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DISCOVERING PERTH’S ICONIC ARCHITECTURE TOM MCKENDRICK AND ELLIOT LANGDON CONTENTS Introduction 3 St George’s Cathedral 60 CIVIC HOSPITALITY Western Australian Museum 4 Yagan Square 62 Library 6 Royal George Hotel 64 8 Indiana Cottesloe 66 Parliament House 10 Former Titles Office 68 The Bell Tower 12 Old Treasury Buildings 70 14 OFFICE City Beach Surf Club 16 QV1 72 Prison 18 74 Perth GPO 20 Former David Foulkes Government House 22 Taylor Showroom 76 Council House 24 Palace Hotel and Criterion Hotel 26 108 78 Fremantle Arts Centre 28 Court 80 Perth Children’s Hospital 30 Gledden Building 82 32 Supreme Court of Western SELECTED HOUSING STYLES 84 34 RESIDENTIAL Fremantle Ports Administration Mount Eliza Apartments 86 Building 36 Paganin House 88 BRIDGE STYLES 38 32 Henry Street Apartments 90 EDUCATION Warders’ Cottages 92 Victoria Avenue House 94 West Australian Ballet Heirloom by Match 96 Company Centre 40 Blue Waters 98 Winthrop Hall 42 Soda Apartments 100 St George’s College 44 Cloister House 102 ENTERTAINMENT Chisholm House 104 46 INDUSTRIAL His Majesty’s Theatre 48 ‘Dingo’ Flour Mill 106 50 Perth Concert Hall 52 Glossary 108 54 Acknowledgements 110 State Theatre Centre of About the authors 110 56 Index 111 SPIRITUAL Cadogan Song School 58 INTRODUCTION

In the relatively short space of time in Perth, the book is a gentle tap on can only serve as a guide because since the Swan River Colony was the shoulder, a finger which points many of the records are incomplete established, Perth has transformed upwards and provides a reminder of or not public information. from a group of tents into a thriving the great buildings which surround To produce a ‘Top 50’ of the best and diverse city. Architecturally, it has us, in a city whose architecture has buildings on offer in Perth is a near faced the challenge of breaking free often faced criticism, but which is now impossible task, and in Built: Perth from the early British-inspired colonial pushing forward and turning heads in we do not seek to accomplish any works and developing an identity of the world of design. such goal; rather it is a showcase of its own, specific to the city’s unique On the following pages, you’ll find the vast array of exciting architecture climate and location. Today, Perth plays 50 of what we believe to be the city’s within the coastal city. Whittling host to many exceptional architects most iconic works of architecture, the selection down to 50 worthy and architectural studios, delivering each one represented in the form buildings to research and illustrate nationally and internationally of a lovingly crafted illustration. The turned out to be a harder task than acclaimed buildings. The city also accompanying text provides key first imagined – we felt spoiled for boasts a high number of important insight into the buildings’ histories, choice. Firstly, our selection was based heritage works, and though many of uncovering some of the lesser known loosely on the International Council these older buildings have been lost secrets of the structures of Perth, the on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) over the years, the state’s Heritage clients who commissioned them, the Burra Charter for determining Council has worked hard to provide architects who designed them and cultural significance, being that each protection for those that remain. the various obstacles and triumphs building must have aesthetic, historic, Built: Perth is a celebration of they faced along the way. For each scientific, social or spiritual value for architecture in Perth, both new and entry, we have included details of the past or present generations. Secondly, old, parading the city’s most prized designers, clients, completion dates, we wanted to capture a variety of architectural works and showing costs and styles of the buildings architecture, in terms of buildings’ the exciting direction the built where they are known. Especially with use, style and age. Lastly, we chose environment is taking. For those the older buildings, many additions architecture that we love and felt visiting the city, it provides a selection and significant restorations have excited to write about, illustrate and of noteworthy buildings, from Perth’s been done over the years, so this share with you. We believe that all humble beginnings in convict-built information reflects only the original are important and have earned their structures, through to innovative or most significant contributions. The place on the pages of Built: Perth. modern-day designs. For those living costs are as accurate as possible, but 3 WESTERN AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM

