Felicity Stewart & Alex Lawlor | Canberra Autumn 2025 Artwork

Parlour POD

Parlour POD presents convivial conversations from Parlour: gender, equity, architecture. Episodes are drawn from much-loved Seasonal Salons, recorded live across Australia. Wide-ranging and diverse stories of lives in and around architecture and the built environment are told with humour and humility. Personal and particular, intimate and engaging, each episode canvasses the complexities of careers, obstacles faced and opportunities found.

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Parlour POD

Felicity Stewart & Alex Lawlor | Canberra Autumn 2025

October 21, 2025

Our conversationalists for this episode are Alexandra Lawlor and Felicity Stewart. Alex is an Associate Principal and new Studio Leader for Architectus Canberra office. Born and raised in Canberra, Felicity leads the Stewart Architecture Sydney studio and manages projects in Canberra, Sydney and broader NSW.

This rich conversation is full of career reflections, sharp insights and wise-cracking anecdotes. Alex and Felicity share stories and observations about Canberra, from its architectural heritage and vibrant (but often hidden) cultural life to its surplus of sprawling, ambiguous spaces and festering rabbit population (“Watership down” in the city).

They explore the big picture of architecture and urban design, and their shared fascination with scale, density and inclusiveness in cities. Their discussion spans non-linear career paths, travel and global perspectives, the benefits of working alongside government decision-makers, and the critical role of publicly owned public spaces in the centre of our cities.

This episode was recorded live on Ngunnawal Country at the 2025 Canberra Autumn Salon on 6 March. The Salon was hosted by Stewart Architecture with support from Brickworks. Photos: Andrew Campbell.

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