Griffin's Influence on Australian Architecture - Coursework Example

Student’s Name Professor’s Name Subject Code and Name Date Submitted Australian Architecture - Griffin's Influences Abstract The paper will mainly looks at the effect that the Griffins had in the establishment of Australian architecture. The architecture in Australia had not been stabilized in the 19th century as it was mainly based on controversial issues. During the same period, the architecture started developing based on the influence of Britain and their traditional styles. However, the 20th century presented different opportunities for Australian architecture since the formation of the Federation architecture movement focused on the implementation of unique structures that defined Australian architecture. The main factor that the movement was represent in architecture was modernity and creation of new opportunities. The presence of Walter Griffin in Australia further presented many opportunities for the modernism that they wanted to implement in their architecture. Griffin was introduced Australia after he win the competition for the designing of the Canberra City. Griffin presented his architecture based on his interpretation of the future and his works stood out as unique. Through his works in the construction of the capital city, the implementation of the skyscrapers was one of the factors that highly influenced the architecture. Most of the old traditional buildings in the cities were being replaced by the office towers that represented the ‘Australian dream.’ Other works of Griffin especially in Melbourne and Sydney inspired the architecture of the residential areas. After the designing and establishment of the Castlecrag estate, most of the architecture in the suburban areas started focusing on the natural environment and the landscape setting. Most of the architecture that later followed tried to preserve the environment in the construction and designs. The works of the Griffins were not only evidence in the external designs but on their interior works as well. Some of their most noted interior designs that influenced architecture included; the Newman College, Café Australia in Melbourne and the Capital Theatre. Hence, the architecture in the 20th and 21st century in Australia was mainly influenced by some of the great architects with the Griffins being the most inspirational. Introduction The year 1788 marked a period in the architectural history of Australia where the architecture was to a certain extend controversial. This is in regards to the establishments put up by the indigenous population were not recognised by the European settlers. Hence, this limited the permanent structures that were set up by the Australian indigenous population. The first buildings to be established in Australia were of high significance to the European fashion based on the fact that Australia had been a British colony. However, the introduction of the 20th century presented different options for Australia and their architecture (Jeff 3133). The opportunity presented itself in the form of Federation Architecture where Australia was embracing the modern architecture and incorporating it with their unique style. However, the available of Walter Burley Griffin played key role in influencing the different architectural designed that Australia started to adjust to. Griffin was mainly recognised in taking the lead role in the designing of Australia’s capital city, Canberra. Griffin deployed a unique style in his designs of Canberra and this got him highly recognised. Other than recognition, Griffin influenced a lot of the architectural designs and the direction that Australia adopted based on the same influence. Therefore, this paper will aims to look at what the works of Griffin established in Australian architecture through the examination of some of the architectural projects completed in Australia. Griffin and His Architecture The talent of Griffin was not discovered in Australia but rather in America where he is born and raised. His career has also built in America before he extended his talent to Australia. Griffin had studied architecture in Illinois Chicago where he slowly built on his career by engaging in various works of art in the state. However, in 1911, his talent was felt in internationally, after Australia launched a competition for the design of Canberra (Watson 22). The design of the capital city of Australia is quite significant and important for the country since they were adopting a unique style that was quite different from the European fashion that most of the permanent structures were based on. The unique manner in which Griffins approached the design of the city was based on his interpretation of the future and it stood out from all the other entries that were posted (Jeff 3133). The implementation of the Canberra plans were not easy as there were many obstacles hindering the process to be carried out as planned. The lack of funds and political struggles affected the manner in which Canberra was constructed and it turned out to be quite a slow process than expected. However, the main emphasis was the manner in which the buildings is designed and how it influenced the construction of other buildings in the country. The work done by Griffin is debated on based on whether he had achieved his technical goals which were related to his first principles or he had been mainly working according to the insightful analysis of many precedents. Formation of Architectural Language The architectural language in Australia gained footing inn 1788, when the introduction of permanent structures started being implemented by some of the settlers in Australia. The manner in which the establishments were made and the architecture applied was not a common feature as it was quite controversial. The indigenous Australians were mainly responsible for the establishment of the permanent and semi- permanent structures. The buildings that they were able to set up were not recognised by the most of the European settlers. This is attributed to the fact that Australia had been a British colony and most of the architecture that was present was based in the same fashion adopted by Britain. The European fashion time was defined by the tents and wattle and daub huts since they were recognised as the rather substantial structures. On the other hand Georgian