Rowan Gower

Dr. Rowan Gower is a Lecturer in the School of Business at UNSW Canberra, University of New South Wales. He holds a PhD in Built Environment (History) from the University of Edinburgh (2020), an MSc in Architectural Conservation from the University of Canberra (2015), and a BSc in Environmental Design (Architecture) from UNSW Canberra (2001). His PhD thesis, titled 'Image Building: Examining Australia's Diplomatic Architecture in the Asian Region, 1960-1990,' explores the role of embassy architecture in reflecting Australia's domestic and foreign policy objectives. Gower's research specializations include architectural history, Australian embassy design, representation in architecture, and politics of architecture.

Throughout his doctoral studies, Gower received notable awards from UNSW, including the Seidler PhD Scholarship (2016), which funded three years of PhD research at $35,000 per annum; the J.M. Freeland Prize (2020, $2,000) for significant research in the field of History/Conservation of the Built Environment; the PhD Submission Award (2019, $2,000) for submitting his thesis within 3.5 years; and the PhD Publication Award (2019, $5,000) for publishing in a top quartile FOR12 journal. His key peer-reviewed publications appear in Fabrications: 'At the Nexus of Architecture and Bureaucracy: The Role of the Commonwealth Department of Works in Designing and Constructing Australia’s Chancery Building in Japan' (2025, vol. 35, pp. 1-24) and 'From Colonial Revival to Architectural Regionalism: Representational Alteration in the Case of Australia’s Head of Mission Residence in New Delhi,' co-authored with Paul Hogben (2021, vol. 31, pp. 235-259). He has also presented at Society of Architectural Historians Australia and New Zealand (SAHANZ) conferences, with papers including 'Exporting Australian Architectural "Expertise" as a Matter of Policy' (2019, in Distance Looks Back: Proceedings of the 36th SAHANZ Conference, pp. 196-204) and 'Image Building: A Study of Australia's Domestic and Foreign Policy in Relation to Embassy Architecture' (2017, in Quotation: What does History have in store for Architecture today?). These contributions underscore his work at the intersection of architecture, policy, and bureaucracy.

Professional Email: rowan.gower@unsw.edu.au