" 1 .

, ••· ·•
iey SJJr, ngs frulll thc c1ly. 0 1 -. >yu, I ·1·11y anel leni po d"r, PUhl•e
, •
d uraIJ1
p,u1J/'IC S,,J
I
1
del1 n1 o
t1 n, roe , va uc, raI •men 5
, e ciuestio ns of
" •
_ . ·d 'Qn_
elc111en ls provo~ li1 y. How are such pub l,c c lcm ents conccivccl eanel ü ªPlt 1 ,
, 1111 ·i teria l ciu·i . ' .
l,as
cter c.1 nc ~ e •
the ci tyar oun d thcm "ITh,,
d 1ara
1 -,luc l-h'l' nge in or__o ul ofst
epw ,t h
. . · , tity forrns
. . d by ca,eful
11, cir p 1acc anc v, cre.1 11011, wh,c h can be unco
_
vcre
. lf . , sn,it s ihc nwa ns of ,ts own . _
aftir m its civ,c qual_
,tsc anc11r<1n ory and culi urc, a oty can it,c;
.. - tcrp retation • Thro ug h h,st . ,
s, f 1,ng anc1111 •
anel dcm ocra 1 ,c agen cias.
.· nC,d entl y its social value; . _ . _
fC"st · .
annou nc,ng co " l,fe ,n ali its mani at,on;
civil isati on, eng ag,n g pub l,c
. . are con cen tra• tio ns of
TH E PU BL IC PROJECT C ,1,e5 ,
As Levi -Strauss observccl,
'urban life ... repr esen t[sj thc_ mos t refin ecl form of civili sation.
t,m e an ob1ec1 of nature anda
crea tio n ... The ci ty is ai one and the sarne
... aest heti c
Philip Thalis subj ect of cult ure'.' prom enaclC"s,
'o pen city ' of stre ets, parks,
Public places _ enc om passi ng the s and cou rts, lanes and
ways, sq uare
brid ges 'and sub terranea n
quays and eu ts, mem oria is - are the physical
tran spo r!, mo nu men ts anel
aven ues, in frast ruct urc anel build ings are the civic
belo ng to the cit izen s. Pub lic
represen tatio n of society anel al, cult ural, polilical,
ratin g the soci
inst iluti ons, inco rp o
represen tatio ns of society's
nal, envi ronm en1al, religious
eati ona l, spo rt ing, edu cat io
judicial, adm inist rative, recr As the invitalio n to public
age with citizens and society.
anel secu lar. Public rooms eng
ively acco mm oda ting
welc ome pub lic life, colle ct
insl itu lion s, they purp ose fully .
ning, reílectin g anel collecling
ting, adm inistering, dele rmi
gath ering, mee ting, celebra spac e. The y are conc eived of
lic
en ts con stilu le the city's pub
Tog ethe r thesc pub lic elem ,
co111prising urban, landscape
pub lic projects - speci fic wor ks
anel reali sed by mea ns o f
l in tervent io ns.
eng inee ring and arch itec tura ost pati enl undertakings, anel
M akin g the ci ty is one of hum an ity's long est anel m
y stan d resolutely in the
the mos t stab le with in it. The
the p ublic elem ents rem ain
to den y the power of new
tc mpo rary wor ld. This is not
acce lera ting ílux o f the con
h less tang ible. The media anel
easi ngly ubiq uito us tho ug
form s of pub lic exchange, incr
techno logy brin g accelerateel
ternet anel com mun icat ions
the virtual dom ain of the in
M any theo rise that this me1a-
n increasing ly wi thin reac h.
time and a glo bal d ime nsio the real world. The perceived
life o f
esen tatio nal values and
worl d will supp lant the repr has
availabl e tech nolo gy already
ture in t he city by new and
marginalisat ion of arch itec ted boo k woul d
saw t ha t the prin
9th cen tury Vic tor H ugo fore
a long histo ry; in the miel - 1 will kill that. The
itec ture: T his
and exp ressive role of arch
replace the com mun icat ive
boo k will kill the buil ding .'2 ing the social, economic
ber anel impo rtan ce, emboely
C ities are g rowi ng in size, num t ury The polis, with its
2 1st cen
es facing the p lane t in the
anel envi ronm ental chal leng , serv ing its citizens and
ss time
, is a test am ent alive acro
civic places anel arch itec ture episode
k stateel, 'A grea t hist orical
arl histo rian Ken neth Clar
open to the inqu isitive. As . Very few of
of arch itecture
alm ost en tirel y in the form
can exist in our imag ination w thos e infin itely
feel we kno
y Egyptia n literature. Yet we
us have read the text s of earl íly beca use of their
s, chie
as our im med iate ancestor
rem ote peo ple alm ost as well
3
sculp ture anel arch itec ture '.
that, rather than pursuing lhe
of t he city tell us? l t affirms
So wha l does the evielence re.
l real ity animates urban cultu
ns, t he expe rien ce of physica
lem ptal ions o f u topian visio

