Country in the South Pacific
Horizontal bands are the main decorative feature
The Royal Exchange Hotel in Sydney be found in the city’s Marrickville district, a suburb in the inner west of Sydney. Located on a corner lot, it features period lettering around the top spelling out the name, and a parapet with horizontal and vertical decorative bands.
The parapet on the corner
The ANZAC War Memorial in Sydney’s Hyde Park was built in the early 1930s originally to commemorate those who had served in World War 1. In 1984 this was extended so that the Memorial was to be for all Australians who served and serve their country. It is the main war memorial for the state of New South Wales. The monument’s design was by Charles Bruce Dellit, a Sydney born architect, and the sculpture programme for it was created by George Rayner Hoff, an English artist living in Sydney who had served in WW1. The original dedication ceremony for the Memorial was held on 24 November, 1934.
The Bank Hotel in Sydney can be found at 324 King Street in Newtown, a short walk from the Newtown train station. Currently found solely in beige, it nonetheless features some fine Art Deco detailing on its upper façade, in particular the upper centre zig-zag row of chevrons linked by curves and pleating. Inside there are four different bars to drink in. Thanks again to Keith Barrett for the photos.
This building, the former Royal Edward Hotel, was probably constructed in the early 1930s. It closed at some time in 1997-8. The old hotel has been converted into residential units but has maintained all of its exterior Art Deco features. These include the lettering running along the top which spells out the name of the hotel, and the chevron and hemisphere devices on either side of this. There are other chevron devices between the second and third floor windows on either side of the corner. Thanks once again to Keith Barrett for the photos.
This building is currently the home of Websters Bar, a three storey building on a corner lot at 323 King Street in Newtown, Sydney. Probably constructed in the the 1930s, it features wonderful, winged motifs. There’s a chance that it was a bit more colourful in its original incarnation but the black, white and grey has been skillfully applied here to highlight the decorative features. Thanks again to Keith Barrett for providing these photos.
With this post we are once more off to the theatre. In fact, the Enmore Theatre is not only the longest running one in Sydney, Australia, but also the only surviving Art Deco styled theatre there. It can be found in the Newtown area at 118-132 Enmore Road and was first built in 1908, opening in 1912 as a cinema for silent movies with a concert orchestra providing their soundtracks. The Enmore was designed by the architects Kaberry & Chard and renovated in 1920, but this is a bit early for the geometric styling we see here. It was probably renovated again in the 1930s.
The Enmore is still going strong in its second century of theatre and cinema existence and can fit 1,700 seated and 2,500 standing. It has always balanced big name acts like Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones with native Australian acts and local events. This may well have been the key to its survival as the arrival of television saw the closing and demolition of many fine entertainment houses globally. Many thanks to Keith Barrett for providing these photographs.
Global Art Deco 