IN THE STUDIO
WITH PETER DAVIDSON
OCTOBER 2026
PHOTOGRAPHY: NICHOLAS MAHADY
Our usual studio visits include an interview with the artist, however Peter Davidson has aphasia, a condition that limits his verbal and written language. Given this, we have asked Peter to share with us in an abbreviated list format some of the influences on him and some of the culture that he currently surrounds himself with. This is accompanied by a visual essay by Nicholas Mahady documenting Peter as he works in his Melbourne CBD apartment, and a playlist curated by Peter of the ideal soundtrack to hours spent drawing.
We hope that you’ll enjoy a glimpse into Peter’s studio life.
Peter Davidson is a Naarm/Melbourne-based artist and architect, best known for designing Melbourne’s Federation Square as founder and co-director of LAB architecture studio. After a major stroke in 2010, Davidson stopped practicing as an architect and devoted himself full-time to his artistic practice. Drawing has always been an integral part of Davidson’s life, and his works reflect a relentless desire to explore the line, both in architecture and then through abstraction. Drawing with his non-dominant hand, Davidson creates intricate compositions, tracing a multitude of patterns and forms through the strict constraint of lines on paper.
Currently watching
Perfect Days (Wim Wenders) – has seen three times
Digger (Alejandro G. Iñárritu)
2001: A Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick) – on his fifth rewatch
Looking forward to seeing Artificial (Luca Guadagnino), being released in December
Reading
Peter enjoys a lavishly illustrated artist monograph, books on the following are currently on rotation.
Caravaggio
Piero della Francesca
Le Corbusier
Henri Michaux
Francesco Borromini
Gerhard Richter
A day
8:00
No Vacancy gallery-café below his apartment building, every day without fail. A double espresso – he used to have one-and-a-half shots but has gleefully upgraded.
Fridays it’s Journal Cafe with his speech pathologist.
9:30-12:30
Drawing by his window while listening to music from his collection of 4000 CDs. Ambient, experimental, or contemporary classical for drawing.
12:30-14:00
Watching films at home from his collection of 1300 DVDs, or a new release at Cinema Nova.
14:00
Return to No Vacancy for a second double espresso.
The afternoon holds more drawing, music and films. Or a visit to the library.
18:00
Dinner.
20:00
Listening to music, and watching the city lights.
23:00
Sleep.