u SY DN EY- HA RB OU R

CIR CU LA R QUAY RAILY

AHD
AY STATION
BR IDG E
D

0 PP0SITE: Sydnry Harbour Btidgeand Cirru /a r Quay Raihvay Swrion.
arllsl unknow n, Iram J J C Bradfi eld's doctoral thesis. 1924. This illuslrates
h 1!> propoSt.."'CI proiects.
AB0VE. /-/an Edmund Barron addressing an open air meering in Marilll Place.
phmogrJpher unknown, 1901. Banon was Australia's tirst prime mi11is1er.
SydneySJd,·rs li ll Martin Place as Prime Minister Kevi n Rudd apologises to the
vIaIms 01 the S1nlcn Generauons in a live telecast. 13 February 2008. photograph
O Karl ShJrp
WL· c,111 m:,rvcl ,,1 I hc extraorelinary accumu k11 1< 111 o i I;ublll príl[l LlS as a l1v111g lcgacy
aclu:i l worb l'ully or partl y rcalisccl. cac h con 1ribu11ng IU a spcci íi t part of thc Li ty, ic.,ving
traLl'S L'VL'll whcn o slcn sibly cra secl. Wc ca n consiel cr lhe hi story uf proIccts not as stalfc
da ta lrom l he past bula, engaging processes ,>f'aelaptatio n alivc across gcnerat,ons.
1he publiL cll'f11rnl s. fomilrar anel somctimcs takcn fo r grantcel, havc a reassuring
prl'scncc anel rc sil icnLe thal am hor thc city. lnvestiga ting Syelncy revcals a surprising
cli VL'rs,ty oi urban anel archit cc tural intcrvc ntions. M any typcs uf proj cc ts ca n be
unc ovL·rcel : la tera l o r vertical, aclcli tive o r subtracti vc, complu ing o r compet ing,
rcspcctfu l or tran sformativc, obliterat ing o r ovcrwriting cach o th<:r. ltalian archi tec t
Vi1torio C rcgo ll i posi1cd fivc ca tcgories of in tcrvcnl io ns of'cri 1ica l moeliíication
(of sell lcmen l moelcl s)', cac h r<:'prcsenlecl by a kcy worel - 'founela1 ion', ·c1 arif, ca 1io n',
'rcsolulio n', 'reversai ' anel 'li sl eni ng·:•
A prescicnt appreciat io n oftime unelcrpi ns urban kn owleelgc. Even in a relatively
young city like Syel ncy, pro jccl s such as harbour crossings, irnproving C ircular Ouay
or aggra nel ising Wi ll iam Streel rccur elecade after elecaelc, so111c 1imes elaborateel ovcr
cen luries. Almost evcry major public place anel build ing has becn maele anel remael e
ancw, in tu nc with its own logic anel cvolving program, in rcsponse to 1he intensifying
ci ly aro unel it. To 1hink of a placc o r bui lding as belonging lo a single perioel in 1he past,
ra lhcr than always in the presenl anel available to 1he future, constricl s urban th inking.
THE PJ-I YSICAL. FOR M OF TJ-I E CITY PU BL.I C AN D PRIVATE
Thc city is lo unelcel o n il s unelerlying geography, g iven form by the layo ut anel
claboratccl by public builcli ngs anel wo rks. Public pro jects span li m e; they cannot be full y
graspeel in lhe short tcrn1 o r by viewing them simply as they appear in a part icul ar era.
Rathcr, underslanel ing thcm requ ires knowleelge of their fo rm ation, metamorphosis anel
elestiny. Th is uncovers a relative indepenelence between functio n anel its rol e in shapi ng
public places anel bui ldings. Many street reservations were laid out when the only t raffic
was by foo t o r horse. Now streets carry bicycles, cars, trucks, buses anel tram s anel
accom modate an ever-incrcasing range of service infrast ruct ure. Unan t icipated changes
have been made to most places anel bu ilelings documented here wit ho ut the loss of
their form o r siting.
The physica l for m of the citycan be analysed as a series ofco nstituen t elem ents
o r categori es. Their com binat ion produces an urban fo rm, specific to each city, that can
be inves tigateel, co m prehended and projecteel.' These are identified as the:
- geography of the site, encom passi ng nature's elem ents anel processes embeeleleel
in urban fo rm, fo r instance the geology, topography, wa ter system s, cli m ate and
m icrocl imate, anel ecosystems
- urban layout, includi ng the overall pattern of streets, lines of infrast ru cture, services
anel d rai nage system s, anel railway li nes
- public buildings anel works, includ ing the making o f particular parks, squares,
pro menades anel mo nu me ntalised infrastructure such as bridges, viaeluc ts anel railway
sta1ions
- subdivisio n, being the d ivisio n o r amalgamatio n of urban land into lo ts that antici pate
anel accommodate va ri o us building types, som etimes including pu blic buildings
- buildi ng types, as eli stinct from individual bui ldings, rather their comm o n fo rrn or
arrangement, such as ali fo rm s of housing, workplaces, sho ps, m arke ts, wareho uses,
industrial buildings, anel the like.
The geography o fth e si te exists prio r to any allocatio n of lanel anel pervaeles ali these
ca tegories.0 The layout, public works anel builelings, anel any public lo ts, are essentially
the pu blic space of the city, while the divisio n o f the pri va te lands to accom modate
vari ous buildings const it utes the private do m ain . The d ialectic coexistence of publ ic
anel private spaces generates co mplex interrelatio nships. As t he m ea ns of reali sation
or transformatio n, the urban pro ject encampasses all o f these elem ents; the public
pro ject rel ates to the public components o f an urban projec t, o r an urban project that is
exclu sively publ ic.
These tangible element s are experi enced anel apprec iateel: their interacti o n m akes
distinct each city's mo rph o logy and atmosphere. They create the arm ature o f the urban
life, fro m everyday activities to exceptio nal events. They enable an understanding of
place, its d imension anel scale, its character anel m ateri ality. They give rise to specific
issues o f city making - how geography dictates microcl imate. how topography becom es
the ground plane, how civic spaces are defin ed, how urban fo rm is structured, how