architecture is adopted for the government buildings and some of the wealthy estates. The architecture applied still it is not based on the Australian nature but was influenced by the British architecture (Jeff 3134). The gold- rush that was initiated in 19th century started influencing the architectural manner of some of the structures especially in Melbourne and Sydney as they adopted the Victorian style architecture. However, the 20th century welcomed different aspects of architecture including the Federal Architecture movement. The movement mainly changed the architectural concept exercised in Australia and presented an opportunity for the introduction of unique architecture that could be rated as Australian. Hence, the architectural language of Australia was formed based on the formation of the movement and the opportunities it presented to the people. This was an achievement for Australia as the established designed and constructed could be rated as their own without any strings attached to the colonial country. The architecture introduced in the 20th century was mainly based on modernity and the future (Watson 25). Hence, the construction that took place after the introduction of the movement carried the modernity theme. This was the introduction of the architectural language that Australia could term as their unique work that is not connected to other countries. Established of Australian Architecture Influenced by the Griffins Skyscrapers After the involvement of Griffins in the establishment of Canberra, the architecture in Australia adopted a unique style that was mainly influenced by the socio- political influence. The architecture across Australia started being placed at great heights a factor that had not been present in the buildings that were established before. The application of the heights in the buildings in the cities is started becoming the main feature until a height limit was placed in the early 20th century. The height limit was of 150 feet and this was quite different than the American architecture which adopted the high scrapers style in the buildings that were in the cities (Jeff 3134). The ban was later lifted in the 1960s, which allowed the construction of the city to be marked by the high buildings. The 20th century architecture in Australia, it was adopting the modern aspect that was slowly causing the historical features in buildings to fade. The high scrapers were replacing the ‘boom’ style buildings that were mainly popular during the colonial era and they represented the historic nature and the heritage of the Australians (Jeff 3133). Hence, the establishment of the high scrapers raised concern in some parts of the city as they were doing away with the historic buildings. This situation was mainly experienced in the construction of Collins Street, Melbourne. Once the development of Canberra begun, the high buildings were the main attractive features in the construction and the same style were being transferred in the development of other cities in the country. Sydney also experienced the same rush in the architecture as they replaced the 18th century historic buildings with the office towers that represented the 20th century urban Australia (Watson 17). The implementation of the urban buildings in Sydney was a developing at a fast rate and the government had to implement green bans to protect some of the historic buildings. The green bans were mainly to protect the historic buildings from being demolished so that they can be able to make way for the office towers. Some of the buildings that it were able to be preserved in Sydney are the; The Queen Victoria building in Sydney and the Sydney Town Hall. ICI Building (one of the tallest buildings in Australia) Source (Australian National Heritage 17) However, even through some of the historic buildings it were conserved based on their historic nature and the heritage aspect, Sydney it is still marked as the city with the largest skyline in Australia. The city currently has about 134 skyscrapers and it has adopted the modern architecture as their own. AMP Building at Circular Quay is recognised as Australia’s tallest building. The aspect of tall buildings was adopted from the development of the Canberra city. This is quite significant as the city was developed at a time that the nation wanted to adopt a distinct style for their architecture. Hence, the development of cities based on tall buildings was adopted by most of the cities remaining in Australia. The cities in Australia later started adopting architectural styles from international countries and some of the international architects helped continue the development of Australia based on the culture introduced by the Griffins (Watson 38). Modernism The Griffins presence in Australia was not only based on the construction of the Canberra City but they also engaged in the construction of other buildings especially in Melbourne and Sydney. Modernism played a key role in the architecture that the Griffins applied in the development of Australia. The Griffins it were later involved in the development of the suburban areas and this extended in the development of Castlecrag area (Jeff 3133). The approach that Griffin gave in this venture was based on the avoidance of the traditional grid layout and trying to create a system that would easily blend in with the bush. Designing the Castlecrag estate it was quite difficult for Griffin mainly because the area it was surrounded by bush and the constructions had to be aware of the nature of the surrounding environment. Hence, the architecture was based on the construction of bush land reserves that were mainly meant for the preservation factor and the Griffins later designed 15 houses for the estate (Watson 43). The design of the houses deployed a unique factor that was used to enhance modernity. The houses were carefully located and sandstone was highly applied in the construction for the harmonisation of the landscape and the preservation of the environment. However, the houses did not have the traditional aspects in them and they were designed based on Griffin’s interpretation of the future. Modernism of the estate is based on the presence of the network of reserves, the walkways, local shops, tennis courts and other features that match the modern society of the 21st century. As part of the residential architecture, the Griffins