Proceedings of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand.
In his article series “Modern Homes of Newcastle”, published in the Newcastle Morning Herald betw... more In his article series “Modern Homes of Newcastle”, published in the Newcastle Morning Herald between 1961 and 1964, journalist Alan Farrelly wrote about the contemporary domestic architecture of Newcastle and its surrounds and in doing so brought public attention to the work of a generation of the city’s younger architects. Prominent amongst these was Sydney Charles Morton who had four houses of his own design featured in the series. These houses stand out for their bold modernist appearance involving stark rectilinear forms, light-weight construction, flat roofs and large amounts of glazing. For readers of the newspaper, they were an illustration of how far residential design in their region had come. This paper looks at the pre-history of these houses in the early domestic work of Morton which included the design of ‘Orana’, or what locally became known as “the chicken coop”. In the context of early 1950s Newcastle, where pitched roof, brick and tile homes were standard, ‘Orana’ c...
Fabrications: the journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand, 2000
This paper considers the institutionalisation of marketing theory by looking at the activities of... more This paper considers the institutionalisation of marketing theory by looking at the activities of Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA) since the 1970s. It offers a preliminary set of observations about the theoretical sources and corporate connections of these activities, preparing the ground for more comprehensive ideological critiques. The first section provides and overview of key developments in marketing theory as it emerged out of economic thought in the early decades of last century. It describes the incorporation of marketing concepts and managerial techniques after World War I1 and how this informed discussion about the promotion of professional services in the late 1960s. The second section examines the adoption of marketing concepts by the RAIA in the 1970s.
Association of Architecture Schools in Australasia, 2007
Media advertising, sponsorship deals and office visits are some of the main mechanisms through wh... more Media advertising, sponsorship deals and office visits are some of the main mechanisms through which manufacturers and suppliers attempt to place their materials and products before architects and find a way into professional consciousness. As scholarly interest in the promotional practices of manufacturers and their agents builds, there is a need to formulate and discuss analytical terms and tools for this research. The paper puts forward two terms through which the promotion of new materials and products to architects can be studied: desire and credibility. As a case study, it examines the introduction of aluminium as a building material in Australia in the mid-1930s and its subsequent promotion to become a major part of building construction in the 1950s.
Fabrications the Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians Australia and New Zealand, 2000
This paper considers the institutionalisation of marketing theory by looking at the activities of... more This paper considers the institutionalisation of marketing theory by looking at the activities of Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA) since the 1970s. It offers a preliminary set of observations about the theoretical sources and corporate connections of these activities, preparing the ground for more comprehensive ideological critiques. The first section provides and overview of key developments in marketing theory as it emerged out of economic thought in the early decades of last century. It describes the incorporation of marketing concepts and managerial techniques after World War I1 and how this informed discussion about the promotion of professional services in the late 1960s. The second section examines the adoption of marketing concepts by the RAIA in the 1970s.
In his 1988 book on architectural practice in America, Robert Gutman reports on the increase of m... more In his 1988 book on architectural practice in America, Robert Gutman reports on the increase of marketing activity within architectural firms. He notes the growing use of consulting organisations that offer guidance and advice to architects on marketing policy and public relations procedures? Architectural journals and magazines were also seen to he allocating an increasing percentage of their text to reporting on developments in marketing. This growing interest in marketing within the American architectural profession has led scholars to consider the impact it has had on the value system of architects and their client groups. Stephen Kieran has proposed that marketing theory can he used as a basis for examining the connection between architecture and the post-World War I1 market economy in ~ m e r i c a . ~ He argues that the emerging model of the client as a buyer of architectural services in a free market gives a structure to the architectural pluralism of the 1980s. Mary McLeod claims that by the 1980s postmodern architecture had largely abandoned its critical and transgressive dimensions "to create an eclectic and largely affirmative culture, one strikingly in accord with the tone of contemporary political life.'* The populist bias of the movement, she proposes, invited new levels of publicity and promotion, transforming the image of the architect from social crusader and aesthetic puritan to trendsetter and media star.' James Mayo has considered the problems confronting American architects where the aesthetic merit of their projects is used by developers to market real estate and increase commercial activity. For these scholars the increasing level of marketing activity in and around architectural practice poses a serious threat to the capacity of architecture to counter forces of capital, and to sustain a critical role within consumer orientated society.