streets frame blocks, how blocks divide into lo ts, how buildi ngs occu py lo ts, how
architect ure contributes to bo th the street anel the skyplane, how land scape pervades
the in- between and how public life animates urban space.
Defi ning t he city's public e lements
ln Th e fali of public man, socio logist anel intellectu al Richard Sennett no tes that, 'On th e
m ost physical levei, the environment pro m pts peop le to 1hink o f the publ ic elo m ain as
mea ningless. This is in the o rganisati o n of space in cit ies. Architects ... are am o ng the
few professionals who are forceel to work wi t h t he p rese nt-elay icleas of publ ic li fe, such
IS
 • '"fêl~
a
. -, . ·io nab who o i nccc,sity c~prl·,, ano
"thc kw pro 1LSS
1 , ·cl nrL· an1on"
. · • ancl1nccl . . : . . .
as they ci iL , _ anili:s t 10 u thcrs · _ 7 Whal cri lena clc1ern11ne 11 ,
, 1hcsc cuck > '"' . . . builcl1ng o r ro 0111 · . .. .
nwkL _. ,s;, public platl , . ·I· -·r ca tio n anel clc l11111,on, mu lt,ple lests
Wl1"l consl1tu 1L - . -riu Jruv1clc e ,111 , ' . . .. , .
. ·ILi siun as sutli. 1 . _ .· , s may sat,,ly evcry cnl cri o n. 50111('
1 .. 11 '111(1llll , JJ 111( 1USI0 I .
se L'Li 'º . ' , _, ·ire :,ppliccl anel no l "_ . h . · ciualili cs anel attribulcs, whilc o lhcrs
0 f' JLiblic- nos , . . •rw,n o i l c 11 . , . . .
1 , . . t'xceptiona 1111 cc . n,nge mcnt anel 1,me s v,o ss ,tuclcs.
ublic placcs ,11c . . iancc, po 1,cy, m, , . ,.
P . . .. clue to circums _. clcfin itio n ,n her essay íhe lancl scape
suHcr nwc1 s1on5 .. . rivcs a sucu nc1 . . -
. -, Lcnorc ColtlK,ll l g li ,clcrstoocl as builcl111gs anel cng,necring
H, ston,111 k . . . now usua y u, . .,
. ._ ks'· 'Public wor s dre i·c iJursc for the publ, c goocl. Public
oi pub 1,e wor . . from the pu IJ ' . , .
•c1 ·cl by govern11 1ent s than t 111.s 1o indudc ali the cItys publ, c spaccs. Public
works provi e d r1111·1ion
:.v1 . loJJISa broacler e . , b aeles t interest, are central factors for
Syuney ,lC
th
1mu n1ty s ro,
hilJ anel access, in e con h er· relig io us anel som e collective build ings,
owncrs , Jt,o ns, owev .
. .1 s·on. There are so me e _xcei , -el o r now so lei that were const ructed as public
,nc u , . urrently 1edse
1 "' (G PO) Scve ral formerly private buildings
--h Is wd some builc ,ngs c
se oo · ' G r. 1Post O rr,ce ·
1JUI ·Ic1 ings such as the cne a b k has becom e the H aym arket Library anel
, . . ic Jurposes; a an ..
h-we becn acquirecl for c,v I M rk Foy's clepartment store. C urrent realit,es
' . rted into the form er a . . .
cou rt s have been ,n se . . d 'fferentiateel c ntena for select,on.
d ancecl req uir,ng I bl' h.
are complex an nu ' _ . n s may accom modate pu ,c owners ,p
. 1 build,ngs anc1roo, Museum. Such
As commu nity asse s, _ S L'IJmy anel Austra lian
1 ' .
.111 1 ·,s with the tate
of contcnt s hclc1 lru s '' . , d reg ulatio ns, for exa mple th e M ,tchell/
. . e lheir own ru 1cs ,,n
in stitut,ons may ,mpos . G dney Som e co mbine limiteel access wit h
. d R yal Bota111c are1en, 5 y .
1865
Sta te L,brary an °' ..
1 es to major cIvIc room s, su '
eh as Governm ent H ouse and the Art Callery
. . .
no ent ry e ,arg . . o ncerns in ou r collect ive interest, w,th stnctly
1
e TI 11,ay be sub1ect to secu n Y c
,oyers. , ey ' h cl Parliament H ouse. Som e, such as the police
11 d ccess like courl ouses an
contra e ª ' Street court s anel form er watch houses, _ _.
explicitly cleny freedom.
. .
cell s of the Liverpool
stage events anel exh1b1t1on s, so me o r most w,th .pa,d
Public places anc1room s may
. T H li d Syelney Theatre. They can have regular or occas,onal
access, like Syclncy own a an . . . .
· li I d for functions ' o rbe open, h,red o r by 1nvItatIon, as. are
charges, be partia y e ose
The M,nt · A ud',t onum · an d tl,e Mu seum ofContempo rary Art. Som e have anc, llary
commercial component s, such as the State Library cafe and Mu seum ofSyd ney shop,
or can be stratified, with different access regimes and charges, like Wynyard Park and
Station concourse, and C ustoms H ouse.
Some public buildings have openly accessible places, such as t he courtyard of the
Hyde Park Barracks and First Governm ent House Place in front of the Museum of
Sydney, wh ile the buildings themselves require paid entry. Others charge, at times, for
restricted access to events, as do the Domain anel the Opera H ouse forecourt. Urban
infrastru cture, such as public transport and ca r parks, usually attracts service charges.
Certain public buildings, li ke the Department of Lanel s bui lding, are predominantly
aclm inistrative, with lim ited public access. Schools are designated enclosed land to
which public access is defined. O ther buildi ngs, such as the Anzac M em ori al, have
sacred or spiritual restrictions that affect access, opening hou rs and behaviour.
Overarching such criteri a, ali public elem ents should be conceived as pro
bano publico (lor the public goocl) to which architect John Sm edl ey aspireel for his
competit ion-winning project for Trades Hall. Public streets, squares and parks are always
included, as they are pure public space, publicly owned. As distinct from private land,
where laws oftrespass apply, on public land our right s as citizens are equa l, whet her we
are being protected or prosecuted.9
Í '.
\ Public spaces o ffer right s to asse mbly, including for street m arches, protests,
\
5t
\
\
demon ra tions_and dissent; their myriacl manifestations include Speakers' Com er in
'
th
\ \ e Doma,n, enlistment ralli es, peace anel antinuclear marches anel political and socia l
\ demonst rations The rm 1 1 ·t f~ b '
