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UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE
CROSS-SECTION
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Issue No. 50 December I, 1956
This is the last week for receipt in Sydney of entries for the Opera House competition. Some from overseas arrived a month ago.
This gas
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generating works at Morwell, Vic, (C-
S Nov '54), began to contribute to Melb's gas supply. Its frankly mechanical form is arranged according to function, & creates its own interesting architecture (Gas & Fuel Corp'n arch'ts dept, Donald Crone the project's head arch't) & the same is true of this120,000 kw NSW Elec Com'n Tallawarra coal-power station on Lake Illawarra (NSW PWD & Elec Com'n, arch'ts depts), whose stage I is now completed & partly
equipped. But this, Lake Macquarie power station, is being needlessly clad with a monumental brick pile, massed in an academic-modern manner. (Elec Com'n with Cumming, Smith & Assoc'tes, arch'ts)
This "circle of friendliness" (C-S Aug '55) accommoda- tion for aged people at the Carrum Downs, Vic, Brotherhood of St. Laurence community, was completed.
(Chancellor & Patrick; Barrett, Hind & Zeuschner) (( Another showcase for a historic aeroplane is pro- posed (see C-S Oct) this time in Minlaton, SA, to house the aircraft flown from England by Captain Harry Butler. An appeal for £3,000 was launched.
If
A £14,000 hotel at North Adelaide was designed by& built for the owner, Mr Ivan Zoneff, arch't-graduate from Karlsruhe. The bldg is single storied with 18 bedrooms, built on motel lines & featuring "a 3-dimensional mural
The biggest hotel bar in Q'land was opened in Toowoomba, first unit of the £400,000 Lennons Hotel in Ruthven-st.
(( Prelim construction began at the site for Mt Isa Mines Ltd new £3m copper refinery in Townsville.
American consulting engineers are still working on its
"prelim design" but admin bldgs were designed in Townsville by arch'ts Ford, Hutton & Newell.
1 A new factory & showroom, set back from the major road to give off-street parking, was completed in Sydney-rd, Brunswick, Vic. (Middleton & Talbot, arch'ts)
These new central research labs for ICI A&NZ Ltd were occupied in Newson-rd Ascot Vale, Melb. With a cost-plus contract & a 16-months schedule the bldg cost £500,000 & was built, equipped & occupied within the 16 months. (ICI arch'ts dept, with Bates, Smart
& McCutcheon; Prentice Builders Ltd)
1f
Sisalkraft Ltd created a new & generous scholarship for arch't-graduates (up to 35 years old). It is one annual award of £1,000 for a travel & research "to obtain training & experience for the better management& organisation of building projects".
The public exhib'n in Perth of the Perth Master Plan finished, & it moved to suburban centres, will later tour country towns. 7 short films are being screened with the exhib'n showing the need for city planning.
If Cavernous window and door recesses keep the summer sun out of the new E S & A bldg in Mildura, Vic. (Marcus R Barlow, van Rompaey & Kerr, arch'ts)
Despite an occasional refreshing design, churches in Australia continue to be, architecturally, the most back- ward building-type. Many new churches are unrecog- nisable as such, and this example (C of E, Blacktown, NSW; Burcham Clamp, arch't; McMahon & Dyett Ltd, bldrs) is not a lone representative. Others which would be apt examples are Trinity Grammar School chapel, Summer Hill NSW, in Tudor-brick style (H E Budden, Nangle & Michael, arch'ts; Cockle Bros, bldrs) or Sth Hawthorn Presbyterian, Vic, in a Dutch deformed style (Keith Reid, arch't). Much of the responsibility for this artistic sacrilege rests with the church committees, notorious for being "Sunday architects". Yet recently a progressive congregation, at St. Michael's, Wollongong NSW (historic church by Edmund Blackett) was over- ridden by central church authorities. New Vestries, they said, must have a roof with a 50` pitch like the church.
