that the garden will create for everyone. 

The naming of the garden is a key step in grounding visitors on Wurundjeri Country and the growing representation of First Peoples cultures across the Arts Precinct. 

“It’s not just a placename, it brings Sky Country, the heavens, and everyone back together on sacred ground,” Aunty Gail Smith said. 

The new urban garden is designed to flourish year-round, ensuring it is ever-changing and continually fostering biodiversity. The garden will feature a dynamic and multi-layered planting design using a mix of native and introduced species including carefully selected trees, perennials, grasses and flora.

The garden is designed by the Melbourne studio of international design practice Hassell and New York’s SO-IL, with internationally renowned horticulturalists Nigel Dunnett and James Hitchmough, who are working closely with plant expert Jac Semmler from Melbourne company, Super Bloom. 

Laak Boorndap will showcase contemporary art and activations, including new artwork commissions by First Peoples. The garden will also be home to significant contemporary sculpture from the collections of the NGV and Arts Centre Melbourne and will remain open both day and night.

The garden will bring expansive new green space to the heart of the Arts Precinct and will wrap around and connect the new The Fox: NGV Contemporary, NGV International, Arts Centre Melbourne’s Hamer Hall and Theatres Building (under the Spire), and The Primrose Potter Australian Ballet Centre.

Reflecting First Peoples’ long tradition of gathering by and caring for the Birrarung (Yarra River), the new garden will be home to a waterway where visitors can pause and rest, while taking in the sounds of the waterway’s trickling flow. 

Laak Boorndap and the new amenities will further transform the area for visitors, residents and businesses alongside the many arts and creative organisations that make up the Melbourne Arts Precinct. The transformation of the Melbourne Arts Precinct is expected to be completed in 2028. •