October 2026
Another mid century facility building at the University of Melbourne that appears to be slated to get the chop, and one that I’ve always kind of liked.
The Redmond Barry building was completed in 1961, designed by University architect Rae Featherstone with Eggleston MacDonald & Secomb, and its tall and relatively thin, in cream brick and white vertical piers, with delicate sunshades on the north side. It’s got a sheer brick lift tower at the east end on the axis of Elgin Street which has a radar dish on top that fascinated me as a kid.
There’s a marvellous walled garden on the north side that opens off a modern version of a cloister, with built in seating. Everything is pretty much original, the doors, the paving, the timber framing, some signs. There’s a sculptural lecture theatre block at one end. Three more lecture theatres stick out on the south side, interesting but for some reason not all in cream brick.
A recent report said it needs some remedial work, fair enough since it’s 65 years old. If they’re planning on replacing with a lower building then there’d be less teaching space – but perhaps one driver of all this is that the Uni actually doesn’t need all the space, since so much teaching is online ?
Last pic is the one rendering of the 2023 plan, and it’s not there.
Another one of the Melb Uni buildings slated to go. The Medical Faculty on the corner of Grattan and Royal Parade was designed by Mockridge Stahle and Mitchell and completed in 1969. It’s kind of striking with that curved wall joining long straight wings (and a third arm behind). I’ve never really liked it myself, a good idea let down by the uninspiring materials and expression. The two floors added in the 1990s are terrible.
Of course the wholesale demolitions across campus of the 2023 estate plan just seems crazy to me – a lot of $ spent without creating more teaching space, instead creating more open space, because it will make the campus more attractive. I guess that implies the postwar buildings to be demolished are seen to be unattractive, as if that would turn off international students. The indicative replacement building looks very bland indeed.
Doesn’t look like this part is happening any time soon.
