The Sydney School, sometimes referred to as 'nuts and berries style', describes an architectural typology and approach developed by a peer group of architects in Sydney, Australia who were reacting against international Modernism with their own regionalist style, over a period from the mid–1950s to the mid–1970s. In contrast to the purism of the international modernist style, they were drawn to the natural environment, topography, rustic materials, clinker bricks, low gutter lines, and often raked roof lines. The architectural approach drew from a number of influences including Japanese and Scandinavian architecture and particularly the work of architects Alvar Aalto and Frank Lloyd Wright.
Background First use of the term The term 'Sydney School' is thought to be first described in an illustrated article by Milo Dunphy, published in the magazine 'Hemisphere' in August 1962, titled 'The Growth of an Australian Architecture'.
Architects of the 'Sydney School'
A number of architectural critics and writers including Milo Dunphy, Jennifer Taylor and Robin Boyd referred to a loose grouping of individual architects considered to be of the 'Sydney School' approach, including among others, Peter Muller, Bill Lucas, Bruce Rickard, Bryce Mortlock, John Allen, Russell Jack, John James, Neville Gruzman, Peter Johnson, Ian McKay, Keith Cottier, Michael Dysart, Don Gazzard, Ken Woolley and Philip Cox.Jennifer Taylor. ‘The Sydney School’, An Australian Identity, University of Sydney Press, 1972
Other architects including Adrian Snodgrass, Peter Kollar, Ross Thorne, Hugh Buhrich and Terry Donnough are considered fringe members of the 'School', through architectural approach or by moving into other professional positions or academic and teaching roles, and often designing few other buildings during the corresponding period.Jennifer Taylor. ‘The Sydney School’, An Australian Identity, University of Sydney Press, 1972
'15 Houses by Sydney Architects' exhibition 1961
In 1961 an exhibition of a new contemporary style of Sydney architecture curated by Bruce Roberston was displayed at the Blaxland Gallery on level nine of Farmers department store on George Street, Sydney for two weeks (23 August to 5 September). The exhibition titled 15 Houses by Sydney Architects was a collection of contemporary architecturally designed houses, organised by the NSW Chapter of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects and the Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne, where it was exhibited later in the same month retitled as Modern Sydney Domestic Architecture, where it was reviewed by Melbourne architect Neil Clerehan, and later referred to by his local colleague, architect, writer and critic Robin Boyd.
The 15 individual architects or firms in the exhibition included John Allen and Russell C. Jack; Ancher, Mortlock & Murray; Max Collard & Guy Clarke; Neville Gruzman; John James; L. Peter Kollar; James Kell of Powell, Mansfield and Maclurcan; W.E. (Bill) Lucas and Ruth Lucas; Ian McKay; Peter Muller; Bruce Rickard; Ross Thorne; Harry Seidler; Andrew Young (Duffield Young Associates) and Bruce S. Robertson (exhibition curator). All of the houses exhibited were located north of Sydney Harbour on the North Shore or Northern Beaches of Sydney. This initial grouping of work by mostly emerging Sydney architects and housing styles is a key influence in the early identification of a contemporary and regionally specific architecture.
