Australian Modern Blog

You’re invited to a weekend of mid-century modern inspired architecture and design.
The Modernist Architecture + Design (M.A.D) Weekend is a unique Brisbane event, this
Year’s program will include all the popular happenings plus some new activities.

Friday evening will include Twenty-20 Vision. A diversity of presenters, such as architects,
designers and collectors with stories of their individual interests and passions.

Now for something completely different, the exciting new Saturday evening program,
Cool Caravans & Cocktails. Step back in time, and experience vintage caravans with a twist.
Featuring book readings, a View-master lounge, also special guest speakers and films.
Dress in your funky vintage outfits and have fun.

Sunday morning will be the much anticipated Interior House Tours, this will now include
homes from 1890 to 2010, five homes across more than a century of…

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I recently went on a road trip to northern New South Wales, visiting the small townships of Mullumbimby and Brunswick Heads. These country towns are a step back in time, with speciality shops and grand old hotels lining the main street, they’re also a vintage shopping secret.  My first destination was Re-Sould, 48 Tweed Street Brunswick Heads, where I met the delightful owner Louise. The Re-Sould showroom offers an excellent range of quality vintage goods, from homewares to furniture, and fabulous custom lampshades using vintages fabrics. Louise takes great pride in her shop with classic vintage items for all tastes and budgets, a must visit when you’re in the area.  www.resould.com.au 

Ten minutes down the road is Cloudland 20th Century, 45 Burringbar Street Mullumbimby, which stocks interesting mid-century designer items and furniture. The…

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Fifty five years young might be how you would describe the Jacobi House, a unique 1 bedroom modernist house, designed by architects Hayes & Scott in 1957. The current owners have been busy in ‘restoration mode’ for the last two years. Last Saturday night the Australian Modern MAD (modernist architecture & design) group were invited to attend an Hawaiian themed Christmas party at Jacobi House, for a colourful celebration of mid-century architecture. The house has been widely published during its history, including a cover story in the mid 1960s for Australian House & Garden magazine, also a recent article in Brisbane Modern magazine.

The special guest on the night was the original home owner,  Joan Jacobi. Everyone wanted to talk to Joan and she was happy to chat about the features of the house, and her experiences working with the original architects. A special thankyou to our hosts…

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I went to a concert of contemporary art music last Saturday.  Collusion, a leading modern music ensemble, was performing a programme entirely consisting of 20th and 21st century music.  You are probably now imagining a concert hall or a theatre of some kind and in a funny way you’d be right, except that this performance venue was some one’s living room.  Okay – so I must be writing from Paris or some other European capital where the traditions of the 18th century salon still survive among certain of the rich, famous, and culturally inclined members of society.  Well actually…

Chris Osborne and Susan Bennett of Brisbane suburb, Carina, have a somewhat unusual habit of putting on first class cultural events in their own house and then inviting all their friends.  I’ve been lucky enough to hear jazz, watch plays, attend…

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The sun was shining on Greazefest 2012 for their annual event on Sunday 5 August at the Rocklea Showgrounds. The crowds flocked to enjoy a day of rockabilly bands, vintage fashion, car show, and collectable shopping at the 100 plus stalls. It’s also a good opportunity to catch up with old and new friends.

Australian Modern is a big fan of Vintage Caravan Magazine, and you’ll find the lovely Lisa and her caravan, both colour co-ordinated in pink, at a lot of shows around Australia. You can also pick up a funky Vintage Caravan Magazine tee shirt, or any back copies that you might have missed. Do yourself a favour and subscribe to Vintage Caravan Magazine www.vintagecaravan.com and support a local independent publication, or visit Lisa on the road.

I was also fortunate to be able to…

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Our modernist architecture and design MAD Weekend was a huge success, including many new faces in the crowd. It was a stellar line-up on Friday night for 20/20 Vision, including local award winning architects Stuart Vokes,  Bud Brannigan and Brian Steendyk. Our hostess Susan led off the proceedings with a unique Go-Go routine and slide show of Pucci fashion for Branniff Airlines c1960s. Some of the other highlights were: Judy showed us the recent past with images of Gold Coast motels. Two very different jewellery designers, Robyn (QLD) and Genevieve (NSW), featured funky examples of their work. Marcus (Tiki Beat) presented the evolution of Tiki bars in the USA, with a sneak preview of his new Tiki Bar design in WA. Paul illustrated the glamour of travel with a colourful selection of early Australian travel posters. Marg shared her experiences of Japanese culture. Annalisa proudly showed us images…

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Australian Modern presents a weekend of mid-century modern inspired architecture and design, it’s all happening in Brisbane from Friday 29 June to Sunday 1 July 2012. Following on from last year’s popular Architecture + Design series, this unique event has expanded to become a Modernist Architecture + Design (M.A.D) Weekend.

This year’s program will include new events, starting with a slide show which we’re calling Twenty-20 Vision. This provides a forum for a variety of presenters, including significant Brisbane architects, designers and collectors. They will each show images and speak about their specific topic of interest, but they only have 20 slides and a limited time. There will also be documentary films, a twilight cocktail party and dinner, a guest speaker, and the much anticipated modern house interiors tour.

