Sydney Art Deco Heritage

The Empire Picture Theatre building at 303 Cleveland Street, Redfern, is historically significant as it illustrates the changing nature of leisure, entertainment and commerce in the inner city over the course of the 20th century. It was built as the Palace Skating Rink in 1890 and by 1895 was a Swimming Baths. In 1905 Petchell F and Co, boot manufacturers were in residence and in 1917 the Eclipse Printing Company called it home. It became the Empire Picture Theatre in 1930 and in 1933 was owned by George Harold Towart of Enfield, Showman. In 1961 it was known as 'The Stage Club Limited'. Facade detail Today nothing is left inside and the space has been completely gutted and converted into commercial office space. The Cleveland street facade has been modified (I would guess by George Towart?) into a stylised, post-modern interpretation of Art Deco motifs giving it a monumental character. It had apparently been "colourfully painted" however today it is qu...

Built in 1937 the Ritz Theatre at 43-47 St Pauls Road in Randwick is the last known surviving theatre designed by Arron Bolot. It is listed in the RAIA Registry of Significant 20th Century buildings. It is an outstanding example of the interwar Art Deco style. The exterior has been modified to include an outdoor area above the awning. Pictures of the original facade can be found on the Heritage Council of NSW link below. It was in the theatre building era of the late 1930s that Aaron Bolot came to be more involved in cinemas. In 1936 he produced the plans for the very moderne Ritz Theatre at Goulburn, NSW, an outstanding example of its genre, clearly showing the influence of Griffin & Dellit. That same year he produced the designs for the Astra at Wyong. By 1937 he designed the Randwick Ritz similar to the Ritz Goulburn and the large and decorative Art Deco Regal Theatre at Gosford, featuring a prominent facade of stylish blocks and curves in the then streamlined moderne s...

The Roseville Cinema at 112 Pacific Highway in Roseville was originally a hall and community centre, the building has been both a Congregational church and a preparatory school. Its transformation into a cinema began when it became Traynor's Picture Palace in 1919. The Roseville Cinema then became a full-scale cinema in 1936 under the ownership of DB O'Connor and in 1974 a top-rate suburban cinema under the ownership of Hans van Pinxteren. It was renovated and extended to accommodate two screens in 1995. Sources: Roseville (Zeny Edwards)

The Valhalla Cinema at 1660 Glebe Point Road in Glebe is a National Trust protected building which previously was also known as the Astor Theatre. The Valhalla Cinema is the only surviving operating theatre in the Sydney Metropolitan Area designed by the renowned theatre architects Kaberry and Chard. It is a rare and significant example of a 1930s suburban cinema progressively and faithfully refurbished in the 1930s Modern style. Sources: Glebenet - History of Glebe

The Chelsea was located at 285 Homer Street in Earlwood and it first opened its doors on Wednesday the 16th of October 1940 with a seating capacity for 824 people. It was listed for closure in 1958 along with its sister theatre up the road, The Mayfair. From 1975 to 1977 it came under the ownership of well known Greek personality Mr. Harry Michaels, however Harry chose to then show English speaking films and it was during this period that, amongst other things, it was used by former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser to launch a campaign speech. Around 1978 it began its rebirth as a retailing venture. It became known as Martin Jackson Furniture and Bedding, later Peter Hedges Furniture, both of which traded there for a number of years. Eventually from 1992 to the present time it is enjoying the residency of "Earlwood Wines" which is a very popular Mediterranean Food and Boutique Wine outlet. Two views of the Theatre. One from 1950 and one from 2000. Sources: ...

The Enmore Theatre located at 118-132 Enmore Road in Enmore was originally built in 1908 by the Szarka brothers and opened to the public as a photo-play theatre in 1912. Major improvements were done in 1920 both inside and out. Hoyts purchased the building in 1936 from the Szarka brothers and did extensive modifications to the building and it emerged as a "large Art Deco show palace". The Enmore Theatre is classified by the National Trust and is listed in the Historic Buildings Register of the Australian Institute of Architects. Facade detail Sources: Sydney Heritage Listings Century Venues Information

The Malachi Gilmore Hall in Oberon Street in Oberon is a fine art deco building that was designed by Italian architect Virgil Cizzio (who changed his surname to Renshaw) and was opened in 1937. It was known as the Magna Theatre. A striking feature of the hall is the use of glass bricks. It was built on land donated to the Catholic church in memory of Malachi Gilmore who had come to Oberon in 1872 and owned land in Oberon and the Duckmaloi area. It was originally built as a dance hall cinema, seating 310 people but has also been a cabaret venue, a skating rink and is currently a wool store. The building was listed on the State Heritage Register in November 2003 and is also listed in the RAIA Register of significant 20th Century Buildings. Glass brick wall of the building First storey detail Sources: Oberon History Archive

The Theatre Royal at 667-669 Hunter Street in Newcastle is one of the few remaining 1930s cinemas in the Art Deco / Moderne style with the original interior features surviving in relatively good condition. The Theatre Royal has many key features and fixtures that exemplify the Art Deco / Moderne style and era, in particular its interior wall detailing and staircase railings. These can be appreciated in the photos below of the interior of the theatre. The unique pink interior of the upstairs lounge has survived remarably well for its age. The Theatre Royal is also the only remaining cinema in Australia designed by Charles Bohringer, a well-known practitioner of the Art Deco style. It was redesigned and rebuilt by Bohringer in the classic Art Deco style and re-opened to the public in 1939. Original stair railing still look fantastic such a long time. Unfortunately staircase can be the firt item to be ditched in a *modern* renovation. Sources: realc...

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...