Original post 22 December 2019:

Woy Woy, #MarineParade, #Elwood, Geoffrey Mewton, 1936. Amazing bit of almost #Bauhaus in Melbourne, designed by Mewton, who did a whole series of 30s rendered or cream brick boxy houses too, all dem now except #JustinMadden’s house in Essendon. Woy Woy has just been renovated to become airb&bs, it’s bright white instead of ochre, and the owner waved us in ! It’s a set of 6 tiny one bed #batchelorflats (there was going to be a second block behind, never built). The exterior changed quite a bit in a 1980s renovation – the windows of the upper floors were enlarged, and changed from steel to aluminium, and the stairs extended up to the flat roof (just before it was #heritagelisted ?), with a little tower – 2nd photo. Also the face bricks at the entrance, possibly with a planter bed, were rendered over. The front windows on the left are actually bedrooms, the lounges are to the sides. Pre-war flats and even often postwar ones often weren’t built for a view from the lounge room like we expect now, the lounge was for reading, listening to the radio, doing some knitting – if you wanted a view or some air, you went outside. That’s my theory anyway. The roof has amazing views.

Oddly low; I thought something was wrong, but it’s just that the lintel is just above door height, which isn’t up any steps, so the sign is just above eye height.

Update May 2020: Just found this old photo by architectural historian Miles Lewis from 1982 showing that the changes in c1990 were much more than I thought ! Not only most of the windows, but the frames too, previously steel I think, and the whole top of the tower with the 1936 plaque isn’t original either. Had a more stumpy look actually. I must say I like it more now, but maybe reinstating the window framing esp the horizontal bars in the stair window would be good.

• earlymodernistmelbourne