Be inspired by modernist architecture and design, come for an evening or two, bookings are essential…

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The Australian Modern team started at the ILVE showroom at Coorparoo for Brisbane Indesign. A special thankyou to the delightful ILVE staff for their hospitality, and a wonderful breakfast and coffee selection. We decided to park and take the free shuttle bus into Fortitude Valley, and then continue with a walking tour of the showrooms. Living Edge had a stylish display of new and classic designs, and the dispensing machine with ‘ Keep it Real’ badges speaks volumes about supporting original design. A novelty display was the mini cork chair competiton, constructed from Chandon champagne corks, some of our team were thirsty just thinking about it.

Luckily the next stop wasn’t far away, Smeg had set up a bar in the Coco Republic showroom, complete with an array of dishwashers and ovens, and funky Smeg fridges full of ice cold bubbly, which was flowing freely. Our next…

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Thankyou to all the Sydney-siders for supporting the recent Australian Modern launch events. Billy and Sarah’s Beachcomber event in the Blue Mountains attracted a big crowd, and also the chance for everyone to meet the original architect Nino Sydney.

Our friend Helen also launched her new website www.beachcomberhouse.com.au a must for fans of mid-century architecture. Check out the photos and history, join in the search to find the lost and missing Beachcombers.

A big thankyou to Object Gallery in Surry Hills, a wonderful venue for our official Sydney launch. I was joined on the night by fellow presenters, Annalisa, Billy, Margot and Nino, along with Susan, Alex and Sarah our fabulous support team. Everyone was interested to hear the stories behind some of the articles in Australian Modern, and to meet the NSW participants.

The following day I was…

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On Wednesday 25 April from 2pm-6pm I will be in the Blue Mountains to launch Australian Modern. This is a combined event which will also be celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Beachcomber house, designed by architect Nino Sydney. But wait there’s more! It will also be the official launch of a new website devoted to the history and research of the Beachcomber. If you would like to attend this special event you will need to email Billy your RSVP E: pflamingo@bigpond.com The added bonus is that this will all take place at an actual Beachcomber in Faulconbridge, it’s also a public holiday, so go for a drive in the Blue mountains and I’ll see you there.

The following evening, Thursday 26 April from 6pm-8pm, I will be the Sydney launch of Australian Modern at Object Gallery in Surry Hills. Please contact…

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My recent trip down south started with a private slide show at Outre Gallery on Friday night for a group of selected guests, followed by the official Melbourne launch for Australian Modern.

It was a great opportunity to meet more mid century architecture and design enthusiasts, Martin and all the team at Outre Gallery sure know how to put on a good night. The next morning I met with Dean at Angelucci 20th Century in Fitzroy for an Australian Modern instore promotion. Dean created a lounge room in the showroom, so visitors could chat and stay awhile in a relaxed environment, and be inspired by all the amazing furniture on offer. Thankyou to Dean and his helpful staff on the day.

Sunday provided a chance to attend a vintage swap meet, organised by Tony and Janet at Kustom Lane Gallery in Hawthorn, we joined the…

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Brisbane Launch & In-Store

The recent heavy rain didn’t deter a huge crowd from attending the recent Brisbane launch party. The original launch on the lawn plan was revised to be a house party at Brisbane Modern central. Thankyou to everyone who came to support Australian Modern, and welcome to all the new faces. Spotted in the crowd were architect Geoffrey Pie, Marcus Thorn (Tiki Beat), Collette (Rewind Mid Century) and her Gold Coast entourage, and lots of other architecture and design enthusiasts. Folio Books (Brisbane) are the online supplier of Australian Modern, Angelos and Jenny were happy to receive their initial stock as orders were already coming in. Please come and have a chat, and pick up a copy of Australian Modern, at some in-store promotions for Australian Modern in coming weeks.

Brisbane In-Store Dates & Times

Saturday 11 February 1…

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You’re invited: Come and celebrate the launch of Australian Modern. Meet the
Australian Modern design team and the contributors at the various launch
events around the country, and get your very own copy of Australian Modern
‘hot off the press’. If you can’t make it along to a launch event you can
also buy online www.australianmodern.com.au

Adelaide Launch: Friday 27 January
Willunga Art Space, High Street, Willunga SA Ludwik & Wladyslaw Dutkiewicz
Exhibition
Contact: Adam Dutkiewicz for details
E: adam@moonarrow.com

Brisbane Launch: 8pm Saturday 28 January
9 Burchell St, Carina QLD
Tickets and bookings, T: 07 3395 4571
E: chris@brisbanemodern.com.au

Brisbane In-Store: Saturdays to be confirmed Folio Books 80 Albert St,
Brisbane QLD
T: 07 3221 1368 www.foliobooks.com.au

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A few weeks ago I met Professor Adrian Franklin, popular ABC Collectors panelist and author. He recently released his latest book, Retro, which I can highly recommend for all you collectors out there. Adrian offered to participate in Australian Modern, so with some last minute re-arranging he now has his own column, offering a unique viewpoint on modernist design.

Australian Modern will be announced soon, including a half page ad in the January issue of Vintage Caravan Magazine, and a full page ad in the February issue of Fuel Magazine. Look out for both of these independent publications, which are also inspired by mid 20th century design and culture.

It’s been a hectic last couple of months completing Australian Modern, and when you read this it will be finally be at the printers. Australian Modern is an independent publication, proudly designed, edited and printed…

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