| Historical notes: | STATEMENT OF COUNTRY
Sydney is Gadigal Country and forms part of the Eora nation (AIATSIS). The site of Australia Square is on the path of the Tank Stream and nearby Warrane (Sydney Cove), an important marshy environment, represented in the archaeological record with high concentrations of stone artefacts and ancestral burials (Sydney Barani).
British colonial establishment dispossessed Aboriginal peoples from Country, destroyed and altered resources such as the Tank Stream (Muecke 2016), and changed the environment beyond recognition to become Sydney's Central Business District.
Warrane has long been a prominent site of protest and celebration of Aboriginal culture, reflecting ongoing connection to Country.
EARLY DEVELOPMENT
As European settlement expanded throughout Sydney, Pitt Street generally followed the alignment of the Tank Stream. By 1822 there were several structures on the site of Australia Square. By the 1880s this included tobacconists, hotels, drapers, ironmongers and the Australian Mutual Provident Society. In 1960, this included the Federation Free-Classical AMP Chambers and Australian Alliance Building, which fronted Pitt Street.
HARRY SEIDLER (1923-2006)
Harry Seidler was a leading architect of the Modern Movement. He was born to a Jewish family in Vienna in 1923. The arrival of World War II and antisemitism in Europe had major impacts on the Seidler family, prompting parents Max and Rose to leave for Australia, while Harry and his brother Marcell departed for the United Kingdom (HeriCon, 2017). Harry studied building, engineering, and architecture in Europe and North America under seminal Bauhaus architects and designers Walter Gropius, Marcel Breuer, and Josef Albers. Before migrating to Australia in 1948, Seidler worked in Breuer's New York office and with Oscar Niemeyer in Rio de Janeiro. He was influenced by his mentors' works, notably the articulation of geometry and structure, and the relationship between interiors and exteriors. Other influences included engineering, art (notably Mondrian, Albers, and Stella) (Blake, 1973), and the works of architectural historian Sigfried Giedion (HeriCon, 2017).
Upon his arrival in Sydney in 1948 Seidler designed the "immediate sensation" that was Rose Seidler House in Wahroonga for his parents, winning his first Sulman Award and launching a long career across residential, public and commercial sectors (TKD 2019). He founded Harry Seidler & Associates, which his wife Penelope joined in the late 1950s after retraining as an architect. He served on the committee of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects and received the Gold Medal in 1976.
As the Depression ended, Modernism was brought to Australia by well-travelled, Australian-born architects, and emigre architects such as Seidler, who learned about modernism from European practitioners (TKD 2019). Seidler and his contemporaries brought qualifications, experience, and the principles of their teachers (TKD 2019), determined to modernise Sydney's dissatisfying architectural landscape and adapt modernist styles for the Australian climate (HeriCon 2018). Seidler challenged the status quo and planning bodies to implement his visionary principles, becoming Australia's most renowned 20th century architect (Macdonald 2007). His many ground-breaking projects influenced local architects. The younger generation, influenced by Seidler, formed the 'Sydney School' (Macdonald 2007).Seidler passed away in 2006, described as "a true child of the International Style without doubt, one of the best architects of his generation, anywhere" (Blake, 1973).
THE ARRIVAL OF DICK DUSSELDORP
In 1951, Dutch builder Gerardus Josef (Dick) Dusseldorp arrived in Sydney, bringing carpenters, painters, plumbers and mechanics to build 200 worker cabins for the Snowy Mountains scheme (Jackson, 2018). He founded Civil & Civic Contractors, now LendLease, Australia's largest and most prestigious building company. Winning numerous government contracts, Dusseldorp branched into suburban subdivisions and commercial city sites. In 1957 Dusseldorp completed an office for Caltex on Kent Street, featuring many elements of modernist architecture and creating the platform to develop many modern commercial buildings throughout NSW.
PIER LUIGI NERVI (1891-1979)
Pier Luigi Nervi (1891-1979) was an Italian structural engineer famous for the Sistema Nervi (Nervi System), a "new structural aesthetic for modern architecture" (Stracchi, 2019). Internationally renowned for his advancements in large span structures and working with reinforced concrete (Britannica, 2026), he was described as a "revolutionary Italian master builder, architect and artist" (Stracchi, 2019).
