Category Archives: Architecture

GHOSTS OF GWALIA

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Gwalia, once the second biggest gold mining town in WA, is now almost deserted. The “Sons of Gwalia” mine closed in 1963 and the population of over 1500 disappeared overnight. The first mine manager, 23 year old Herbert Hoover, brought in cheap Italian labor to help make the mine profitable.  Hoover went on to become the 31st president of the USA. Most of the abandoned cottages built by the workers are still in good condition thanks to the hot, dry climate.

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Gwalia’s State Hotel was the first state owned pub in WA. Built to counter the sly grog trade in the town, it is a stark contrast to the makeshift dwellings of the workers.

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The Sons of Gwalia mine has since reopened and, judging by the size of the hole in the ground, must be doing fairly well.

KALGOORLIE / COOLGARDIE

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kalgoorlie map

Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie are the two major towns in WA’s Southern Goldfields. They are both typical of the over the top gold mining towns of the late 1800’s. The banks, government buildings and, most noticeably, the pubs are all very impressive and contrast sharply with the humble dwellings constructed by the miners.

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One of the more spectacular gardens in Coolgardie relies less on water and more on discarded junk to keep it vibrant and attractive

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The main streets in Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie are wide enough to land a jumbo jet on. Apparently they had to be that width to turn a camel train around.

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Frightening statue of man trying to turn around a camel train. – Coolgardie

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Interesting tall corrugated iron building – Coolgardie

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Attractive stone government building – Coolgardie

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Coolgardie RSL and Marvel Bar Hotel

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One of Kalgoorlie’s more spectacular hotels

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Exchange Hotel in the center of Kalgoorlie

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Metropole  Hotel in the Boulder district on the outskirts of Kalgoorlie

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Court Hotel – Boulder

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A couple of hundred kilometres north of Kalgoorlie things are a little less opulent. The Kookynie hotel is the only remaining business in town. The faded for sale sign on the wall suggest its days may be numbered.

INDUSTRIAL STUFF

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If you’re into over the top industrial hardware, then Western Australia sure is the state to visit.

These giant pieces of apparatus look almost organic. It’s hard to imagine someone sitting at a drawing board, under a cold fluorescent light, creating this sort of stuff. It looks so random and chaotic.

I hope you enjoy the photographs. It’s a dangerous business, standing on the roof of a landcruiser pointing a long lens over five strands of barbed wire. I’m sure I was viewed with much suspicion and, in a different country, would have probably been shot on site.

The sketches are done with a 0.4 Black Artline 204 fibre tip, a White uni posca fibre tip, Indigo watercolor and a tea bag

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0.4 Black Artline 204 fibre tip, White uni posca fibre tip, Indigo watercolor and a tea bag
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0.4 Black Artline 204 fibre tip,  White uni posca fibre tip, Indigo watercolor, Tissue paper and a glue stick

FREO

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Freo (West Australian for Fremantle) was the old, original settlement in WA, before Perth developed. Miraculously, many of the old buildings remain and have been well preserved.

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Not just individual buildings remain in tact, but whole streetscapes have been saved.

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In the downtown area there are beautiful examples of renovated Georgian and Victorian architecture .

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Great shops and lots of cafes and bars are scattered about the main part of town.

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Gothic picnic table lurking outside a Freo church

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One of the interesting features of “Freo” is the Little Creatures Brewery. Great beer and food in a fantastic waterfront location.

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They even hire out bikes for free to help patrons wobble home

MONASTIC

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NEW NORCIA

A couple of hours North East of Perth is the monastic town of New Norcia. Established by Benedictine Monks in 1846, the town is still centred around the Monastery and Church. At its peak New Norcia housed 80 monks and farmed almost a million acres. Sheep, cattle, pigs, goats and bees were raised and grain crops, grapes, olives, fruit and vegetables were grown. They still have a bakery, produce olive oil and wine, and sell the surplus from the orchard and vegie garden through the Museum shop. There are only 9 monks running New Norcia at present.

The museum gives a great insight into the early days of the town. The collection of religious art is fantastic and the Abbey Ale is heavenly.

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St Ildephonsus College

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Former Policemans cottage – looks like he must have been a really tall policeman but, for some reason, the wall is only 4′ high.

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St Gertrude’s College (back door)

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Finely hand carved  and gilded wooden alter

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Monastery

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Apiary hand made bricks, timber and tin

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Device for processing honey

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Inside apiary (panorama from mobile phone)

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Unidentified building with 1 hour late sundial on Northern wall

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Olive oil processing shed

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Old Wine Press

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Graves of 3rd & 4th Abbots – all the former Abbots are buried along a line running through the center of the town. This line forms the long axis of a cross on which the town is laid out.

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Monastic beer tap pumping Abbey Ale (7+%) in the New Norcia Pub

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Pub Verandah

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Monks wash basin

TIMBER, BRICKS AND TIN

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GREAT NORTHERN HIGHWAY – Architecture

www.johnlovett.com – opens in a new window

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The Great Northern Highway runs from Kununurra in the North of WA right down to Perth in the South. We rejoined the Highway at Newman and followed it south to just below Cue where we headed west to the coast.

There is some pretty impressive architecture along the way, particularly in the old gold mining towns. Here are some of the more quirky examples of buildings we encountered.

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Meekatharra open air picture theater.

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Ralph’s take away food – Meekatharra

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Sadly neglected example of asbestos sheeting at its best.

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Corrugated Iron opulence – Cue

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Thin House – Cue

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Great Fingall  mine office – Built by Italian stonemasons in 1902 and abandoned in 1918

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Three horse stable, Cue

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Unfortunately, the old hospital at Cue has been left to crumble to a pile of rubble. This building was in use up until 1942. I guess the local councils don’t have the funds to maintain these old buildings and, unless the State or Federal Government can be convinced of heritage value , their plight is doomed. Amazing, the destruction that can take place in less than 70 years.

MOUNTAINS OF IRON

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KARIJINI NATIONAL PARK

www.johnlovett.com (opens in a new window)

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The Karijini landscape is dominated by the Hamersley Ranges. These are probably the oldest mountains on earth, the rocks dating back 2,500 million years. Driving through the Hamersleys is unique and beautiful. The undulating hills are covered with spinifex and broken by exposed weathered faces of deep red rock.

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Cutting through the landscape are numerous gorges. Some are accessed by a short walk, others require climbing and scrambling over rocks and ledges, and some can only be reached with ropes and climbing equipment.

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Some of the gorges narrow down to passages just wide enough for a person to squeeze through

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Others are broad and open with clear pools at the bottom

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Looking down into the deeper gorges is an awesome sight. The surrounding country is undulating and fairly unspectacular, but the gorges seem to drop way below the surrounding landscape.

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Passing sculptors have installed some impressive structures using just rocks and gravity.

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Waterfalls and waterholes are found throughout the gorges

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The water is usually freezing cold but, somehow, backpackers seem to be tolerant to near freezing water

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Whistling Kite – Pentax K20D 18 -250mm lens

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Scattered through the gorges are veins of blue asbestos. The Wittenoom and Yampire gorges have been closed because of the high concentration of asbestos

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KARIJINI VISITORS CENTRE

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Architect John Nicholes designed the Karijini Visitors Centre to weather into the landscape. Most of the exterior of the structure is built from heavy welded steel panels. These are acid washed to rust, echoing the iron ore outcrops of the landscape.

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It is an impressive building that also hints at the rusted remnants of the areas pastoral history.

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Old rusted Pilbra sheepyards, built from flattened oil drums

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Power is provided by a large solar array with a thumping big diesel generator, waiting for a rainy day.