ABSTRACT The choice of New Delhi as the location for the first Australian diplomatic building to ... more ABSTRACT The choice of New Delhi as the location for the first Australian diplomatic building to be constructed after the Second World War reflected the growing significance of India in relation to the spread of Communism in Asia. As the importance of diplomatic representation and activity for Australia within India grew, so too did the need for suitable premises. For this purpose, arguments were made for the erection of new buildings in New Delhi for Australia’s Department of External Affairs. From initial design ideas in 1951, it took over ten years for the Head of Mission residence to be completed in 1962, and then another four years for the chancery to be opened in 1966. This paper describes the process that led to the construction of the first of these – the HOM residence – which involved two different design concepts, one based on an Australian colonial stylistic idiom and the other on a modern regionalist approach. The paper examines these two concepts for their representational intent, revealing that the desired image of respectful dignity was open to architectural interpretation which itself depended on the political complexities and practical challenges facing the Australian government in its effort to construct a diplomatic building in India in the 1950s.
trained as an architect and historian in Paris, and has taught in Europe and North America. Since... more trained as an architect and historian in Paris, and has taught in Europe and North America. Since 1994 he has been a professor at New York University's Institute of Fine Arts. His research has focused on twentieth-century architecture and urban planning in France, Russia, Germany and North Africa, resulting in numerous exhibitions and publications on both sides of the Atlantic. Among his many books are Le Corbusier and the Mystique of the USSR (1992), Scenes of the
trained as an architect and historian in Paris, and has taught in Europe and North America. Since... more trained as an architect and historian in Paris, and has taught in Europe and North America. Since 1994 he has been a professor at New York University's Institute of Fine Arts. His research has focused on twentieth-century architecture and urban planning in France, Russia, Germany and North Africa, resulting in numerous exhibitions and publications on both sides of the Atlantic. Among his many books are Le Corbusier and the Mystique of the USSR (1992), Scenes of the
Among the various voices in the ferment of architectural discourse in late nineteenth-century Aus... more Among the various voices in the ferment of architectural discourse in late nineteenth-century Australia that of James Green is perhaps one of the least understood. This, despite the fact he was a prolific writer, edited one of Australia's most widely circulated building journals and was a prominent commentator on modern American architecture. This paper sheds light on the contribution Green made to architectural discourse in Australia by focussing on two of his most significant interests, that of the architecture of Sydney and the so-called "American Romanesque". The paper argues that Green's critical evaluation of these subjects holds the key to understanding his theoretical and intellectual position on modern city architecture. Specifically, it was Green's nine-part series entitled "Sydney Architecture Aesthetically Considered" published in the Australasian Builder and Contractors' News in 1890 in which he articulated the principles he thought should guide the elevational composition and treatment of city buildings. As the paper shows, this series served as a platform enabling Green to exercise a critical voice on other architectural matters, including the topic of American Romanesque architecture and its influence in Australia. James Green died suddenly at his Gordon home in Sydney's north on Wednesday 31 July 1901. A small funeral was held two days later and this was followed by a string of obituaries that highlighted his career as a journalist and critic. The N.S.W. Contract Reporter spoke about Green as "the ideal of an industrious, honest and conscientious man," "indefatigable and thorough," who had devoted his life to an unwavering pursuit of cultural betterment through the practice of well-informed, intelligent and honest criticism:. .. and though he sometimes criticised men and matters with a caustic pen, every word was a truthful mirror of his inmost convictions, and that his writings were sometimes so trenchant as to cause pain was to him a grief palliated only by the idea
In May 1956 Frank Lloyd Wright wrote to Kenneth McDonald, editor of the Australian magazine Archi... more In May 1956 Frank Lloyd Wright wrote to Kenneth McDonald, editor of the Australian magazine Architecture and Arts, to express his gratitude to McDonald for recent issues of the magazine, one of which was devoted to Wright's work and philosophy, and another which featured schemes by Sydney architect Peter Muller. Wright was encouraged by what the magazine represented as occurring “down below there” and wrote, “Organic Architecture is for Australia so why not Australia for Organic Architecture?” McDonald would have been pleased to receive such an endorsement from the “master” architect and continued to publish articles on Wright along with the work of local Australian architects who were experimenting with aspects of organic design within their buildings. The magazine, however, was not an exclusive instrument for the promotion of organic architecture; it also published the work of other American architects and European émigré architects resident in the United States, namely Walter Gropius, Mies van der Rohe, Marcel Breuer and Richard Neutra. It published news and images of their projects, and theoretical articles authored by them, and even used extracts from their writings and speeches as editorial statements. Other Australian architectural and building periodicals also contained coverage of the work of these architects, but Architecture and Arts stands out for the amount of space and attention it gave their work and their discourse as a context for the presentation and discussion of local buildings. This paper examines the attachment this magazine had to the architectural elite of the United States in the post-war years and the critical and promotional interests at play.
