SAHANZ 2020 : What if? What Next? Speculations on History's Futures, Proceedings of the 37th Annual Conference of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand, 2021
Proceedings of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand.
In 1968, the Housing Commission, Victoria, built a series of high-rise towers in response to an i... more In 1968, the Housing Commission, Victoria, built a series of high-rise towers in response to an identified metropolitan planning issue: urban sprawl and the outward growth of metropolitan Melbourne. This “solution” precipitated a crisis in urban identity. The construction of the first of a series of these modern high-rise towers at Debney Park Estate, Carlton and Park Towers, South Melbourne displaced significant immigrant communities. This became the impetus for the formation of Residential Associations who perceived this project a major threat to existing cultural values pertaining to social and built heritage. This paper examines the extremely polarising events and the positions of both the Housing Commission and the Residential Associations over the course of fifteen years from 1968. The research is grounded in an historical review of government papers and statements surrounding the social housing towers, as well as scholarly articles, including information gathered by Renate Ho...
The Nepean Peninsula, a tiny sliver of land between Bass Strait and Port Phillip, Victoria, Austr... more The Nepean Peninsula, a tiny sliver of land between Bass Strait and Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia, is seascape-landscape-bayscape, a place set between thundering surf and tranquil waters. Girt by sea, its identity is coastal. Water is fundamental to human existence. Indigenous peoples found springs of living water, the first European settlers left because they could not find fresh water. Early pastoralists learnt and subsequently quarantine facilities were designed to harness fresh water through a network of underground tanks. In the later nineteenth-century Europeans found health giving qualities in the ozone; luxurious pleasure in the sea; the ocean a delight to all their senses. Drought and plenty have impacted on the environment. Connection to mains water allows tourism to thrive. Today sea mist and cloud, swimming or walking alone, remain the pleasure of locals, even as climate change engenders uncertainty and development threatens this coastal environment. Yet whilst meani...
During the 1850s, England and France were the leading centres of debate over the Gothic Revival. ... more During the 1850s, England and France were the leading centres of debate over the Gothic Revival. As Barry Bergdoll argues, the issues that loomed large were at once architectural and political: stylistic eclecticism versus national purity, invention versus tradition, nationalism versus cosmopolitanism, as well as the challenge of new building programmes and new materials to the historicist logic of the Gothic Revival position. William Wilkinson Wardell (1823-99), the architect of St Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia (1858-97) found himself in the midst of this debate. ln.,1858, Wardell's client, James Alipius Goold, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Melbourne, found that local circumstances significantly influenced his aspirations for a new Catholic cathedral for Melbourne. The choices Wardell made eventually gave shape to the Gothic Revival in Australia.The New World perhaps echoing Didron, demanded of the past all it could offer the present and especially...
Built environment and lived experience are inextricably interwoven. The Australian State of Victo... more Built environment and lived experience are inextricably interwoven. The Australian State of Victoria’s planning framework prioritises the physical characteristics of space above their socio-psychological correlates, as reflected in the relatively limited remit of ‘place’ in formal decision-making. The Victorian planning model struggles to accommodate the uniqueness of specific places in the process of development, despite the driving role it plays in expansion. A literature review investigating definitions of place and place identity determined that although place has been defined variously, and at times with some contradiction, there is broad consensus that it can be understood as the interrelation between the physical characteristics of a landscape and the sensory faculties of an individual and an individual’s experience. This interrelationship is in turn determined by social constructs. Depending on an individual’s length of residence in a particular physical location, place infl...
... Uninterrupted view across the vast expanse of Port Phillip Bay. Photo: Ursula de Jong. ... Fi... more ... Uninterrupted view across the vast expanse of Port Phillip Bay. Photo: Ursula de Jong. ... Figure 2 (above). Bridgewater Bay, Mornington Peninsula National Park, at high tide, with the surf rollers crashing into shore. Photo: Ursula de Jong. Figure 3 (right). ...
... It is proposed that an equal level of individual carbon emissions be achieved by the year 205... more ... It is proposed that an equal level of individual carbon emissions be achieved by the year 2050 and that this level will be 0.3 tonnes. This figure is equivalent to the current per-capita emissions of Bangladesh. ... Total Ecological Footprint (global ha/person) North America ...