Known for Italy's first skyscraper, the Pirelli Building (Milan, 1955); the Rome Olympic Palasports (1960), the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption (San Francisco, 1970) and the Dartmouth College Field House (New Hampshire, 1965), Australia Square became the first application of the Sistema Nervi in Australia. Nervi and Seidler also collaborated on Ithaca Gardens (Elizabeth Bay), the Seidler Offices (Milsons Point), and the MLC Centre (25 Martin Place, Sydney).
Nervi was familiar with another Italian, Rinaldo Fabbro, who founded the concrete and architectural finishes company Fabbrostone. Fabbro encouraged builders and architects to utilise concrete in their construction for longevity and structural stability (Australians at War Film Archive, 2004). He met Seidler and partnered with him on numerous projects, including Australia Square. Fabbro estimated that Fabbrostone worked on approximately 65% of the facades in Sydney in the late 20th century (Australians at War Film Archive 2004).
FOUNDATIONS OF AUSTRALIA SQUARE
In NSW, the 'modern movement' began to arrive as early as the 1930s and was strengthened by the arrival of Seidler in 1948 (TKD, 2017). From 1955, Australia entered a building boom, inspired by American skyscraper developments. Curtain wall buildings of the 1950s were replaced with concrete facades, and height limits were broken, first by the AMP Building in Sydney (Australian Heritage Database, n.d.).
Seidler was so impressed by the efficiency at which Dusseldorp constructed Caltex House that he invited him to collaborate on Ithaca Gardens in 1960, beginning one of modernist Sydney's most influential partnerships.
In 1961, Dusseldorp consolidated 30 buildings across 80 titles bound by Pitt Street, George Street, Bond Street, and what would become Curtin Place. This approach to skyscraper construction was becoming prevalent within modernising cities such as Sydney (Blake, 1973).
Seidler was driven by finding creative design solutions to many of the problems in 20th century urban development, creating a concept which featured many hallmarks of his design philosophies. Perhaps most influential was Seidler's belief in the importance of open civic spaces in commercial buildings, a philosophy which was ancient and yet, brand new. Seidler's emphasis on civic spaces resulted in one of the most exceptional and innovative aspects of Australia Square: that the tower covers only 25% of the site's footprint (Blake 1973). The Plaza, centred by the circular fountain, was a "modern recreation of Michelangelo's Campidoglio" at Capitoline Hill, Rome (SMH 2004). Penelope Seidler recalled:
"I remember Harry coming home and saying 'My goodness. Dick has got a whole city block and we are going to do something amazing. He was very excited about it. The vision was there to create a piazza, as in Italian cities where people could enjoy themselves, eating, drinking, conversing""(GPT, 2017).
THE PLAZA BUILDING
While Dusseldorp purchased the remaining blocks, development began on the Plaza Building on Pitt Street. Upon completion it would house LendLease offices and other tenants during construction of the Tower (Sydney Morning Herald, 1964). Rectilinear in form and constructed from concrete, it is an International style commercial building, characterised by the regularity of windows arranged in a grid pattern. Interested architectural responses to the natural environment, sun-louvres were a frequent feature of Seidler's commercial spaces, first used at Horwitz House and the Howard Silvers Trading building in Ultimo (HeriCon, 2017), "applied in accordance with the orientation of the building" (Blake, 1973). Lightweight sun-louvres were installed on the east and west facades of the Plaza Building, while the north and south elevations feature no fenestration. The juxtaposition of the two building planes created a sense of visual opposition and tension, and a balance of solid and void to the overall form.
The most notable feature of the Plaza Building is the dramatic cantilevered undercroft structure. Its distinctive sharp angular forms, juxtaposed with the rectilinear main form, were a creative inspiration for modern photographers as early as 1964.
THE TOWER
Consideration for public amenity drove the defining, circular form of Australia Square. Seidler perceived that another rectangular building would have created poor natural light and 'canyon-like' spaces between buildings. The circular plan was also efficient, with elevators, amenities, and services consolidated at the central core, allowing 80% of the floorspace to be useable office space. The remaining space created a radial floorplan, easily subdivided with partitions, despite concerns. Important to Seidler was the sense of movement through spaces, veering away from static geometries, a concept which he learned from Josef Albers (Blake, 1973). The radial floorplan was designed to create a sense of curiosity and movement, while also being satisfying to move through. At the Tower's base was a commercial arcade, also following the cylindrical plan, with storefronts on either side. The top floors featured the popular revolving restaurant and an observation level.
