“School projects are so rewarding because they come from a community need and are not subject to decisions based on yield, profit or taste.”

Kesha Chakhvorostov is not one for extravagant gestures of architecture. He was born and educated in Russia, accessing a degree in architecture via fine arts, as was the requirement, where he developed an enviable ability to draw. He also enjoyed vocational stints in the USA and Dubai where he had opportunities to work on fantastical buildings with almost unbuildable form that seldom become a reality. 

After a career start focused heavily on theory and aesthetics, Kesha sought out a niche that would instead deliver the opposite; tangible buildings, real outcomes, positive community impact. He has now been designing learning environments in Australia for over a decade, working together with school communities to formulate a brief and mould spaces that deliver on pedagogical vision. 

Kesha is sympathetic to the challenges of schools, which are always in need of materials, space and resources. He embraces the tight time-frames and limited budgets as opportunities to see concept quickly become built space and to prove how efficient design can create impactful outcomes for all learners.

A strategic hire for his design skills, Kesha is deeply embedded in the early conceptual development and masterplanning phases of a project. His meticulous nature, gasp of minute details and strong clarity of thought has made him a true all-rounder and a champion of design within the ClarkeHopkinsClarke education team.

Kesha challenges the norm and pushes assumptions of what is possible. He sees architecture as a key element that sets the stage for educational evolution, and he feels incredibly lucky to be in a profession that he deeply enjoys.