Our research is located in the context of the ‘sea change’ phenomenon, which is fundamentally cha... more Our research is located in the context of the ‘sea change’ phenomenon, which is fundamentally changing coastal towns around Australia. Barbara Norman, a past national president of the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA), vividly summed up the current struggle occurring in many of Australia’s coastal regions when she wrote: “the Australian coastline is littered with exhausted communities battling to save the character and environment of their townships” (Norman, 2008). The Australian National Sea Change Taskforce was established in 2004, as a response to these wider community and professional concerns, and seeks “to ensure that coastal development is managed with a focus on the sustainability of coastal communities and the coastal environment”. Gurran et al. (2006) conclude that more detailed research is needed to develop new responses to coastal development, particularly in terms of promoting community wellbeing, strengthening social cohesion, avoiding socio-economic and socio-spatial polarisation and preserving sense of place.
This paper considers the theoretical frameworks of (i) place and identity and (ii) community activism and place, before examining a number of specific case studies. We acknowledge that the efforts of ordinary people are vital to community and place but are seldom recognised or celebrated. Our focus is upon the twin historic coastal townships of Sorrento and Queenscliff, located either side of Port Phillip Heads, in Victoria, Australia. Four local community organisations, the Queenscliffe Community Association (QCA), the Queenscliff Historical Museum (QHM), the Nepean Historical Society (NHS) and the Nepean Conservation Group (NCG) provide diverse case studies for our analysis, highlighting different aspects of culture and place identity. The case studies demonstrate that communities possess local knowledge that must be respected. In three out of four case studies this is ignored in top-down decision-making. Local communities participate both proactively and reactively in the planning process to change the outcomes of proposed developments in order to achieve a result mindful of a holistic approach to place, and respectful of the historical roots of the present. It is critical that participation and community consultation be meaningful, not just a perfunctory process.
In the context of rising numbers of people with disability in Australian cities, this paper descr... more In the context of rising numbers of people with disability in Australian cities, this paper describes a study determining actions to overcome unintended obstacles in the built environment to city-scale accessibility and inclusivity in a regional city in Australia. Prior studies have largely failed to connect social inclusion obstacles in the built environment with factors leading to social exclusion in other domains that have impact on, and are impacted by, the built environment. An approach based on systems thinking allowed a wide range of stakeholders, including many with lived-experience of disability, to exchange ideas in a short timeframe linking the built environment with other obstacles to accessible and inclusive cities. One hundred and nineteen actions were identified to overcome these obstacles, with 37 of these prioritised according to impact and feasibility. Nineteen of these 37 are imbedded in the built environment. Access to appropriate and affordable housing was identified as a key factor across all domains. Importantly, it was found that access for people with disability to appropriately designed and affordable housing was at the fulcrum of many other issues, across numerous city domains, that created obstacles to meaningful living and fulfilled lives. The process advanced understanding of how housing is impacted by, and has impacts on, a wide sphere of socio-political and physical contexts. Disability • Inclusion • Accessibility • Housing • Systems-thinking
The liturgical reforms of Vatican II proclaimed the Mass as ‘source and summit of Christian life’... more The liturgical reforms of Vatican II proclaimed the Mass as ‘source and summit of Christian life’ and encouraged the ‘full, conscious and active participation’ of all in the Eucharistic celebration. It had major implications for liturgical space in existing churches and the design of new ones and impacted the physical, social and ritual spaces in Australian Catholic churches. It also threatened the integrity of the Church’s cultural patrimony – both in its artistic objects and in the gestural practices of the faithful. The call for change occurred in the 1960s and aligned loosely with the continued quotation of Modernist principles that followed the precepts of pure form and structure and/or quoted a more organicist approach. In both cases, it seemed that history was to be discarded and tradition eschewed but at the same time there was an interweaving between evolving interpretations of post war Modernism and liturgical reform. By analysing and decoding Wardell’s St Patrick’s in Mel...
SAHANZ 2020 : What if? What Next? Speculations on History's Futures, Proceedings of the 37th Annual Conference of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand, 2021
Proceedings of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand.
In 1968, the Housing Commission, Victoria, built a series of high-rise towers in response to an i... more In 1968, the Housing Commission, Victoria, built a series of high-rise towers in response to an identified metropolitan planning issue: urban sprawl and the outward growth of metropolitan Melbourne. This “solution” precipitated a crisis in urban identity. The construction of the first of a series of these modern high-rise towers at Debney Park Estate, Carlton and Park Towers, South Melbourne displaced significant immigrant communities. This became the impetus for the formation of Residential Associations who perceived this project a major threat to existing cultural values pertaining to social and built heritage. This paper examines the extremely polarising events and the positions of both the Housing Commission and the Residential Associations over the course of fifteen years from 1968. The research is grounded in an historical review of government papers and statements surrounding the social housing towers, as well as scholarly articles, including information gathered by Renate Ho...
