Sydney Art Deco Heritage

The Penthouse cinema is a gem of a building is located in the New Zealand city of Wellington at 205 Ohiro Road, Brooklyn and is a good example of a classic Art Deco style theatre from the 1930's. Constructed for the Ranish family the cinema opened its doors on 15th June 1939 as the Vogue Theatre. The Ranish family ran the cinema until 1951, when the Vogue Company Limited took over. The Vogue Company turned the cinema into a television studio where TV commercials were shot for many years. Renamed the Penthouse The building was renamed the Penthouse Cinema when it was bought by Merv and Carol Kisby in 1975. Since then additional screens have been added, as well as refurbishment of the interior in keeping with its original style. The classic Art Deco style has been recreated in the Penthouse foyer where, in particular, the staircase bannister is quite simple but exudes the charm of the style. View of the foyer *note the simple and elegant lines of the staircase going u

This Art Deco building is used as a funeral home and is located at 37 Mann Street in Gosford. Funeral Directors R. H. Creighton built the Art Deco building in 1938 to a design in the Art Deco style by architect F. Vanderwyck Snr. The Creighton’s family business was known in the area since 1844 and was involved in building and demolition work before becoming funeral directors in 1872. Six generations of the Creighton family practiced locally under the business name. The existing building is mainly of cement-rendered brick, with foundations of local sandstone. Being constructed on a steep site the building diminishes quickly from the front facade. There are some interesting windows along this side of the building which sit on a prominant sandstone retaining wall which blends well with the rest of the building. The Creighton family has had associations with the Gosford district going back as far as 1844. Originally primarily employed as carpenters, the Creighton clan apparently move

The Commonwealth Bank Earlwood was located at 212 Homer Street in Earlwood. This two storey brick and cement building (with a Manager’s Residence on the first floor) was constructed by H W Thompson Ltd of Alexandria at a cost of £3,730 and was completed in July 1934. It was described in the Canterbury Heritage Study (circa 1988) as "... a massive rendered masonry bank building. Austere façade in the Egyptian manner punctuated by a high entrance foyer flanked by massive columns bearing Egyptian capitals". In 1973 the Earlwood branch was moved to new premises at 352 Homer street and the old branch building closed. It was sold the same year to Brambles Brinks. It currently the home to Acropolis Funeral Services. Column capital detail Commonwealth Bank Earlwood in 1936 Sources: Commonwealth Bank Archive Department

The Commonwealth Bank Cronulla is on a site at 70 Cronulla Street in Cronulla that was previously a butcher shop. It was purchased by the Commonwealth Bank in December 1936. The butcher shop was demolished and an attractive, double storey branch building in the familiar Art Deco Commonwealth Bank style of the time was constructed by Hogden Bros of Enmore. Banking operations commenced from the new premises in July 1938. Main entrance facade Facade detail Cronulla takes its name from the Aboriginal word "Kurranulla", meaning "the place of pink shells" so it's argueable that this influenced the current colour scheme. Detail of window security bars A clock, with a calendar incorporated beneath the clock face, was installed above the branch entrance in January 1956. Major renovations in 1967 saw the removal of the clock. In 1989 the facade was refurbished to blend in sympathetically with the overall colour scheme and atmosphere of the Cronull

The Clarendon Hotel is located at 347 Hunter Street in Newcastle. It was purchased by Tooth & Company in September 1934 and sold in August 1985. On completion of rebuilding the Clarendon hotel in January 1943 the hotel was a three storeyed brick structure with a fully tiled ground floor exterior and an asbestos and malthoid roof. The architects were Pitt & Merewether and the style was known as Art Moderne or P & O Ship Style because of its similarities to ocean liner forms. The Australian National University has many interesting historical photos of Inter War hotels including the Clarendon hotel in the Noel Butlin Archives. Some low-res examples of these are displayed below. Sources: City of Sydney Heritage Listing

The Grand Hotel at 484 Princes Highway in Rockdale was rebuilt by Tooth and Company in 1941 to a design by Rudder and Grout. The large and imposing circular brick facade with in built verandahs and strong horizontal lines make good use of the small corner site. The style of the building is similar the Union Hotel in Newtown and the Rosebery Hotel in Rosebery. Facade detail View of the Lounge Bar View of the Ladies Parlour Sources: Sydney Heritage Listings ANU Open Research Library

The Friend in Hand Hotel is located at 58 Cowper Street in Glebe. Tooth and Company aquired the original hotel on the site around 1921 and plans for a new hotel, prepared by architect R.M. Joy, were submitted to Council in 1936 and the new building was completed in 1937. The hotel is one of many Sydney hotels built in the interwar Functionalist Style and is made further indicative of the period through the use of Art Deco overtones. Facade detail of the Friend in Hand hotel It is a very cosy hotel with an intimate, friendly atmosphere and great Bistro. The public bar is cosy and has lots of character The completed hotel in 1937 The Public Bar in 1937 Just a wee bit less cluttered than it is compared to today! Sources: City of Sydney Heritage Listings ANU Open Research Library