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Inside the old Treasury Building in Perth

Today was Heritage Day in Perth – an event put on by Heritage Perth to promote the city’s history. There were 30 different free activities happening around the CBD, one of which was a guided tour through the old Treasury buildings at the corner of Barrack St & St Georges Terrace. These buildings were built in 1874 and were used by the State Government until 1996. Since then, the interior has fallen into a state of disrepair while the Government work with private contractors on a possible use for the precinct.

The Heritage Council of Western Australia’s assessment of the site makes reference to the significance of the Treasury Building, or as it was also known – the Central Government Offices:

• it is the largest substantially intact complex of its type built in its time in Australia;

• the place is a key part of the heritage precinct of commercial, civic and ecclesiastical buildings extending from Hay Street to the Swan River’s edge;

• the place is a major work by two of the State’s most notable government architects, Richard R. Jewell and George T. Poole;

• the progressive development of the building complex demonstrates the developing role of government administration during the major period of Colonial expansion, it is also representative of the Colony’s passage to full statehood within the Commonwealth of Australia;

• despite successive campaigns and having many later additions, the place retains cohesion through its use of the Victorian Georgian, Victorian Second Empire and Federation Free Classical styles and through the use of a palette of materials that was set by the construction of Jewell’s Perth Town Hall;

• the place has been a symbol of Government and a place where numerous significant public figures performed their work;

• the place has been associated with Government activities since the foundation of the Colony;

• the development of the place demonstrates the history of regional operations, changes in administration systems and changes in economic circumstances in Western Australia in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century;

• the place is a key element of the Cathedral Precinct which is a Perth landmark;

• the buildings make a major contribution to the streetscape quality of two major and two minor City of Perth streets;

• the interior of the main GPO entry lobby and of the postal hall are considerably significant, together with the vestibule and stairs of the Titles Office, the infill of the eastern courtyard and the lantern light over the postal hall is also of great importance, the basements under most areas of the buildings are of great importance and especially those under the Titles Office with their fireproof construction, those under the Treasury building are also important for their use of the sprung corrugated iron lost formwork construction technique, the use of cavity wall construction is believed to be one of the earliest applications in Western Australia and the in-cavity ventilation systems, use of damp proof courses and hydraulic lifts are also of technical interest;

• the place was the first major Government office complex and was one in which it was intended to house all Government departments and no other attempt has since been made to draw together Government services in this manner;

• the building complex was remarkable for having been intended to accommodate all Government departments;

• the place is associated with the group of places comprising the Perth Town Hall, McNess Royal Arcade, St. George’s Cathedral, Burt Memorial Hall, the Deanery and St. Andrew’s Church, Stirling Gardens, the Old Courthouse, Supreme Court and Supreme Court Gardens, Council House and Government House and the Weld Club which collectively connect West Australians with their past and contribute to their sense of place;

• Jewell’s work on the place, the Perth Town Hall, the Deanery, Government House, Perth Gaol and the Colonial hospital are considered to have an important influence on the aesthetic qualities of the City of Perth; and,

• the buildings designed by Poole are fine examples of the use of mannered classicism using the Victorian Second Empire Style, which was a comparatively rare choice of style for public architecture, and the Federation Free Classical Style.

I felt rather privileged to have had the opportunity to walk through this Perth landmark before the developers get their hands on it. See the photos by clicking here >>>>>> (more…)

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Condor Carpark Exhibition

Last night I popped in to the Condor Carpark Exhibition, which would have to be the largest permanent street art exhibition in the southern hemisphere. The Condor Tower is that lime-yellow building you may have noticed ‘pop’ up recently, garnishing Perth’s crane-ridden skyline. The carpark is mostly underground, with the ‘Core’ level actually being below the water level.

The 5 level car park has seen more than 60 artists add their artwork to the space, mostly locals with a handful from over east and a couple of internationals.

Over a year ago, the Design/Construction Manager of ‘Condor’ approached the ololo art production group and communicated his dislike for grey walls, especially in a car park environment. They took it upon themselves to transform the entire space into an enormous cavern of bold, bizarre and colourful artwork.

Stormie Mills, Reka, Creepy, Daek, DrewFunk, Grumpster, Pat Doherty, Rifs, Trevor6025, Kid Zoom, Timothy Rollin, Hurben, Showbiz, Shime, Jodee Knowles, THNK, RegID, Griv, Yo-Yo are just a small selection of the artists who have donated their time to the project.

This was an awesome way to add life to a dull building, and I really hope this acts as a catalyst for more projects like this. The big shame is that after last night, the only people that will see this amazing art will be the occupants of the Condor Tower. I really hope the City Of Perth get ololo to do some of their public carparks.

I took a rather large number of photos of the artworks, and a lot of these photos have small white dots over them, which I can only assume was from the large amount of dust in the air. You could also still smell the paint, so some of the artworks must have been very recent additions. See them by clicking here —–> (more…)

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Wheatbelt roadtrip

My brother John & I decided to end 2008 by taking a roadtrip around the wheatbelt, with the main goal of trying to find the place where out mother was born. We were sure it was in Lake Grace, but we actually wanted to get a bit more specific, as we had her ashes which we wanted to either inter or scatter at the site of her birth. We didn’t really come back with any specific site, but we did learn a lot about the area – especially Lake Grace.

It was also the realisation of a long lived desire to return to my grandparents old farm in Karlgarin, which has barely been touched since they moved to Perth in the 80′s. The site around the farmhouseis infested with caltrop making the site unusable.

If you’re ever planning to head out to Wave Rock or Karlgarin – I can recommend you stay at Tressies Caravan Park in Karlgarin. Merv has set up an amazing museum of old farm items that have been beautifully restored. Well worth a look!

(more…)

Posted in Buildings, Outings, Photos, Travel | 3 Comments »

Pressed Tin

The house that I have just moved into has walls made of pressed tin – I am surrounded by metal, so I know that “they” won’t be able to pick up on my thoughts – ha ha ha ha!

Seriously though – it’s amazing! I love it, and I know it loves me back!

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The end of an era…

I remember when I was a kid in 1980, I went to Perth for school holidays – and the biggest thing to happen in the city had just been unveiled. Cinema City was Perth’s first multiplex cinema – with 4 screens, a deep red carpet and a classy mirrored exterior.

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