The circle form was also the most resistant to winds, reflecting Seidler's interest in structural engineering and his long-term partnership with Pier Luigi Nervi (Blake, 1973). The pair pushed both the boundaries of structural engineering and the capabilities of buildings to create innovative forms and pioneering open spaces. Structural systems were a key part of a building's aesthetic character, with Nervi using "the intrinsic form of a building component and a systematic constructional device and shaping it accordingly" (Blake, 1973), best exemplified at Australia Square through the dramatic interlocking ribbed ceiling of the foyer. A structural device designed by Nervi to provide lateral support to the building form, it was celebrated by Seidler, becoming a powerful feature which sets the tone for the built language of Australia Square. Seidler reflected that "the challenge is to elevate commercial building into significant architecture" (Frampton and Drew, 1992).
The overall scheme was lodged with the City of Sydney in 1960, achieving approval in July, although not without complications (City of Sydney, n.d.). While approved unanimously in principle in 1962, Council's tall buildings committee saw the proposal reduced from 58 storeys to 50. In December 1962, a "start of work" ceremony was presided over by the Sydney Lord Mayor.
By 1967 the tower reached the roof level. Focus changed to the interiors and artworks. Seidler himself worked towards the gesamtkunstwerk (the 'total work of art'), stating that design "aims to become.. 'a totally integrated work of art' where interior design, furnishings, equipment and selected artworks become a cohesive whole." This was achieved through the considered curation of interiors, furnishings, and artworks.
Leading American sculptor Alexander Calder's Crossed Blades was commissioned for the George Street plaza, with Dusseldorp's insisting that only the best would do. Calder's "menacing" Crossed Blades has been the defining artwork, described by architect Ian Moore as perhaps "the most significant sculpture in Australia" (SMH 2004). Seidler remembered the process of engaging Calder: "The ambitious client sent me around the world to find a suitable sculptor Finally it was Calder - to me he is a great artist because of the joy of life that his forms express. He is the playful engineer" (Frampton and Drew, 1992).
A mural was intended for the lobby, however a suitable artist was not found (Dexus, n.d.). Large tapestries, Le Corbusier's UNESCO and Vasarely's Orion MC, were installed, but after sun damage, were replaced with a Sol LeWitt mural in 2003. Within the primary reception spaces, tapestries by Miro, Calder, Le Corbusier and Olsen (SMH, 2004) were installed amongst the mid-century timber panelled and glass partitioned interiors however have since been removed from the site.
A NATIONAL LEGACY
Since its completion in 1967, Australia Square has cemented itself as one of the most iconic modernist buildings in Australia, celebrated by the Royal Australian Institute of Architects with the 1967 Sir John Sulman Award and Lloyd Rees Award for Civic Design. Australia Square not only created a modern, "miniature city", Dusseldorp reflected that it "symbolises unity". Speaking at a ceremony to mark completion to roof level, he reflected on the strong migrant contribution to the construction of Australia Square, and remarked "the building itself will have a proud place with Sydney people, and while it stands it is a tribute to New and Old Australians and their teamwork on the job" - a fitting sentiment reflecting the international backgrounds of Seidler, Dusseldorp, and Nervi.
Described as "the future incarnate... like Apollo 11 ready for take-off..." [it] heralded a renaissance in the way we saw our cities" (SMH, 2004). Early visitors were amazed by the height (best experienced from the observatory on level 48) and the novelty of the circular form, circling the lobby and "delighting in the playfulness of it" (Sydney Morning Herald 2004).
For architectural professor Jennifer Taylor, it became the "new standard" for architecture, while architecture critic Elizabeth Farrelly stated: "It gave Sydney a sense of growing up, a sense of confidence. It was really our first glittering version of a skyscraper [and] signified the 'American empire' taking effect" (SMH 2004).
The legacy of Australia Square continues to be celebrated, recognised in 2012 with the prestigious National Award for Enduring Architecture by the Australian Institute of Architects. |