22 March 2024 Nice but of Art Deco at 53 George Street East Melbourne, bully 1940, and designed by IG Anderson. And then in 1942 right next door he designed another one, St Martins, in a more Georgian mode. Anderson did a lot of flats in East Melb around 1940, including 5 blocks in Garden … Continue reading IG Anderson in East Melbourne →

21 March 2019: The amazing huge and abandoned Railway Hotel, right on the #UpfieldLine near #BrunswickStation. It had a happening nightclub a while ago, but a bit toooo happy since the licensee was busted in 2016 trying to sell $70,000 worth of ice and coke to undercover police - he got 8 years. It’s been … Continue reading Railway Hotel, Brunswick →

20 March 2020 Revealed by some demolition on Fitzroy Street St Kilda - the edge of the mini-mansion originally called Canterbury, built in 1882, and from 1913 known as Brook Lawn guesthouse. It had shops built in front of it in 1916, and remained hidden until c1995 when the middle shop was demolished revealing the … Continue reading Hidden mansion revealed in Fitzroy Street →

18 March 2024 In the Bourke Street mall it’s easy to overlook this one - built for Francis & Co chemist in 1913, by my current fave architect Nahum Barnet, who did about 25 commercial buildings in the cbd between 1900 and WW1. Mostly they were in red brick Edwardian, but this one is in … Continue reading Francis & Co, Bourke Street →

17 March 2024 We think of coffee being very Melbourne, and largely because post war Italian migrants got us hooked, but coffee has been around a lot longer that that ! Coffee was actually more popular in Britain than tea until the 1850s, but I’m not sure exactly how it was made, though probably a … Continue reading The history of Coffee in Melbourne →

16 March 2024 The 1875 cast iron fence and gateway at the Grattan Street entrance to Melb Uni was dismantled for the Melb Metro station and is right now going back in place (photos from @metrotunnelvic). Designed by Reed & Barnes in a Tudor style to match their 1860 gate lodge, they originally had two … Continue reading Melbourne University entrance fence →

Original post 14 March 2019: #Terracehouses, Delbridge Street, #FitzroyNorth; Essex House, Stoneleigh House, Parkview House, and St Elmo, probably all 1880s. We call them terraces, but strictly a ‘terrace’ means a row all the same, which is much more typical in the UK or the US (where they’re called #rowhouses). Whereas in Melbourne and Sydney … Continue reading Terraces North Fitzroy →

March 2024 Visited the Dandenong Civic Square by @lyonsarchitecture with @rush.wright.associates landscaping, completed 2015. Harmony Square is the name for the public plaza that’s at the heart of the Dandenong Civic Centre - it’s pretty much a miniature Fed Square, but with somewhat more attractive public spaces. The open space has similar earth toned patterned … Continue reading Harmony Square, Dandenong Civic Centre →

11 March 2024 Normamby Chambers, Little Collins Street, built in 1883, designed by Reed Henderson & Smart (so possibly Joseph Reed himself) for politician, lawyer and speculator MH Davies. Not terribly exciting, though the liberal use of incised and stylised decoration on flat surfaces is unusual (and low cost), and it makes a great termination … Continue reading Normanby Chambers →

11 March 2024 This rather grand house on the corner of Simpson and George Street East Melbourne was built in 1878, for timber merchant David Blair. It has a spacious two level arcaded verandah, looking rather Italian. It had hand painted ceilings and tiled floors, but from 1900 it was put to use as Mena … Continue reading East Melbourne mansion →