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Mining boom styles
Citation
King, S and Willis, J, Mining boom styles, Proceedings of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand: 33, Gold, 06-09 July 2016, Melbourne, pp. 334-345. ISBN 9780734052650 (2016) [Refereed Conference Paper]
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Official URL: http://sahanz2016.msd.unimelb.edu.au/
Abstract
The idea of a ‘Boom Style’ is now accepted within the lexicon of Australian architectural historians, typically used
to describe the exuberant and individualistic architectural expression of the 1880s and early 1890s, especially in
‘Marvellous Melbourne’, and to lesser degrees in Sydney and Brisbane. These Boom Style buildings, originally
describing domestic buildings, but latterly extended to include large commercial structures, are characterised
by eclecticism and the enrichment of facades developed through multiple overlays of represented structure and
ornament, exemplified in the likes of the Olderfleet Building, Melbourne (1889). For such works, ‘Boom Style’, as a
stylistic label, refers not so much to a particular elemental vocabulary (elements could be combined from any variants
of Classical or Gothic languages), rather a common compositional approach to the design. It was composition that
enabled architects to negotiate the wealth and expectations of clients and an urbane populace, as well as an equally
rich architectural milieu.
This paper examines the coining of the term ‘Boom Style’ as it is used specifically to describe architecture in Melbourne in the late 1880s and early 1890s, and generically elsewhere. It argues that if a contextually responsive compositional method prevails over an elemental language in a robust ‘Boom Style’, then the style should be identifiable against the backdrop of boom conditions in other places. Indeed, localised late-nineteenth-century boom styles can be observed elsewhere in Australia and New Zealand typically associated with sudden influxes of wealth from mining, for example, in, Western Australia in the 1890s, northern Tasmania in late 1890s and early 1900s, and, earlier, across the Tasman in Dunedin in the 1860s. This paper examines these apparent boom styles to better understand the phenomenon and its triggers.
This paper examines the coining of the term ‘Boom Style’ as it is used specifically to describe architecture in Melbourne in the late 1880s and early 1890s, and generically elsewhere. It argues that if a contextually responsive compositional method prevails over an elemental language in a robust ‘Boom Style’, then the style should be identifiable against the backdrop of boom conditions in other places. Indeed, localised late-nineteenth-century boom styles can be observed elsewhere in Australia and New Zealand typically associated with sudden influxes of wealth from mining, for example, in, Western Australia in the 1890s, northern Tasmania in late 1890s and early 1900s, and, earlier, across the Tasman in Dunedin in the 1860s. This paper examines these apparent boom styles to better understand the phenomenon and its triggers.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Conference Paper |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | Australian architectural history, boom style |
| Research Division: | Built Environment and Design |
| Research Group: | Architecture |
| Research Field: | Architectural history, theory and criticism |
| Objective Division: | Culture and Society |
| Objective Group: | Heritage |
| Objective Field: | Conserving the historic environment |
| UTAS Author: | King, S (Dr Stuart King) |
| ID Code: | 112843 |
| Year Published: | 2016 |
| Deposited By: | Architecture and Design |
| Deposited On: | 2016-11-30 |
| Last Modified: | 2017-11-17 |
| Downloads: | 10 View Download Statistics |
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