· s o ree assem ly were viviclly illu strated in 20 11 at Sydney
Square, when the organ· f h .
. _ isers O
I e 1nternat,onal Women's Day march were notified that.
desp,te having assembled ti
b li ,ere annually for almost 40 yea rs, they would no longer
eª owed to doso. Most oftl - b . .
f. , e square elongs to the Anglican C hu rch w,th only the
nnge ownecl by the C ity ofSyd A k '
Ad - . . ney. spo esperson for the legal owner, the Glebe
111111,strat,on Board, was quot d . , , .
arranoed 1 . e as say,ng, lt s pnvate land ... future rallies [sho uld] be
º o occur on des,gnated publ' 1 d' The next day a letter wri ter responded,
'The ong · r . ,c an ·
o,ng a 1enat,on of public sp b . .
obstacle 10 cr - 1 .. . ace Y pnva te Interests is alreaely a perni cious
uc,a c,v,1soc,ety a 1
1 . . _ ' nc gra ssroot s move m ent s·.,o
n contracl, stinction lo lhe public b il . . .
r: enshrinecl, private 1 .Id . , . _ u d,ng or place where co llec 11ve nghts are
- Ju, ings pnn1arily serv ti1 · ,· - ·
clel11ni1 public spac d ·r e eir own ers ,nterests. Their bou nelanes
, e, an , they appear o J 1 .
their adva ntagc II Th f. ' 1 en Y access ,ble it is on the owncrs' terni s. to
. . ere o re, whcther priv·l( 1 b. . d.
pnmaril y for comn,e . 1 ' e Y o r pu l1 cly owned o r m anageel, buil ,ngs
rc,a purposes - sh ·1
storcs, priva te bank . 0 fli . ops, reta, ce ntres anel arcacles, depart menl
s, ices, private lor
cxclucled from the · J bi' , ecourt s and plazas, ho tels anel clubs - are
r I u ,e ca tegory Ex e t' h d
,ormer public roles, anel _11 • O · _ e P ians are the CPO and Treasury, as they a
·1 t e ueen V,cto · B ·1e1 ·I .
' out. lt follows that li fi
111. a orn1s of housing i I d I
"ª u, ng (OVB), as thc C ity Councd leases
. d
s acknmvleclgccl th h ' nc u ng publ,c ho usin cr, ,ire also exc lude ·
at I ere are clive, ' "'
open spaces, that are IJri 1 se spaces, from arcades to colonnaeles to
C va e 1Y Ownecl but lc
overn or Phi ll ip To\ e cl appear o pen l o pub li c use· the Strancl Arcac '
S d ,, v r an Austra lia S u·1r , ' .
Y ney. , Coven·int s tJI . q ' e s plaza are t'xemplars o Fthese types ,n
' ' ann,ng anel lega l e ' · .
a ntros 1 can m ake it possi blc to prescnbe n
 11w,1~uH· oi publ1l tlLL"l'"~ to pnva lL' b nd. H owcvt
·r, thl' tl'rm ~ oi '.'i ul h agrecm ('nl s are
no t ;dw;1y~ lt :lll~p:irc nt or L"nf(HL'L'cl e.mel are thcn.:fó
rl' infr.·r,or to pub\i( owncr<;lup.
l1K1t·,,:-. ingly, sp;iLcs <>f L(>ll'.'i umpti<m appear a~
simult1cra ur thc publK cl<m1:1in.
l l<>WL'Vl'I', tlw,r <>lliu <>us manag,·,m ·nt can cngl'ne
lcr stc·rilil y. C crtainly thcy de, no ! pass
" p11111;11y 1,·sl oi public , p:ic,· a11c111p l to ocni
py or dcmon str.1 \l' on 1hcir spacc anel
bl'w;1rc tlw urnscqul'rKcs. l lll' obvcr~L' is lhat
publ,c builclings and inslllutions are
unck r mou11ti11g prcssurc to bc 'scff- l'u nding·, incrc:i
singly cornmcrcialisccl by rcl~1il
<>utk-ts anel privale luncl1011s that clai m public
arc"s 10 thl' c·xclusion of1he wick ·r public
l lw rn111111c rcialisa1inn of a public functio n, such
as big sport's co rpo rate spo nsorsh ,p
,·111bla1oncel :inoss public l.1nel. can curlail its csscnli
al o penncss. Spontancous cvcnts
c.1n bccom l' 1calously overmanagcd, likc ccrtai
n Syd ncy Festival opcn ing- night part ics.
1hl' 1win protTsscs of alicnati o n anel rcsunip tio
n of public lanel rcm ain availab lc
to balance compc ti ng intc·rcsts. Bot h 'alienal ion',
thc sale o r elisposa l of public lanel.
anel ·rc·sump1io11·, thc compulsory public acquisi
tion of private land, have been useel to
,·nablc rcncwa l. l:ach has a long anel complex history,
in Syelncy as elsewh ere.
Lcascho lel is an allerna tive to thc o ulright sale
of public assets. This process gaincd a
lúotholcl in the IQSOs when thc Treasu ry builelin
g was given over as thc Interco ntinent al
Ho tel. anel later a i thc C PO. which became a hotel,
oflices and shops; o nly a loken
post oílicc was retaineel. Leaseholel in princip ie
allows buildin gs lo remain in public
owncrship, the public benefit ing from lease paym
ents, with the expecl alion that future
gl'llcra tions can regain thc ir asset. Even a long-te
rm lease, co mmonly 99 years in
Syelney. co nstitutcs a rclatively sho rt perioel in
l he liíe of a ci ty. As urban land is such a
linitc rcsourc e, thc leasc of ostensibly redund ant
public assei s is preferred over outrigh t
salc. Howeve r, if'too many righ1 s are granted to
the lessee, major ri sks arise - such as
crcepin g privatisat,on, overclevclopme nt and exccssi
ve demoli tion, as d em o nstrated
at Walsh Bay anel thc Woollo omoo loo Wharí."
Leaseholel also risks facilitat ing later
outrigh t salc by govern menl, as happcn ed with
the Treasu ry buildin g in the 1990 s.
Such actions abdica te the po tential of the propcrt
y for f uture genera lions.
Many other private or commu nal rooms anel spaces,
not covered here, have staged
importa nt events, meetings anel partisan gatheri
ngs." W hile they may play a vital role
in civic, recreational anel politica l life, they have
been omitted dueto their restricted
ownership anel use.
Public ownership does not of itself guaran tee public
access, as wit h contrai comes
the power to exclude. To comme morate 150 years
of Aborig inal oppression and herald
thc movem ent for Aborig inal rights, a confere nce
anel D ay of M ournin g anel Pro tesl on
26 January 193S was attended by 1000 Aborig inal men
anel women. After 1he protest ers
were refused the use ofSydney Town H all. this
event was held in the Austral ian Hall at
150 Elizabc th Street.15 As the public interest is
consta ntly in dispute, so public space is
conlestecl ground .