Little wonder that rejection is the fate of a design both
dignified & fresh, such as this for St. Barnabas, C of E at Fairfield NSW, which will never be built as shown here (Edwards, Madigan & Torzillo, arch'ts). Small wonder, too, that the uncommon few which are both better & built look so unusual, when in other countries
they would class as conservative: this at Mt Ise, Q'land (Ford, Hutton & Newell, arch'ts) & this the Church of
Mother of God, East Ivanhoe, Vic (Mockridge, Stehle
& Mitchell, arch'ts; Clements Langford, bldrs)
¶)
A stainless steel spire is being made for a £20,000 Church of Latter Day Saints, in Ipswich, Q'land.Ì
Vic Hous'g Com'n achieved not only an annual report (its previous absence was sometimes con spicuous) but a profit of £8,161. Accumulated deficit is £1,217,108.f In Vic, privately-designed housing was championed by Public Works minister Sir Thomas Maltby. He said financing co-op societies helps to abolish "carbon copy homes", & Hous'g Com'n homes lack character &
individuality. Hous'g minister Mr Petty denied the lack of individuality./ Heidelberg City C argued about taking over the Olympic Village, now that Houc'ry Com'n houses can be sold, because 437 of the 580 allotments are smaller than Council regs demand.
This is the new German Embassy, being built in Canberra. Behind the office block & connected to it is the ambassador's residence. The bldgs were designed by the German State Works Dept, in Bonn, in assoc'n with Gerd & Renate Block, of Melb, who are supervising its construction. (Simmie & Co, bldrs; £204,000) If The NSW Minister for tourist activities, Mr C A Kelly, made a survey of proposals to build or renovate hotels. It shows that over £10m will be spent on Syd hotels by the end of 1958. This includes the alterations at Usher's (£150,000), at the Australia (£100,000), Hampton Court (£100,000), Metropole, Wentworth &
Carlton. New projects include a £3m, 400-rm Hilton
& the £11m 400-rm International at King's Cross (C-S Nov). A £11m hotel is proposed in Sylvania, &
12 other suburban ones. In country towns 100 hotels will be extensively altered & 17 new ones built.
(( The Printing Trades Employees' Union will build a
£60,000, 5-fir office block in Regent-st Syd. (Harry Seidler, arch't)
Q Storage bldgs costing £21,000 were completed in Forrest-st, East Fremantle, for Messrs. Wm Adams &
Co. (Summerhayes & assoc'tes, arch'ts; Harnett &
Horner, bldrs)
(( The 1st contract for Syd's Domain undergr'd car park was let, to Messrs Tarjan Constr'n Co; £948,101.
An application was made to build an I1-storey block of flats at Darling Pt, Syd. The district rose in protest
& packed a Council meeting to back the view that
"the gracious living" possible in that select area would be spoiled. Mr A M Bolot, arch't, produced the tentative design, to cost £300,000. Mr C Andrews, arch't, represented local objectors & spoke against altering the district's character. Woolahra Council passed the matter to its town planning C'mtee.
)j The Twin Drive-in cinema at Chullora, NSW (C-S July '56) was completed. Its total capacity is 1,320 cars.
To be completed by mid-'57, this new City Hall is at Subiaco, WA. An entrance hall & a marble stair give access to another foyer & the Hall at a higher level, a gallery above it, a lesser Hall & a supper room, all of which will be heated. (Hawkins & Sands, arch'ts, P S Parkinson their arch't in charge; Heath & Mackay, bldrs; £75,166)
If
Sharpe Bros retail store in Bourke-st Melb had a swift change of front in time for Olympics month; now alterations continue there, to a total value of £200,000.(Bogle & Banfield, arch'ts)
if At Guildford Grammar School, Perth, a 2nd wing was added to the £28,600 science block. (Oldham, Boas, Ednie-Brown & partners, arch'ts; Dinsdale &
Lyons, bldrs, this wing £8,000)
If
Prof H I Ashworth was elected pres of the NSW chapter RAIA/Mr H W Robinson was elected pres of the Bldg Industry Congress's federal council./Mr A J W Pate was elected pres of the Austin Inst of Quantity Surveyors.(j Melb City C decided to buy a site for multi-storey car parking in Bourke-st for £320,000. Council would not commit itself to build, however, and the site will be offered to private investors. The CDA is expected to build it, to accommodate 800 cars.
