MELMO—Modernist Architecture in Melbourne

MELMO!

MELMO—Modernist Architecture in Melbourne is a comprehensive description of the development of Modernism in Melbourne and tells the story of the effects of the massive changes that occurred in rapidly growing post-war Melbourne. Fully illustrated, it targets a broad audience of readers seeking to appreciate how the city embraced and exploited modernist design in a variety of fields.

In the three decades after World War II, major changes to design, materials, and construction methods in architecture occurred as tall buildings spread across the city centre and the suburbs continued to spread. Two new universities were opened, and huge industrial precincts were developed in the outer suburbs as Melbourne became the manufacturing centre of the nation. Car ownership rocketed and freeways emerged, television arrived, and the eyes of the world focussed on Melbourne during the 1956 Olympic Games. Mass migration, generally from Europe, forever changed and improved the city. A new generation of architects emerged, applying stylish and innovative designs to housing and commercial buildings.

The Author

Robin Grow is president of the Art Deco and Modernism Society of Australia, an international society with 650 financial members. Grow is passionate about the preservation of inter-war and post-war buildings and has a special interest in researching and documenting the architecture and designers of the inter-war and post-war periods in Victoria. He is the author of Melbourne Art Deco (Ripe Off the Press, 2009, republished by Brolga Publishing 2014). He has presented papers at local, national and international conferences, including World Congresses on Art Deco at New York, Havana, Rio and Cleveland. In 2008 he provided assistance to the National Gallery of Victoria in the presentation of the Art Deco 1910-1939 exhibition. Major contributions were also provided by Simon Reeves, noted architectural historian and author.