THE DEFl NINC PUBLI C ELEM ENTS

Public Sydney present s drawings o Fthe city's public places,

buildin gs and rooms,
excepl in thc few cases when individual plans could
not be o btainecl. The cily anel
area plans make appare nt the positio n, spatial
concen tratio ns anel elislribu tion, size
anel architec tural scale or the places anel buildin
gs. The most impo rtant are drawn
anel d iscussed in greater d etail, the emphasis 011
civic places rathcr than the m ore
gcneral iscd urban space.
l hc µ,real public proiect is disting uished by its genero sity,
its taki ng 0 11 of a civic
role largely indcpe nelent o f its host builclin g o r
room . Succcssful pub lic architec turc
wclco mes l he citi1ens in o pen embrace, enablin
g cngage mcnl anel cdebra tion. Such

( )PI '( lSrl 1-'. Ht_·1•1m,tru... 1t·cl pl.111.., 01 1hc urb.111 L"\'11lu11011
11I Il.nv,..,, Po1n1
l i, .,,, \ lll;.!', h\ l 1htl1 p Th.1\t, Jnd !\ ll'í John ( ::,n 1, 111 lor
thl · S,·d,wv ( :,J\ l '
. \ 111h1Jt li\ , !lll) \
. .

~ l~l JV I l,n•u,:J ,,,u,·,·. ( .. ,rl"rnmt·ru l-l,1u.,t1 h,lfl. l

l.1\1 Th~)rp1. f'li,·-'!rll11,·v
,.fI11I 111~ p tl 111:I)(_ r 1x q 1J
' ..i,,J,·,i rruc, 11 .,1 pubh\_ lllllll'rl .11 l ~nwrnlllf
.'l\l 11,rn, t·, S, dnc.·\.2.:=; Now mlx ·t
'q i 1'· t)h•n11,i1 dl)h ~ .1 lri1h P.11.. h111ul
· ~
HI{ ,111 l l u)!,'l r,,wd III tlh f l1n11,111111 J/1úll ( ·,,ruw um 1
,1 / (11/l' ,p,·,,b·r, S.im
l i ,-,d.i l'•H
·
 - . · .. y it ia l scl tin ", o r by clcrn cnl s suei, asa
. . ·d in thc pro Jl'C I s SI e ' ,.., ., ••