15 Houses by Sydney Architects (1961 exhibition, Farmer's Blaxland Gallery) No. Architect House (street/address) Location (suburb) Builder 1 John Allen and Russell C. Jack (Russell Jack) 28 Trentino Road (Palmer House 1960) Turramurra C.H. & C.R. Ellis 2 Ancher, Mortlock & Murray (Sydney Ancher) 15 Bogota Avenue (Ancher House III, 1957) Neutral Bay O'Brien & Daniel Pty. Ltd. 3 Max Collard & Guy Clarke — Dee Why Warren R. Bowden 4 Neville Gruzman 2 Mary Street (Benjamin House, 1960) Longueville W. Stokes & Son Pty. Ltd. 5 John James 33 Woolwich Road (Rae Mainsbridge House, 1961) Hunters Hill Leo Marks 6 L. Peter Kollar Beatty Street Balgowlah L.S. Booth 7 James Kell (of Powell, Mansfield and Maclurcan) 19A Philip Road Mona Vale W. Miles 8 W.E. Lucas and Ruth Lucas — (The Glass House, 1957) Castlecrag B. E. Sewell 9 Ian McKay 57a Lucinda Avenue (McKay House 1960) Wahroonga Ian McKay 10 Peter Muller 265 Edinburgh Road (Audette House, 1953) Castlecrag V.R. & J. Constructions 11 Bruce Rickard 51 Finlay Road (Rickard House I, 1959) Warrawee Bruce Rickard 12 Bruce S. Robertson Richmond Road (Robertson House, 1953–1960, demolished 2000) Seaforth Aspect Pty. Ltd. 13 Ross Thorne (Thorne House, First Rock, 1959) St. Ives (north) A.C. McDowell Pty. Ltd. 14 Harry Seidler —(Waks House II, Minimbah Road, 1959) Northbridge J. Pringle 15 Andrew Young (Duffield Young Associates) Ogilvy Road Clontarf Messrs. Grimson & Rose
List of architects of the 'Sydney School'
Architects considered to be of the 'Sydney School' Name Born Birthplace Service & Education Influences Mentors/Colleagues14 October 1921SydneyRAAF Pilot (1942–1945), University of Sydney (1946–1950)Sydney Ancher, Ken WoolleyPeter JohnsonArmadale, VictoriaRAAF Pilot (1942–1945) University of Sydney Kenneth McConnelBill Lucas31 December 1924SydneyRAAF Air Crew (1943–1946), University of Sydney(1943–1946)Frank Lloyd Wright 1955 to 1957, he joined the Design Group with Neville Gruzman, Ruth Harvey and Tony Moore, Milo Dunphy14 November 1925SydneyUniversity of Sydney(1946–1950)Frank Lloyd Wright, Japanese architectureBill and Ruth Lucas, Pettit & Sevitt housesRussell Jack1925SydneyRAAF, Sydney Technical College(1946–1951) John Allen, Keith Cottier, Petitt & Sevitt housesJohn Allen1926SydneyUniversity of Sydney Russell Jack, Keith CottierPeter Muller3 July 1927AdelaideUniversity of Adelaide (1945–1948), University of Pennsylvania (1951–1952)Frank Lloyd Wright, Japanese architectureAdrian Snodgrass, Albert Read4 August 1929SydneyUniversity of Sydney(1947–1950) BauhausHarry Seidler, George Clarke, Petitt & Sevitt houses Bruce Rickard1 December 1929SydneySydney Technical College, University College London, University of Pennsylvania (1947–1954)Frank Lloyd WrightSydney Ancher, Neville Gruzman, Ian McKay, Tony Moore, Harry Howard, Bruce Mackenzie, Allan Correy John James1931LondonUniversity of Melbourne (1949–1953) University of Sydney(1963–1966)University of NSW, 1988 PhDFrank Lloyd WrightRoy Grounds, Robin Boyd, Frederick Romberg, Fritz Janeba, Bruce Mackenzie2 April 1931KyogleEast Sydney Technical College, later University of Sydney Asian architecture (widely travelled in Asia 1957—1967) John James, Peter Muller, Bruce Rickard, Bert Read, Neville GruzmanIan McKay1932SydneyUniversity of New South WalesFrank Lloyd Wright, Japanese architecturePhilip Cox, Neville Gruzman, Tony Moore, Milo Dunphy, Bruce RickardKen Woolley29 May 1933SydneyUniversity of Sydney (1951–1955) Sydney Ancher, Michael Dysart, Bryce Mortlock, Peter Webber, Peter Hall, Harry Rembert's Design Room at Government Architects Branch (Manifesto of Natural Materialism), Neil Clerehan, Pettit & Sevitt housesMichael Dysart8 April 1934Brighton, United KingdomUniversity of Sydney (1955–1958) Ken Woolley, Peter Webber, Peter Hall, Harry Rembert's Design Room at Government Architects Branch, Pettit & Sevitt housesKeith Cottier1938SydneySydney Technical College (1954–1959) John Allen, Russell JackPhilip Cox1 October 1939SydneyUniversity of Sydney (1957–1962) Ian McKay
Locations
Sydney's North Shore and Northern Beaches Typical Sydney School houses were predominantly located on the city's North Shore such as the Woolley House in Mosman. Other popular suburbs on the lower and upper north shore included Castlecrag, Northbridge, Hunters Hill, Turramurra, Wahroonga and the Northern Beaches, like Mona Vale, Whale Beach and Palm Beach. These suburbs generally had a good supply of more dramatic, steeper and harder–to–build–on blocks that were located adjacent to bushland and waterways, or both. With increasing affluence and car ownership these once remote locations were within easy access of jobs and schools in North Sydney and Sydney CBD.
