Ksenia Totoeva RAIA Tonkin Zulaikha Greer Architects
Originally from regional New South Wales, Ksenia Totoeva graduated from the University of Newcastle with the University Medal. At university, she developed an early engagement in the city through Renew Newcastle, an urban regeneration initiative designed to reinvigorate the failing downtown, which seeded her interest in community activism and urban projects. She went on to become involved in the Australian Institute of Architects’ Emerging Architects and Graduates Network (EmAGN) committee, initially as a grassroots organizer and then – as National President in 2016–18 – as a leader and role model, particularly for young women. Her professional career developed in parallel, first at Lahz Nimmo Architects and later at Tonkin Zulahika Greer Architects, where she is now an associate director. As a practitioner, she has worked across a range of project types and scales, as part of a team and as a project architect, contributing to a number of award-winning projects as well as to innovations in the practice paradigm. The jury believes that Totoeva will benefit greatly from the opportunity of the Dulux Study Tour and the lessons that this immersion in a range of practices will provide her continuing professional development and leadership potential.