cnerosity c;u1 bc lllctnircsl c 1 • oo f" si lho uc tl l'. pa ssc1gc, srn lpt urc, artwork
g • c r cloc k, com e, r _ . .
·t·,ir iJorch, colon nac1t , tow ' _ __ . , thc x 1rl1cul ar c ha ractcr oi a cI1 y,
S' , - . 1 j" . Jl"O[Ccl SLCJ ll l rl 1JU1C 10 I
or fo untain. l hc bc· 5 l pu J te 1 _. l low 5, 111 cls to ne balu strucle or thc Syclney
r - 1 So thc stcps c1 nc . .
strl'l:l, spacc o r wa tcr ion · _ I· _, __ cio the G PO s mu scu lar ra1sccl colunnadc
. (' lllC'l'l lllg p cll l ,clS , _
1
Town H all beco me • prrlll • o rt ico. T hc O pera H ouse s magn1kcn1
. ..5 , ntl e stcps anc opc n p 1 - -
and th c Art Ga llc ry ge
- . ,
r.
liulll. ncve r pari o ,1 L
Grn ct io nal bricí, h;1vc stagcel a 111ult1tudc of
- . - - .
stairs ,111cl gene,ous poc _ A _ ,,il)ol anel In ltfc, thc O pera H o usc Is l he
· - "('l SI0 nS. S sy
event s anel poignant pnvate oc _' 1 Jh ce
r
, 0.1c1 ·a 0 JL1bl1 c room anc 1 " . - - -
un surpassed p,tr '" n, 1 _ rcs,Joneling 10 anel anlIcrpa t1ng ncw
. . . , _ ., cl ynamic, relent 1ess 1Y _
Success ful cit,es c1r e _ . , rcl c rin g their resou rces, rcdeploymg kcy
- .-- -5 ti rnarshall1ng cl llC1reo -
possrbtl11 1cs, co n 1an Y _ xisting builclings. T h1 s has allowecl, fo r
-. - 11 , atch1ng new uses 1o e -
anel emcrgenl sit es, _ .• to beco rn e the Conserva to rrum or Mu sic,
_ G _ 1 r' s reclunclant Sld 1J1cs _
1ns1ancc, thc oven ° _
- 111 W- ter Po lice o url s in 1o
C ,. the Ju sti ce anel Police Mu seurn. As the city
- .
anel co 1we1tec , e ª . e so ,Jhi sti cat eel in its neecl s anel aspIrat1on s,
h I· . - ·11,d n,o re co mp 1ex, mo r . --.
grows boi ,ugcr ' _ -, t - ns anel cli versifies il s ava tlabtl111es.
_ _. _ _ cl eepens I1s assoetd 10 , '
11 broa elens ti s scope, _ _ eri ence o f builelings anel places. resul ti ng
M emor is the persistent h1 sto rr ca 1ex p . - -
. y .
_1 1- i lenllly stro nge r t l d ll - 1, the eph ern era of braneling, self- professed Icons
111 an aut i cn ic e ' _. s lrivi'ili se co nt ent. substiluting t he chi mera of
0 r lrnclmark' builelings. Sue1, Iene1enu e ' . . .
" r 1 1 Jlaces As Richard Fran crs-Jo nes no teel, Whtie
acl vcrt ising fo r the substance o pu J ic 1 , . . . - .
·1-Ti li esti o ns fo r arch11ec ture to res po nel to, ,t mu st be sa1d
these are co mpl cx anc1e11 1cu qu · _ _ _ __ _.
lhat braneling . anel 1cl - entrly - c1, re_ no 1 the sa m e. Branelrng Is a s1rnplr _ fieel anel_ th1n_ sense _ of
--
iel enlily anel recognI1ton. 1t 1
-s u 111111
· ªtely v'icuo us anel ernpty, [a] krncl of fa lse 1dent11y

__ [whereas] pl aces acqu ·rre rn cd. nr·ng anel cult ural sig nifica nce throug h human use,
0

ceremo ny anel translo rm atio n·_,o

The publi c place

Pl ace (plotus) is the ielentifi ca ti on o f a specific loca ti o n, unique o n ea rth. ln concepl

it derives frorn the Ancient Greek worel topos anel th e Latin locus. T he Ro mans
eli sting ui sheel between /ocus c/ossicus (' place') anel locus stondi (' th e pl ace of staneling·,
'lhe pl ace to be hea rel ). 17 _ _