The Nepean Peninsula, a tiny sliver of land between Bass Strait and Port Phillip, Victoria, Austr... more The Nepean Peninsula, a tiny sliver of land between Bass Strait and Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia, is seascape-landscape-bayscape, a place set between thundering surf and tranquil waters. Girt by sea, its identity is coastal. Water is fundamental to human existence. Indigenous peoples found springs of living water, the first European settlers left because they could not find fresh water. Early pastoralists learnt and subsequently quarantine facilities were designed to harness fresh water through a network of underground tanks. In the later nineteenth-century Europeans found health giving qualities in the ozone; luxurious pleasure in the sea; the ocean a delight to all their senses. Drought and plenty have impacted on the environment. Connection to mains water allows tourism to thrive. Today sea mist and cloud, swimming or walking alone, remain the pleasure of locals, even as climate change engenders uncertainty and development threatens this coastal environment. Yet whilst meani...
During the 1850s, England and France were the leading centres of debate over the Gothic Revival. ... more During the 1850s, England and France were the leading centres of debate over the Gothic Revival. As Barry Bergdoll argues, the issues that loomed large were at once architectural and political: stylistic eclecticism versus national purity, invention versus tradition, nationalism versus cosmopolitanism, as well as the challenge of new building programmes and new materials to the historicist logic of the Gothic Revival position. William Wilkinson Wardell (1823-99), the architect of St Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia (1858-97) found himself in the midst of this debate. ln.,1858, Wardell's client, James Alipius Goold, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Melbourne, found that local circumstances significantly influenced his aspirations for a new Catholic cathedral for Melbourne. The choices Wardell made eventually gave shape to the Gothic Revival in Australia.The New World perhaps echoing Didron, demanded of the past all it could offer the present and especially...
Built environment and lived experience are inextricably interwoven. The Australian State of Victo... more Built environment and lived experience are inextricably interwoven. The Australian State of Victoria’s planning framework prioritises the physical characteristics of space above their socio-psychological correlates, as reflected in the relatively limited remit of ‘place’ in formal decision-making. The Victorian planning model struggles to accommodate the uniqueness of specific places in the process of development, despite the driving role it plays in expansion. A literature review investigating definitions of place and place identity determined that although place has been defined variously, and at times with some contradiction, there is broad consensus that it can be understood as the interrelation between the physical characteristics of a landscape and the sensory faculties of an individual and an individual’s experience. This interrelationship is in turn determined by social constructs. Depending on an individual’s length of residence in a particular physical location, place infl...
... Uninterrupted view across the vast expanse of Port Phillip Bay. Photo: Ursula de Jong. ... Fi... more ... Uninterrupted view across the vast expanse of Port Phillip Bay. Photo: Ursula de Jong. ... Figure 2 (above). Bridgewater Bay, Mornington Peninsula National Park, at high tide, with the surf rollers crashing into shore. Photo: Ursula de Jong. Figure 3 (right). ...
... It is proposed that an equal level of individual carbon emissions be achieved by the year 205... more ... It is proposed that an equal level of individual carbon emissions be achieved by the year 2050 and that this level will be 0.3 tonnes. This figure is equivalent to the current per-capita emissions of Bangladesh. ... Total Ecological Footprint (global ha/person) North America ...
Our research is located in the context of the ‘sea change’ phenomenon, which is fundamentally cha... more Our research is located in the context of the ‘sea change’ phenomenon, which is fundamentally changing coastal towns around Australia. Barbara Norman, a past national president of the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA), vividly summed up the current struggle occurring in many of Australia’s coastal regions when she wrote: “the Australian coastline is littered with exhausted communities battling to save the character and environment of their townships” (Norman, 2008). The Australian National Sea Change Taskforce was established in 2004, as a response to these wider community and professional concerns, and seeks “to ensure that coastal development is managed with a focus on the sustainability of coastal communities and the coastal environment”. Gurran et al. (2006) conclude that more detailed research is needed to develop new responses to coastal development, particularly in terms of promoting community wellbeing, strengthening social cohesion, avoiding socio-economic and socio-spatial polarisation and preserving sense of place.