PERTH CULTURAL CENTRE, NORTHBRIDGE Built in 1856 and originally fronting previous location. The Victoria Library Beaufort Street, the diminutive form lay to the west of the Jubilee building of the Old Perth Courthouse and until its demolition in 1985 and a Gaol set a precedent for its future gallery, designed by John Grainger BEAUFORT STREET neighbours, which would also and Hillson Beasley, provided a new be shaped by some of the state’s frontage to Beaufort Street. While most renowned names and push the new gallery followed an aligned architectural boundaries of their time. material palette, Poole was critical of Richard Roach Jewell designed the both buildings for their deviation in WESTERN AUSTRALIAN limestone jail to show a level of detail style from his original work. Beasley’s MUSEUM and sensitivity not previously seen later design of Hackett Hall in 1913 in colonial architecture, given the shares many of the characteristics basic materials available. After serving of the Jubilee building; though due its purpose of housing convicts, to a falling out between the two the building was established as a architects, it was built deliberately off- ARCHITECT George Temple Poole (Jubilee geological museum in 1891, before centre and short of Poole’s work. The building); HASSELL and OMA being renamed as the Perth Museum gap was filled in 1999 with a modern (new addition) the following year. steel and glass foyer. The prosperity of the gold rush Running in the theme of architectural CLIENT prompted a design to be drawn up all-stars, Perth now welcomes in the Government of Western for the first dedicated building to $395.9 million museum addition, Australia house the state’s library, art gallery a collaboration involving world- YEAR OF COMPLETION and museum. Famed architect renowned architecture firms OMA and 1897; 2020 (est.) George Temple Poole was to design HASSELL. The enormous development, COST the scheme, originally envisioning floating around and above the existing Unknown; $395.9 million (est.) the building to run the full length buildings, unites the site’s current of the block. Unfortunately, the only heritage works and increases the STYLE portion of his design to ever come to current museum size fourfold. The Federation Romanesque; fruition is the Jubilee building on the bold design seeks to further ignite the Twenty-first Century Postmodernist WESTERN AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM corner of James and Beaufort streets. already thriving , The following years saw new homes with expansive internal galleries to built for both the art gallery and the provide a fitting home for the state’s PERTH CULTURAL CENTRE, NORTHBRIDGE library, located in and around their treasures. CIVIC 5

573 HAY STREET, PERTH HAY STREET

CITY OF PERTH LIBRARY

The first civic building to be con­ might have been used to build the ARCHITECT structed by the City of Perth since library a century earlier. The entrance Kerry Hill Architects the Perth Concert Hall in 1973, the foyer and interior are covered in CLIENT City of Perth Library was awarded the Australian timbers – blackbutt, City of Perth coveted George Temple Poole Award southern blue gum, spotted gum and in 2016 alongside the neighbouring Victorian ash – all of which create an YEAR OF COMPLETION State Buildings. interior that is warm and comforting. 2016 The outcome of a national compe­ The sensation of standing inside the COST tition, the design of the library library is truly unique: 360 degrees of $60 million complements the composition of natural light bathes the timber-laden STYLE the heritage buildings that make up circular atrium, at the top of which Twenty-first Century Organic/ the Cathedral Square precinct and lies the mural Delight and Hurt Not by Contemporary balances them visually. There is a local artist Andrew Nicholls, depicting certain poetry in the juxtaposition of the final scene of Shakespeare’sThe the chamfered cylindrical library, the Tempest. The fairytale at the city’s ornate rectilinear Treasury buildings, ‘lounge room’ is topped off by ‘the the pointed facades of the cruciform tree of knowledge’, a large, live of St George’s Cathedral, and the weeping fig on its top floor. With perfectly manicured landscape that 360 degrees of windows offering separates them, as if the area had priceless views of the nearby heritage been arranged by Kandinsky himself. buildings to settle next to, the library CITY OF PERTH LIBRARY The four kilometres of vertical granite- is an achievement in creating an clad ‘cassettes’ that make up the invaluable sense of community within facade are a superbly contemporary an urban setting. 573 HAY STREET, PERTH application of an ancient material that CIVIC 7 PERTH TOWN HALL

CORNER HAY STREET AND , PERTH HAY STREET

PERTH TOWN HALL

With a 38-metre fairytale tower, the wealthy, clock towers were critical to ARCHITECT Perth Town Hall was built on the prosperous towns and traditionally Richard Roach Jewell with highest point in the centre of town, placed in the north-west corner of the James Manning on the approximate location that the building with faces in the directions CLIENT first tree was felled nearly 50 years of the compass to help travellers British War and Colonial prior to mark the foundation of the orient themselves. The Perth Town Office colony. It is unlike any other Australian Hall clock has been lovingly cared for YEAR OF COMPLETION capital town hall, its design akin to by the Ennis family since 1931, who 1870 public buildings of fourteenth to have personally ensured the clock sixteenth century European villages: a chimes at midnight each new year COST marketplace beneath a hall and clock and that it falls silent for the eleventh £4,600 or watch tower. It is the only town hall hour every Remembrance Day. STYLE in Australia to be built by convicts, The Town Hall’s undercroft has Victorian Free Gothic with tales long told of subtle nods to provided a setting for a number of the workforce made by the architect uses over time: a market for its first in the broad arrow-shaped windows few years, an early fire brigade for the on the tower (a symbol used on city and shops from the 1920s. The convict uniforms) and an architrave arches were largely removed in favor in the shape of a hangman’s rope. of steel beams to form shopfronts in Though it makes for a good yarn, the 1920s, before being reinstated the broad arrow was probably used nearly 80 years later in 2005. Today PERTH TOWN HALL as it was a symbol that denoted the main hall hosts a range of public government property. events from balls and fundraisers to In the days when the correct time weddings and concerts. CORNER HAY STREET AND BARRACK STREET, PERTH was a privilege affordable only to the CIVIC 9 PARLIAMENT HOUSE