Public places are elern arca tecl by geography, infrastructure corrrdo rs and prrvate
propert y bounelari es anel are elifferentiateel within the co ntinuurn o f public space.
French anthro po logist M arc Augé sees the essential characl eri stics of' p lace· as being
·orielenti ty, or relatio ns anel of hi sto ry', whi ch he contrasts with 'no n-place·, being
generi c, ill - eleti neel spaces of lransil o r consurnptio n.I8
As citize ns within the law, we are equal in public p laces, which accornrnoclate
a multitu de o r events, social usage anel claily li fe. Given th e spreacl o f Syclney's
met ropolitan po pulat ion. t he shee r weig ht or visitatio n to the city's co ncentrateel
publ ic places anel buildings is striking, with es timares o f nea rl y a millio n peo ple per elay
convergi ng 0 11 the city centre. M any milli ons annually walk aro uncl C ircular Ouay or
clown M acqu ari e Street to Bennelong Po int for the sublime co rnbina t ion o r exceptional
place, architecture anel lanel scape setting. Place becorn es integral to the experi ence anel
a prelucle to the perform ance.
The metropolis's public transpo r! infras lructure rael iates fro m the city ce ntre.
Hunelrecls or tho usanel s of peo ple pour in and o ut every elay thro ugh the railway
stations, bu s anel tram sto p s, anel ferry wharves, o n bi cycle anel foo l , concenlrateel in
surges at pcak hours or steaclil y slrearnin g throug hout the elay anel into th e night. The
rt>-emergence of event s anel well - patro ni secl o uteloor resti vals confirm s the city centrt>
as a cu ltural, social anel spati al magnet. There is no substitute ro r 'being there·.
Over time Syel ney's spaces have bee n put to a pl etho ra of uses. H yel e Park has been
racecourse anel cricket g ro uncl . and now stages art elispl ays anel p erro rm ances. outel oor
chess. memori al services anel cou ntl ess rallies . lt is the m arshalling area for the C it y to
Surr anel lhe Syelney Gay anel Lesbian M areli Gras. The D o m ain. o nce the Governor's
excl usive park. now acco mmo clates sport, concert s, Spea kers' C orner. rallies anel
count er-rallies. The Bo tanic Ga relen. th t> site o fth e town ·s first fo rrn , in aelel it io n to its
prime bo tanica l ro le now has outcl oor plays, wt>clelings anel an o uteloor surnmer cinema.
Th e O pera H ouse fo recourt, its stairs eleployecl as eith er stage or st>a ling, host s a varie ty
o r concert s anel even ts. W hit e O bserva tory Hill acco mrnoela tes picnics, tennis anel star
gazing, Belmor(' Park has uni on ralli rs. C h inese N ew Yea r fes ti viti es anel ta i chi. Chi lelren
,ire rree l o play, while socie ty's marginali secl anel el ispossessecl _ such as elisaffecteel
youth or th(' ho rn eless - also seek their perso nal space anel ga ther in pu b lic places.
The size anel ope nncss of pub lic places magni fy lh e experi ence ar ho st ile weat her
- hea t. ra in, wincl . colei. Public spacc offr rs bot h the ano nym ity of the crowcl. JS when
5 117
l roll g up M art in Place. anel cont rasting mo m ent s of so lituel e, as in the li bern t,on or
being by oneself on the Opera H ouse·s p ro m enacles at moonrisc. As Rafoel Mont·0
Al\CJ\' f "h I J
1
rJo \ tu, ('111 ~ in •he vu w111g LUb1... f\ \11..,nnn oi Sjclll('} ,m 1/ic sr tt' •f nl~servecL 'pu bli c space has th is am biva lence, th is ca pacity fo r pcrnlit ting thc c,pcrrc•ncc
jir'f, C1 1-·,-rnmnu I fouS<•, lf>"i1~p1unlxr 2f JCli'\, phmo~r.iph {') Poolo Bus.
1 10 o t thc 1n t1rnatc anel shan ng life wit h o lhc rs·.,,,
ú !J[.JíJ~rl !· / f~·Ji l'arlt, li'rnJ,rull~. 'v't;1i,llovr11f1oloo, Dllrf1ng/Hm11Gcwl. M t1S1'U111
1- flt-m l111m1¼•,1 ,; l11m ,,·. JrJhu H,lt. 1.~ H , WJ h.. ru11r,u 1 Vwv,1 luokm;.! -.outh -1.:n:-., ·
l r• r!i l l.1..11.,, , h '-,11r__ , ·t \h,iw1ng tlk AU'.'>f r,1!1J 11 Mu-.,l'Wn uncler <.011.:-i1n1t Hi )n •·;nd
1 1
rK t-. • m.Jfl tu ir, JW)),.fl ~.!, 1n iht lo rq::r'Jlmd '
\·. t'!.J-Wd /Ju,1, ph<Jl•~•Jµhc.r unknqy, 11, Julv ICJ().2
 The public st reet

Stree ts are the permanen t ye t adaptab le armature of the city. Streets have structured
almost every ci ty in history, regardless of period or culture. The st reet reservation is
pure public space, social space of communication, symbol and celebration, address and
frontage, open to ali. The ideological and technocratic attacks on the street th roughout
the 20 th century have failed to dimini sh its fundamental impo rtance.
Certai n importan t street s are marked by their events. George Street, particularly
at Town Hall, is the stage for rallies and parades. Macquarie Street, particularly o ut side
Parliament House, draws poli tical demonstrations. Martin Place witnesses the Anzac
Day dawn service, lunchtime concerts and celebrations. Oxford Street carri es the Mardi
Gras parade.
Despite their ancient provenance, streets accommodate the latest infrastructure,
allowing continuai modernisation and technica l change. Co nstantly balancing spatial
priorit ies, they accommodate all modes oftransport, lan dscape and services. A nd,
con trary to widespread misconceptions, streets do not exist primarily for traffic: t he
notio n that configuring streets is the preserve of the t raffic engineer is one ofthe g rea t
fai lings of postwar planning. 1n the design of the street, the attribut es of length, widt h,
scale and definition, and questions of the g round plane, pavem ent, planting and water,
are criti cai in determi ning its role, qualities and urban character. Streets proviel e the
ílexible and aelaptable system inelispensable to any city.