A majority of the architects also ran their practices on the North Shore, particularly in North Sydney CBD. Ancher Mortlock Murray and Woolley were initially in Mount Street, then at 10 Ridge Street from 1966. From 1969 a shared office across the road at 7 Ridge Street, North Sydney included architects Bruce Rickard, Ian McKay and Harry Howard, along with Harry Seidler, Peter Myers, influential designer Gordon Andrews, graphic designers Harry Williamson and Roger Roberts and architectural photographer David Moore. Bruce Mackenzie's landscape design and contracting practice also operated from there and it grew into Sydney's first full time private landscape architecture practices. Together with landscape architect Allan Correy and Harry Howard, Bruce Mackenzie and Bruce Rickard are credited as the founding figures of the parallel 'Sydney Bush School' of landscape architecture, working out of 7 Ridge Street from 1969 to 1977. In 1973 Harry Seidler moved his office to Glen Street, Milsons Point with harbour views. Other architects had offices in Cammeray, Crows Nest, Roseville and Seaforth. Neville Gruzman was always based in the Eastern Suburbs, firstly Darling Point, then Double Bay.
Sydney's Eastern Suburbs To a lesser extent some Sydney School style houses and buildings were built in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney in the hillier suburbs like Edgecliff, Point Piper, Darling Point and Woollahra, although these were rarely located adjacent to bushland.
Canberra A number of Sydney School architects also designed buildings in Canberra in the 1960s and 1970s on similar types of sites as those in Sydney, often with sloping terrain and original endemic landscape. Architects including Bryce Mortlock, Ken Woolley, Russell Jack, Michael Dysart and Ian McKay all had work completed in Canberra in this period. The 1965 built Cater House at Mugga Way, Red Hill by Russell Jack of Allen, Jack and Cottier is considered one of the leading examples of the Sydney School built in Canberra, winning the 1965 Canberra Medallion. Important examples of medium density housing include Swinger Hill by Ian McKay and Partners, Cook Aranda Housing Cooperative at Wybalena Grove and Urambi Village both by Michael Dysart. From 1966 the Sydney-based project home builders Pettit and Sevitt built over 500 homes in Canberra with designs by 'Sydney School' architects Ken Woolley and Michael Dysart, located in the new suburbs of Belconnen, Tuggeranong, Weston Creek and Woden Valley.
The 1967 designed offices and headquarters of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects in Mugga Way, Red Hill designed by Bryce Mortlock from Ancher, Mortlock, Murray and Woolley, is a prime example of the Sydney School approach to domestic architecture applied to a larger built form. Completed in 1970s and built of white painted brick walls, dark tiled raked roofs and a courtyard form, with oiled timber interiors, on a more difficult site is highly typical of the style. The choice of architect and type of building for the Institute's head office extols the rise and importance of the regional architectural approach in the mid-1960s and early 1970s.
Architect Roger Pegrum is considered the most closely associated Canberra architect to the Sydney School. In the 1960s and 1970s he designed dozens of houses with a similar approach in Woden Valley, inner Belconnen and Weston Creek in suburbs like Aranda, Farrer, Mawson, Red Hill. He was using a very Sydney School palette of materials, landscape and forms on his residential projects of this time, and in the early 1970s designed houses for Manor Homes, which was established as a direct competitor to Pettit and Sevitt. By 1974 he had taken an Associate Professor role at the University of Sydney.
Snowy Mountains