(1999). The Commercialization of Architecture Australia, 1975–1980. Fabrications: Vol. 9, No. 1, ... more (1999). The Commercialization of Architecture Australia, 1975–1980. Fabrications: Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 53-67.
As 2001 marks the centenary year of Australia's Federation, it is timely to re-consider the a... more As 2001 marks the centenary year of Australia's Federation, it is timely to re-consider the architectural debates of the turn of last century, and the legacies that they created for thinking about architecture in this country. The notions that architecture should respond to climatic conditions, and that architecture could function as a medium of cultural representation, gained increased currency as overriding themes for architects during this time. These notions are still seminal to debates today, and the paper argues that whilst the frames of reference may appear different, these notions owe their existence to a particular European logic of race and culture that pervaded thinking about architecture in Australia in the late-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
Architectural journals have been one of the most important sources for the study of 20th-century ... more Architectural journals have been one of the most important sources for the study of 20th-century architecture. Both in Australia and overseas, historians have read architectural journals as reflections of external historical realities and, taken collectively, architectural journals have served as a quarry of information. Recent developments in architectural history have proposed that architectural journals might be read as ‘production places’ in themselves.1 Architectural journals served as a cultural mechanism to handle new architectural phenomena. They invented an architectural present and produced trends and meanings.2 They acted as powerful agents of change. On this view, the study of the architectural press should, at least, temper the common focus of scholarly attention on individual architects as the principal agents of developments in 20th-century architecture. The wider ramifications of such study might even encourage a re-consideration of the task of studying the complexities of 20th-century arc...
Proceedings of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand.
In his article series “Modern Homes of Newcastle”, published in the Newcastle Morning Herald betw... more In his article series “Modern Homes of Newcastle”, published in the Newcastle Morning Herald between 1961 and 1964, journalist Alan Farrelly wrote about the contemporary domestic architecture of Newcastle and its surrounds and in doing so brought public attention to the work of a generation of the city’s younger architects. Prominent amongst these was Sydney Charles Morton who had four houses of his own design featured in the series. These houses stand out for their bold modernist appearance involving stark rectilinear forms, light-weight construction, flat roofs and large amounts of glazing. For readers of the newspaper, they were an illustration of how far residential design in their region had come. This paper looks at the pre-history of these houses in the early domestic work of Morton which included the design of ‘Orana’, or what locally became known as “the chicken coop”. In the context of early 1950s Newcastle, where pitched roof, brick and tile homes were standard, ‘Orana’ c...
Fabrications: the journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand, 2000
This paper considers the institutionalisation of marketing theory by looking at the activities of... more This paper considers the institutionalisation of marketing theory by looking at the activities of Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA) since the 1970s. It offers a preliminary set of observations about the theoretical sources and corporate connections of these activities, preparing the ground for more comprehensive ideological critiques. The first section provides and overview of key developments in marketing theory as it emerged out of economic thought in the early decades of last century. It describes the incorporation of marketing concepts and managerial techniques after World War I1 and how this informed discussion about the promotion of professional services in the late 1960s. The second section examines the adoption of marketing concepts by the RAIA in the 1970s.
Association of Architecture Schools in Australasia, 2007
Media advertising, sponsorship deals and office visits are some of the main mechanisms through wh... more Media advertising, sponsorship deals and office visits are some of the main mechanisms through which manufacturers and suppliers attempt to place their materials and products before architects and find a way into professional consciousness. As scholarly interest in the promotional practices of manufacturers and their agents builds, there is a need to formulate and discuss analytical terms and tools for this research. The paper puts forward two terms through which the promotion of new materials and products to architects can be studied: desire and credibility. As a case study, it examines the introduction of aluminium as a building material in Australia in the mid-1930s and its subsequent promotion to become a major part of building construction in the 1950s.
