Many know Melbourne for its Victorian rowhouses, with ornate details and filigreed ironwork. But houses in the city had humble beginnings—simple forms, corrugated metal roofs with deep eaves, walls made of timber or clay bricks, and verandas to provide shelter from the relentless sun. Leaning on these lessons, Office MI–JI has found strength in rearticulating low-cost local materials in a contemporary idiom. With several completed projects to date—each unpretentious yet full of intrigue—and several more under construction, the firm has introduced a refreshing new approach to the Melbourne design scene.

Having met at the University of Melbourne, classmates Millie Anderson and Jimmy Carter, both 34, began moonlighting on small freelance projects in 2014—a karaoke-room fit-out first, followed by installations and intimate pavilions. After Anderson moved to London to join Zaha Hadid Architects, and Carter to Chicago to pursue additional graduate studies in criticism, they continued to collaborate over the long distance for four years before reuniting in Melbourne in 2020. Office MI–JI, a portmanteau of its founders’ first names, shares a lively, light-filled studio space with several other small architecture practices and graphic designers. Although working within tight design constraints can bring friction to any working friendship, and despite their varied work experiences, the duo closely collaborate on all aspects of design. As the only two employees, any differences in opinion are interrogated as a team, which Anderson and Carter agree “ultimately leads to much stronger ideas.”