I'm afraid I know nothing about this lovely building. It is at 415-419 Bourke St, just up the hill from Elizabeth St. I would hazard a guess that it dates to the early twentieth century. It has quite stylised classical elements, such as the pilasters which have been reduced to mere dividers with but a hint of a capital. But then there are the large three high relief urns. Curious. Would like to know more so if you have any ideas please let me know.As an aside I also have to add that I am very much enjoying the framing effect of the bare branches of trees in the city at the moment.
Thanks very much for posting Kat. The building is called Rochelle House. It was built in 1930 by an unknown architect and is a more classical palazzo Art Deco similar to Brisbane's Regent Theatre facade which is sadly being demolished. Rochelle House is graded lower than Lonsdale House on Melbourne's heritage list. I actually love these sorts of art deco buildings. The faceted central bay on this one is particularly nice, a bit like Kurrajong House but softer. However the classical variety of Art Deco is unfortunately not as well appreciated as they are quite common in Australian cities (at least now) and are seen as revivalist.
ReplyDeleteThanks for that info, I did a quick search but turned up nothing. My dating was a bit out (still need more practice with this twentieth century stuff). Hopefully this one is safe at the moment, tucked away up the hill from those dangerous retailers. I just really like the contrast between the majority of the decorative elements which are relatively shallow and streamlined and then those great big high relief urns. Good stuff.
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