4 HARVEST TERRACE, WEST PERTH The foundation stone for Parliament from the city, while its eastern facade HARVEST TERRACE House was laid in 1902 at the north- consisted of a rather inadequate eastern corner of the site and, though combination of brick and corrugated part of the building was completed metal. When Queen Elizabeth II had to in 1904, the stone would remain the be escorted through the tradesmen’s sole reminder of the site’s original entrance to attend a garden party intentions for some sixty years. This during her visit in 1954, it became PARLIAMENT HOUSE tale of two buildings began with a clear that it was time to tackle the national architectural competition unrealised eastern wing. In 1964, the for the design of Perth’s Parliament east-facing facade, comprising of House at the turn of the century. The some 1,500 tonnes of Donnybrook chosen adjudicator of the compe­ stone, was finally completed at ARCHITECT John Harry Grainger (original tition never selected a winner from a cost of £416,000. The addition building); E.H. Van Mens the entries, but the project eventually was not designed with grandiose (1964 addition) fell to the Public Works Department’s Victorian characteristics as originally chief architect – John Grainger. intended, instead taking on a more CLIENT Grainger’s original design underwent contemporary Stripped Classical style, Government of Western a hefty cost-cutting exercise, resulting giving Parliament House its two-faced Australia in a very modest reflection of the personality. Aside from providing YEAR OF COMPLETION intended building. Aside from the additional space and modernising 1904; 1964 (further legislative assembly and legislative the building, the true merit of the additions made in 1978, council chambers, the original build­ new work was that it reoriented the 2002) ing contained little else. building to face the city so that it COST While the 1902 design catered for now stared straight down St Georges £35,600; £416,000 the requirements of parliamentary Terrace. This long-awaited focal meetings, by 1950 the need for adjustment was summed up perfectly STYLE additional space for staff had become by an article in the Sunday Times Federation Classical; Late PARLIAMENT HOUSE Twentieth CenturyStripped a major issue. Another ongoing point featuring the headline, ‘A Real Front Classical of contention with the design was Door at Last!’ 4 HARVEST TERRACE, WEST PERTH its orientation, facing west, away CIVIC 11 THE BELL TOWER

BARRACK SQUARE, RIVERSIDE DRIVE, PERTH RIVERSIDE DRIVE

The image of the 82.5-metre Bell the future, which many people at the Tower sitting serenely on the bank time did not share. The initial design of the Swan River has become came under huge public scrutiny for synonymous with Perth. The story of being both a waste of money and an the tower’s inception is a somewhat architectural eyesore. Construction turbulent one, beginning with a gift workers reported that in the early from in the form of some stages of the project, cars would stop THE BELL TOWER very large and very old bells. at the site to provide some well- In the late 1980s, Western Australia considered words about the building. was gifted the twelve bells of St As the tower took shape, the Martin-in-the-Fields in Trafalgar public’s criticism died off and their Square, London, where they had focus could turn back to the design ARCHITECT been rung for many historic events of one of the world’s largest musical Hames Sharley over hundreds of years. Unfortunately instruments. The site on Barrack Street CLIENT Western Australia had no buildings was formerly a place of boatbuilding, Government of Western large enough to house the bells, so and the tower heavily reflects this Australia they were put into storage where nautical theme. The large copper sails YEAR OF COMPLETION they would remain for the next ten are not only a testament to Perth’s 2000 years. Some in England didn’t think connection with the water, but COST much of their ancient gift being also with the state’s mining history. $6.8 million (estimated) treated in such a way, sparking a The historic bells sit comfortably at petition in the early 1990s to have the precisely the same height they were STYLE bells brought back to the motherland. once hung in London. Above them is Deconstructivist This public pressure resulted in the tower: lightweight, modern and a competition for a millennium technologically advanced, designed project as part of the Barrack Square to showcase the engineering THE BELL TOWER redevelopment to give the bells a capabilities of Western Australia and permanent home. encapsulate the feeling of a state A public works project as important looking to the future. BARRACK SQUARE, RIVERSIDE DRIVE, PERTH as the Bell Tower required a vision for CIVIC 13