This paper considers the theoretical frameworks of (i) place and identity and (ii) community activism and place, before examining a number of specific case studies. We acknowledge that the efforts of ordinary people are vital to community and place but are seldom recognised or celebrated. Our focus is upon the twin historic coastal townships of Sorrento and Queenscliff, located either side of Port Phillip Heads, in Victoria, Australia. Four local community organisations, the Queenscliffe Community Association (QCA), the Queenscliff Historical Museum (QHM), the Nepean Historical Society (NHS) and the Nepean Conservation Group (NCG) provide diverse case studies for our analysis, highlighting different aspects of culture and place identity. The case studies demonstrate that communities possess local knowledge that must be respected. In three out of four case studies this is ignored in top-down decision-making. Local communities participate both proactively and reactively in the planning process to change the outcomes of proposed developments in order to achieve a result mindful of a holistic approach to place, and respectful of the historical roots of the present. It is critical that participation and community consultation be meaningful, not just a perfunctory process.
In the context of rising numbers of people with disability in Australian cities, this paper descr... more In the context of rising numbers of people with disability in Australian cities, this paper describes a study determining actions to overcome unintended obstacles in the built environment to city-scale accessibility and inclusivity in a regional city in Australia. Prior studies have largely failed to connect social inclusion obstacles in the built environment with factors leading to social exclusion in other domains that have impact on, and are impacted by, the built environment. An approach based on systems thinking allowed a wide range of stakeholders, including many with lived-experience of disability, to exchange ideas in a short timeframe linking the built environment with other obstacles to accessible and inclusive cities. One hundred and nineteen actions were identified to overcome these obstacles, with 37 of these prioritised according to impact and feasibility. Nineteen of these 37 are imbedded in the built environment. Access to appropriate and affordable housing was identified as a key factor across all domains. Importantly, it was found that access for people with disability to appropriately designed and affordable housing was at the fulcrum of many other issues, across numerous city domains, that created obstacles to meaningful living and fulfilled lives. The process advanced understanding of how housing is impacted by, and has impacts on, a wide sphere of socio-political and physical contexts. Disability • Inclusion • Accessibility • Housing • Systems-thinking
The liturgical reforms of Vatican II proclaimed the Mass as ‘source and summit of Christian life’... more The liturgical reforms of Vatican II proclaimed the Mass as ‘source and summit of Christian life’ and encouraged the ‘full, conscious and active participation’ of all in the Eucharistic celebration. It had major implications for liturgical space in existing churches and the design of new ones and impacted the physical, social and ritual spaces in Australian Catholic churches. It also threatened the integrity of the Church’s cultural patrimony – both in its artistic objects and in the gestural practices of the faithful. The call for change occurred in the 1960s and aligned loosely with the continued quotation of Modernist principles that followed the precepts of pure form and structure and/or quoted a more organicist approach. In both cases, it seemed that history was to be discarded and tradition eschewed but at the same time there was an interweaving between evolving interpretations of post war Modernism and liturgical reform. By analysing and decoding Wardell’s St Patrick’s in Mel...
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This paper considers the theoretical frameworks of (i) place and identity and (ii) community activism and place, before examining a number of specific case studies. We acknowledge that the efforts of ordinary people are vital to community and place but are seldom recognised or celebrated. Our focus is upon the twin historic coastal townships of Sorrento and Queenscliff, located either side of Port Phillip Heads, in Victoria, Australia. Four local community organisations, the Queenscliffe Community Association (QCA), the Queenscliff Historical Museum (QHM), the Nepean Historical Society (NHS) and the Nepean Conservation Group (NCG) provide diverse case studies for our analysis, highlighting different aspects of culture and place identity. The case studies demonstrate that communities possess local knowledge that must be respected. In three out of four case studies this is ignored in top-down decision-making. Local communities participate both proactively and reactively in the planning process to change the outcomes of proposed developments in order to achieve a result mindful of a holistic approach to place, and respectful of the historical roots of the present. It is critical that participation and community consultation be meaningful, not just a perfunctory process.
This paper considers the theoretical frameworks of (i) place and identity and (ii) community activism and place, before examining a number of specific case studies. We acknowledge that the efforts of ordinary people are vital to community and place but are seldom recognised or celebrated. Our focus is upon the twin historic coastal townships of Sorrento and Queenscliff, located either side of Port Phillip Heads, in Victoria, Australia. Four local community organisations, the Queenscliffe Community Association (QCA), the Queenscliff Historical Museum (QHM), the Nepean Historical Society (NHS) and the Nepean Conservation Group (NCG) provide diverse case studies for our analysis, highlighting different aspects of culture and place identity. The case studies demonstrate that communities possess local knowledge that must be respected. In three out of four case studies this is ignored in top-down decision-making. Local communities participate both proactively and reactively in the planning process to change the outcomes of proposed developments in order to achieve a result mindful of a holistic approach to place, and respectful of the historical roots of the present. It is critical that participation and community consultation be meaningful, not just a perfunctory process.