Fabrications the Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians Australia and New Zealand, 2000
This paper considers the institutionalisation of marketing theory by looking at the activities of... more This paper considers the institutionalisation of marketing theory by looking at the activities of Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA) since the 1970s. It offers a preliminary set of observations about the theoretical sources and corporate connections of these activities, preparing the ground for more comprehensive ideological critiques. The first section provides and overview of key developments in marketing theory as it emerged out of economic thought in the early decades of last century. It describes the incorporation of marketing concepts and managerial techniques after World War I1 and how this informed discussion about the promotion of professional services in the late 1960s. The second section examines the adoption of marketing concepts by the RAIA in the 1970s.
In his 1988 book on architectural practice in America, Robert Gutman reports on the increase of m... more In his 1988 book on architectural practice in America, Robert Gutman reports on the increase of marketing activity within architectural firms. He notes the growing use of consulting organisations that offer guidance and advice to architects on marketing policy and public relations procedures? Architectural journals and magazines were also seen to he allocating an increasing percentage of their text to reporting on developments in marketing. This growing interest in marketing within the American architectural profession has led scholars to consider the impact it has had on the value system of architects and their client groups. Stephen Kieran has proposed that marketing theory can he used as a basis for examining the connection between architecture and the post-World War I1 market economy in ~ m e r i c a . ~ He argues that the emerging model of the client as a buyer of architectural services in a free market gives a structure to the architectural pluralism of the 1980s. Mary McLeod claims that by the 1980s postmodern architecture had largely abandoned its critical and transgressive dimensions "to create an eclectic and largely affirmative culture, one strikingly in accord with the tone of contemporary political life.'* The populist bias of the movement, she proposes, invited new levels of publicity and promotion, transforming the image of the architect from social crusader and aesthetic puritan to trendsetter and media star.' James Mayo has considered the problems confronting American architects where the aesthetic merit of their projects is used by developers to market real estate and increase commercial activity. For these scholars the increasing level of marketing activity in and around architectural practice poses a serious threat to the capacity of architecture to counter forces of capital, and to sustain a critical role within consumer orientated society.
ABSTRACT The choice of New Delhi as the location for the first Australian diplomatic building to ... more ABSTRACT The choice of New Delhi as the location for the first Australian diplomatic building to be constructed after the Second World War reflected the growing significance of India in relation to the spread of Communism in Asia. As the importance of diplomatic representation and activity for Australia within India grew, so too did the need for suitable premises. For this purpose, arguments were made for the erection of new buildings in New Delhi for Australia’s Department of External Affairs. From initial design ideas in 1951, it took over ten years for the Head of Mission residence to be completed in 1962, and then another four years for the chancery to be opened in 1966. This paper describes the process that led to the construction of the first of these – the HOM residence – which involved two different design concepts, one based on an Australian colonial stylistic idiom and the other on a modern regionalist approach. The paper examines these two concepts for their representational intent, revealing that the desired image of respectful dignity was open to architectural interpretation which itself depended on the political complexities and practical challenges facing the Australian government in its effort to construct a diplomatic building in India in the 1950s.