designed the incinerators that were later built on the Sydney suburbs in Willoughby and Pyrmont The same architectural tribute it was taken in the development of the residential areas as they are mainly prolific. The setting up of the Greater Sydney Development Association in 1919 became a guiding tool for the development of the suburban areas especially for areas that are surrounded with bushes (Jeff 3136). This technique applied in the architecture was quite different than what was being applied by European modernism. This is mainly attributed to the fact that Australia took on a softer edge of modernism, one that was practised by the new generation of architects and one that was influenced by the Griffins and other outstanding architects with unique ideas. After the establishment of Castlecrag estate, the architecture of suburban areas took on a style that mainly focused on architecture that was quite sensitive to the environment and used natural elements in the construction due to preservation (Watson 51). The main factor that the Griffins emphasized on in architecture was based on sympathising with the landscape and its settings. This has was not highly considered in the architecture before the 20th century and Australian architecture started basing its development based on the landscape. This concept was applied by the Griffins from their early projects in Chicago and they applied it in the work that they conducted in Australia. The development of the Greater Sydney Development Association enabled the Australian architecture to develop based on the same principle of considering the landscape. Interior Design The interior design adopted by the Griffins was also based on the landscape principle. However, the interior design was mainly based on modernity and unique factors. Before, the Griffins settle din Australia, they had not been given many opportunities to exploit the interior design field. Australia presented them with the opportunity and it was applied in then construction of the Café Australia located in Melbourne in 1916 although it is later demolished and in the construction of Newman College on Melbourne, 1917 (Jeff 3135). However, one of the most memorable projects of the Griffins in their interior deco was the Capitol Theatre Melbourne, 1924. The interior was marked by the distinctive lighting where the chairs and the desks were done in a manner that represented the angular arts and crafts style. The design also included; stained glass lighting, windows, the modernistic carpets, the extraordinary prismatic plaster ceiling added to the charisma of the design and the pulsating colored light which is still appealing to most of the visitors to date. Capitol Theatre, Melbourne-source (Jeff 3125) Effect of the Newman College The design and construction of the Newman College is rated as one of the best works of the Griffins as they did work that reflected on the modern aspect that the Australian architecture was leaning towards. The architecture did not focus on the external but on every aspect of the building including the fixtures, furniture and lighting. The fact that the Griffins it worked on the building based on their interpretation of the future inspired the direction that Architecture in Australia was taking. While most of the European nations mainly based their architecture on Britain, Australia set itself apart by establishing their architecture (Watson 29). They was might have borrowed some of the features expressed by European nations but they incorporated the inspirational art of the Griffins. Newman College Source (Australian National Heritage 17) Griffin’s Knitlock Patent The knitlock patent system was invented by Griffin and it was applied in the construction of couple of dozens of buildings in Australia. Its application was not one of the major aspects on the influential factor of Griffin in the architecture of Australia but it contributed in the development. Griffin introduced the knitlock system in Australia as a more complete and sophisticated than what was mainly used in the Australian system or the Mack slabs (Jeff 3142). The knitlock system was mainly applied in the construction process and had more benefits than the concrete system that Australia had been applying during the period. This is despite over the fact that the Australian system had some similarities, which although being contemporary relied on the double concrete skins. The comparison is based on the fact that the knitlock system depends on reinforcing bars that is grouted with cement into the cavity between two skins, which is meant to further strengthen the construction. The knitlock system presented a different system for Australia and their architecture and it was also based on modernity. Griffin has introduced the knitlock system in Australia in 1916 during the development of Canberra. The same system was applied in the construction of the Newman College by Griffin (Watson 39). The Australian architecture then adopted the knitlock system in the construction aspect in developing some parts of the city. Although the application of the system in Australia did not have much impact as expected its impact as mainly felt internationally. Conclusion In general, the architecture in Australia has had mainly been dictated by Britain since it was their colonial country. However, ever since the foundation of Federal Architecture movement in the 20th century in the country, the results of architecture started taking a different turn aiming towards modernism. The introduction of Walter Burley Griffin for the establishment of Canberra City marked a new beginning for the architecture in the nation. Griffin and his wife introduced positive changes in architecture that enabled Australian architecture to take on a futuristic element in a work. Works Cited Australia’s National Heritage. 20th Century Architecture: Australian Capital Territory and Victoria. 21 September 2005. Web. 30 May 2011. http://www.environment.gov.au/heritage/publications/about/pubs/national- heritage-architecture.pdf Turnbull, Jeff. The Architecture of Walter Burley Griffin: Concrete Applications. Royal Victorian Institute of Architects Journal 3 (2004): 3133- 3154. Print Watson, Anne. Beyond Architecture: Marion Mahoney and Walter Burley Griffin- America, Australia and India. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1999. Print Read More