If
The Dandenong-pattern, of large-industry centres beyond Melb's fringe, will encircle the city as these projects proceed: British Nylon Spinners Ltd, £4m factory at Bayswater, 15 miles east of city (Stephenson& Turner, arch'ts; Utah Constr'n, Aust, Ltd, bldrs) now well under way; Ilford Ltd at Notting Hill, a £4m works, to begin next month; Kodak Ltd a £3m plant at Coburg, 8 miles northward, to be built soon; & a
"several millions" factory for Ford Co of Aust, at Broadmeadows (north-west) for which the Vict'n Govt allocated land, previously reserved for housing.
)( Kodak House Adelaide (model illustrated C-S July '56) was opened. Both temp & humidity are controlled throughout; the bldg is designed to take two more storeys.
If A huge £12m bulk store for Syd County C is nearing completion in Epsom-rd Roseberry. The Store is 700' x 400', one of Syd's largest. (Sydney C C, arch'ts)
If Work started on a factory and machine shop for Watson & Crane Pty Ltd at Fairfield, NSW. Furnace pits are incorporated in the reinf cont raft foundations.
(Leith C McCredie & Richardson, arch'ts)
)( The SA Executive Council appointed Mr Stuart Beaumont Hart, a deputy Planning Officer of the Fife (Scotland) County Council, as Town Planner for SA.
He was one of a team responsible for planning the reconstruction of Plymouth after the war. He will reach Adelaide next month.
If
First section of the first factory at Elizabeth, SA, was commenced. Owners are Pinnock Manufacturing Co and the building is the first sewing machine factory in Aust./SA Housing Trust is waiting for approval of ratepayers before beginning a £360,000 hospital at Elizabeth South. If approved, the trust expects to call tenders in January. (S A H T, arch'ts for both))( Geelong Harbour Trust, Vic, will build a 4-storey waterfront Block off Corio-terrace, costing £*m, to have offices, customs house, sailors' amenities, waterside workers' club & stevedoring industry offices. (Buchan, Laird & Buchan, arch'ts)
A face-lift produced this result at the Adelaide offices of Austral Steel Ltd, & managed a pleasing result with colours red grey & blue. (Bevan Rutt, arch't)
A big showcase as well as a shop, this new showrm of L G Abbot+ & Co is in Wakefield-st, Adelaide.
Each £500 window is 14 ft 9 ins by 13 ft, of i-in French-made plate glass. (Caradoc Ashton, Fisher, Woodhead & Beaumont-Smith, arch'ts; Hansen &
Yuncken Ltd, bldrs)
Nature helped design this school
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The
natural location inspired the design of Kings College at St. Lucia, Brisbane. The Architects, Cook & Kerrison of Brisbane, had a unique opportunity of designing this new University school to contain a chapel, student and staff accommodation, lecture rooms and a library, etc.The predominant feature of the building is a contemporary exterior harmoniously blended with the lovely bushland sur- roundings. But, being a college, the interior had to create a certain atmosphere of dignity, while still remaining in sympathy with the natural exterior look.
Obviously the floor treatment was important and the Dunlop Vinyl Tiles used throughout contributed in a most imaginative way towards the success of this ideally designed interior.
The colours, Smoke Grey with Forrest Green, and Gull Grey with Jet Black, proved an attractive and practical solution.
The increasing use of Dunlop Vinyl Tiles in educational centres throughout Australia establishes their versatility. They resist heavy use, yet are economical and easy to maintain.
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ADELAIDE : THE DUNLOP FLOORING CENTRE. 131-133 PIRIE STREET. PHONE W 1641.
BRISBANE : DUNLOP RUBBER AUSTRALIA LIMITED, CENTENARY PLACE. PHONE FA 0271.
PERTH : DUNLOP RUBBER AUSTRALIA LIMITED, 424 MURRAY STREET. PHONE BA 8141.
HOBART : DUNLOP RUBBER AUSTRALIA LIMITED, 27 ARGYLE STREET. PHONE B 6581.
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