Top 10 Northern Tasmanian Modernist buildings

As mentioned in my previous post, The Examiner newspaper did a feature story about my photography and passion surrounding the documentation of the period in Tasmania.  They asked for a list of my 10 top buildings of Northern Tasmania.  When I complied the my top 10 list, I did so with a building's social, historical and visual appeal in mind.  It was hard to choose just 10, but here are my personal favourites - in no particular order

Holyman House - Launceston

Holyman House is Launceston’s landmark Art Deco building and demonstrates the skills of Launceston born architect Roy Smith who worked in the firm H.S East and Smith. Smith designed many Launceston and Northern Tasmanian Modernist buildings throughout his career.  Holyman House was originally designed and built for the Holyman family's shipping and airline businesses with the ground floor originally home to National Airways. I love the way Holyman House sweeps around the corner of Brisbane and George Streets and your eye leads upwards to the central finial detail that reminds me of a mast of a ship.


Myer Department Store - Launceston

Originally designed for Cox Brothers Department Store, the Myer building was the tallest commercial retail building in Tasmania at the time of its construction. The size and scale of the building highlight the optimism of state development at a time when material shortages and economic uncertainty existed due to a post Second World War environment. The small tiles that clad the curving central facade are a typical trait of mid 20th century design.


Star Theatre - Invermay

Theatres like the former Star Theater in Invermay were popping up all over Australian cities and towns in the the 1930s.  The former Theatre is significant and rare example of Art Deco streamline design being located in the suburbs, not the CBD. The Star had room for around 250 people and it’s interior layout was lavish and modern housing the latest in seating, lighting and sound reproduction.  


Kings Wharf Wool-sheds and Silos - Inveresk

The abandoned Kings Wharf precinct in Launceston is a fascinating reminder of Launceston’s industrial past.  The wool-sheds with their saw-tooth roofs, so typical of Industrial factories, and the dominating wheat silos standing tall over the Tamar River.  Now sad and neglected, their facades tell the story of the cities once bustling Industrial past. When I take photos of this area, I am constantly reminded of what would have been a busy seaport precinct.  If places like the Silos or Wool-sheds are not reused then part of Launceston’s 20th Century Industrial story and heritage would be lost forever.

Magistrates Court - Launceston

The Magistrates Court is of notable interest as it was one of the first Modernist Court buildings in Tasmania. The main facade is adorned with local Tasmanian granite from Ben Lomand.  This was the first time a major building work had used local granite, prior to this most stone was imported from Interstate.  Local timbers and veneers such as Tasmanian Myrtle were used lavishly throughout the court rooms, halls and floors. The building is an important example of sourcing materials locally and illustrates sustainability practices being used in the mid 20th Century.


Don College - Devonport

Don College is one of Tasmania's largest examples of Brutalist architecture. The College was constructed at a time when many other fine examples of Brutalist architecture were emerging such as Henty House Government Offices in Launceston, Reece House Government Offices in Burnie, City Block in Launceston and 10 Murray Street Government Offices in Hobart. Whilst the College is bold in size and appearence, it’s hidden from the main road, amongst bushland and standing beside the Don River.  There are many wonderful geometric angles at Don College and different textures of concrete patterning that are synonymous with Brustlist design that are always fascinating to view and photograph.


Former Devonport Maternity Hospital - Devonport

The wonderful arching curve of the former Devonport Maternity Hospital cannot be mistaken. Constructed in the early 1960s the hospital brought cutting edge modern design and hospital care to Devonport.  The other major Modernist Government hospital for babies in the Northern Tasmania was the former Queen Victoria Hospital in High Street, Launceston. The former Devonport hospital has been abandoned for many years and this neglect serves as a timely reminder of the wastefulness of such buildings and the failure to imaginatively and adaptively reuse these buildings.      


Campbell Town School - Campbell Town

The Campbell Town State School was designed in the late 1930s and is one of many examples of Modernist schools in Tasmania, designed by S W T Blythe. His works for the Public Works Department were prolific and strikingly Modernist in style. The Campbell Town school stands as a visual reminder of the massive undertaking of building public schools in the early to mid 20th century that occurred throughout Tasmanian towns and cities.


Henty House - Launceston

The construction of Launceston’s Civic Square and its Government buildings was one of the largest public funded projects after the Second World War in Tasmania. A major objective in the creation of the Square was to centralise some 90 Government services that were spread around Launceston. Henty House’s qualities are in the form of it’s geometric shapes and angles as well as the wood grain like textures that have been achieved by sandblasting timber into the precast concrete, creating a rich variety of patterns and textures. Henty House and Civic Square as a whole combine Government services, architecture, art and nature as a functionalist public meeting space within the CBD.


Centrepoint Lane - Launceston

This interesting use of green repetitive tiles and letters spelling “Centrepoint” highlight the clarity and simplicity of Modernist design aesthetic in a way that was intended to originally add some glamour to this back alley. Many buildings from the mid 20th Century period would feature repetitive and abstract tiles, patterns or abstract sculptures. The Centrepoint design is fascinating for it’s visual appeal and exciting too because you have to go out of your way to find it’s location.