trained as an architect and historian in Paris, and has taught in Europe and North America. Since... more trained as an architect and historian in Paris, and has taught in Europe and North America. Since 1994 he has been a professor at New York University's Institute of Fine Arts. His research has focused on twentieth-century architecture and urban planning in France, Russia, Germany and North Africa, resulting in numerous exhibitions and publications on both sides of the Atlantic. Among his many books are Le Corbusier and the Mystique of the USSR (1992), Scenes of the
trained as an architect and historian in Paris, and has taught in Europe and North America. Since... more trained as an architect and historian in Paris, and has taught in Europe and North America. Since 1994 he has been a professor at New York University's Institute of Fine Arts. His research has focused on twentieth-century architecture and urban planning in France, Russia, Germany and North Africa, resulting in numerous exhibitions and publications on both sides of the Atlantic. Among his many books are Le Corbusier and the Mystique of the USSR (1992), Scenes of the
Among the various voices in the ferment of architectural discourse in late nineteenth-century Aus... more Among the various voices in the ferment of architectural discourse in late nineteenth-century Australia that of James Green is perhaps one of the least understood. This, despite the fact he was a prolific writer, edited one of Australia's most widely circulated building journals and was a prominent commentator on modern American architecture. This paper sheds light on the contribution Green made to architectural discourse in Australia by focussing on two of his most significant interests, that of the architecture of Sydney and the so-called "American Romanesque". The paper argues that Green's critical evaluation of these subjects holds the key to understanding his theoretical and intellectual position on modern city architecture. Specifically, it was Green's nine-part series entitled "Sydney Architecture Aesthetically Considered" published in the Australasian Builder and Contractors' News in 1890 in which he articulated the principles he thought should guide the elevational composition and treatment of city buildings. As the paper shows, this series served as a platform enabling Green to exercise a critical voice on other architectural matters, including the topic of American Romanesque architecture and its influence in Australia. James Green died suddenly at his Gordon home in Sydney's north on Wednesday 31 July 1901. A small funeral was held two days later and this was followed by a string of obituaries that highlighted his career as a journalist and critic. The N.S.W. Contract Reporter spoke about Green as "the ideal of an industrious, honest and conscientious man," "indefatigable and thorough," who had devoted his life to an unwavering pursuit of cultural betterment through the practice of well-informed, intelligent and honest criticism:. .. and though he sometimes criticised men and matters with a caustic pen, every word was a truthful mirror of his inmost convictions, and that his writings were sometimes so trenchant as to cause pain was to him a grief palliated only by the idea
In May 1956 Frank Lloyd Wright wrote to Kenneth McDonald, editor of the Australian magazine Archi... more In May 1956 Frank Lloyd Wright wrote to Kenneth McDonald, editor of the Australian magazine Architecture and Arts, to express his gratitude to McDonald for recent issues of the magazine, one of which was devoted to Wright's work and philosophy, and another which featured schemes by Sydney architect Peter Muller. Wright was encouraged by what the magazine represented as occurring “down below there” and wrote, “Organic Architecture is for Australia so why not Australia for Organic Architecture?” McDonald would have been pleased to receive such an endorsement from the “master” architect and continued to publish articles on Wright along with the work of local Australian architects who were experimenting with aspects of organic design within their buildings. The magazine, however, was not an exclusive instrument for the promotion of organic architecture; it also published the work of other American architects and European émigré architects resident in the United States, namely Walter Gropius, Mies van der Rohe, Marcel Breuer and Richard Neutra. It published news and images of their projects, and theoretical articles authored by them, and even used extracts from their writings and speeches as editorial statements. Other Australian architectural and building periodicals also contained coverage of the work of these architects, but Architecture and Arts stands out for the amount of space and attention it gave their work and their discourse as a context for the presentation and discussion of local buildings. This paper examines the attachment this magazine had to the architectural elite of the United States in the post-war years and the critical and promotional interests at play.
(1999). The Commercialization of Architecture Australia, 1975–1980. Fabrications: Vol. 9, No. 1, ... more (1999). The Commercialization of Architecture Australia, 1975–1980. Fabrications: Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 53-67.
As 2001 marks the centenary year of Australia's Federation, it is timely to re-consider the a... more As 2001 marks the centenary year of Australia's Federation, it is timely to re-consider the architectural debates of the turn of last century, and the legacies that they created for thinking about architecture in this country. The notions that architecture should respond to climatic conditions, and that architecture could function as a medium of cultural representation, gained increased currency as overriding themes for architects during this time. These notions are still seminal to debates today, and the paper argues that whilst the frames of reference may appear different, these notions owe their existence to a particular European logic of race and culture that pervaded thinking about architecture in Australia in the late-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
Architectural journals have been one of the most important sources for the study of 20th-century ... more Architectural journals have been one of the most important sources for the study of 20th-century architecture. Both in Australia and overseas, historians have read architectural journals as reflections of external historical realities and, taken collectively, architectural journals have served as a quarry of information. Recent developments in architectural history have proposed that architectural journals might be read as ‘production places’ in themselves.1 Architectural journals served as a cultural mechanism to handle new architectural phenomena. They invented an architectural present and produced trends and meanings.2 They acted as powerful agents of change. On this view, the study of the architectural press should, at least, temper the common focus of scholarly attention on individual architects as the principal agents of developments in 20th-century architecture. The wider ramifications of such study might even encourage a re-consideration of the task of studying the complexities of 20th-century arc...
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Papers by Paul Hogben