lnfrastructure and services

The street reservat ion allows the introel uction, maintenance and replacem ent of m any
modem services - sewerage, water supply, ga rbage collecti on, gas, electricity, telephone,
data cabling and others as yet unknown . Parks and st reets have enabled the insertion
of major transport infrastructure, otherwise prohibitively elifficu lt. At grounel levei,
streets carry bus lanes, trams anel majo r transport interchanges, such as Railway Sq uare,
Wynyard Sq uare and Alfred Street. Elevateel infrastructure inclueles rai lway station s
such as that at C ircular O uay, mot orways like the Ca hill Expressway, an d wires anel
ca bles for proviel ing services. Undcrgro unel are railway stati ons such as Town Hall anel
St James; traffic infrastructu re, including the Syel ney Harbour T unnel and corkscrew
ramp at Observatory Hill; and car parks such as that of the QVB under Yo rk Street.
Subterranean domains, such as the ramps at Wynyard Stati on, are el issociated from su n
anel sky and have few reference points tied to city pinces above grounel. Herc, time is
markcel not by the visible passage of the day bu t by the pu lse of the crowel.
lnfrastru cture anel se rvices can be publicly or privately owneel o r operatcel, with many
permutations regareling ground leases, hardware anel operating stock. They may be 'pay
for service', subject to uniform fee s or available to all withou t rc striction . These elifTcring
arrangements are manifest across public transport, ca r parks, tu ll roaels, brielgcs, tunncb,
com munica tion technologies anel uti lit ics.

,~
 ;'jjjijij, Ili'

. .~· ~ ... . -
# :"-
~
..
C~-41 :
'
•

Thc public buileli ng

ts,
ins ti tution s, harbo uring functi ons, even_
Public builelings house civic anel social
l institu t ions, often repos itories of collect,ons
resou rces anel organisation s. C ultura
ous and
ann ually. M any of the city's most gcner
held in trust, attrac t millions o f visi to rs
public buildi ngs frame
buildi ngs. ln tum, many
charac tcrful pub lic rooms are wit hin such .
or front civic places .
autho nty
ed in thei r desig n with expressio ns of
Public buildi ngs are freq uently endow
and civic p ride, anel co nficlen tly ielenti fying
and power, manifesting their im po rtance
erpoin t
and qualit ies, they are often th e count
their purpose. Through their charac ter 10
cl their unclerlying utilita rian role, lhe be l
pri vate bui lcli ngs. Beyon 5
the more ubiqu itous
ble fro m its overa ll fo rm anel image .
cmbrace the city anel become in separa
shing g roups of public builclings,
Pre-em inent places accum ulate eli st ingui
e and Colle ge street s anel the sho res o f C ircular Ouay.
parti cularly Bridge, Macqu ari
pseudo-
buildi ngs aspire s to little more than
ln contrast, Darlin g Harbo ur's cluste r of
se anel uncer t ain in placem ent.
comm ercial faciliti es, wcak in purpo
polita n, state o r natio nal institu tions,
The city centre has teneled to attrac t n1etro
quenc e. Howe ver, there are ot her public buildi ngs,
necessi tating builclin gs of conse
socia l li fe ata n1ore local scalc. Thc
orient ed to thc comm unity, that rein force
sh
anel sports halls, loca l schoo ls anel pari
kinelerga rt ens, playground s, comn1unity
Point are ali exa mplcs o f the types of
s
churches arouncl The Rocks anel Miller
Au stralia." '
comm unity íaci lities that pervad e urban

Thc public roam

d .
Priva te roo,n s wheth cr com , · 1
nierc, a or omes h · are no rn1ally pcrso
t,c, nali scel spaccs1 ,
· · outloo k I
protcctc-el yc t allowing otc o i 11cr
on I eir lask Public roo m s prom
.
v,1lucs and qualit . .,cs Like the •t, ce n1 rec h
er, assemb Y.or 1
.sharcel expcn.cnce.·Their · sc-il s ·ree t,
1 ey are often .places of . encou nt . . ·
1 ensur atc w,th thc c,ty anel the 111 stItut, on, c1nc 1
1heir _
. lorn1 accom modates gr ' e is conim
e, rcq ui ring volu mes obtam
· ec
1· t
5 crowel s of.peopl
on ly w11h . largl' spa ns anel lo ftoupslianc ·
. · rcq uirc partic ular stru ct ural sol ut,ons 11•1 t ·
clcn1,1ncl n1orc- ·1 ud ·1rio · . Y wa s. lat,cs
n ~
rcquircmcn '
ell'n1and volu me Lon, iruct,o
u, une
' lo' ;ivo,d n nietho cls. Acou stics anel vcntil ation
0 1
air qualit y. . 1,
M
ost publ,c . roon,s •icco 11 Ort abll' reverberai io n anel poor
1 1 ir focus is o n kec-p,n g t ic, ri
,
' jl rin1inioca tl' a purpo sc or cven t; lhc
. icnce
,iuc , cc-111 rcd on the
a court case, v,c-w,i .
_ . .l' waI ch ·1 fkrfor
o,. suu1c . n1 "'Y I'
rc:ason ror
1 11 10 .
bcing thl'rc - to at tl'ncl
'
in
1 11
' d ~pcch
;Jroun l . ". " f
ancc, a specch. cnjoy Inu sic, wors hip. Ccrta 100111
11 t ,r.1. y r<..volve
·

.,
O
SL'C'lllg. sud, as the O bscrva to ry .
· ' w,iys
 A,1vw 1;1tl ly 111:1\l l'r~ ,n llw publ1t ronrn,
111 rli !-)tim l lOt1lr<1~\ to lhe r<.·;d ('",J;1 1c.·
llfl'C ,l e up;1t 1cH1s .1~~1g11L·d 1c, l c>nt l·t11pc
1r;1ry ehm1t·st 1<. ;111<1 c,lli<. L' ~p t1<.c.·. 1n only
a fcw
p11 blll , p.1lc·,. , ul'11 " ' lhe· loy,·" oi lhe Opl'ra
Housl· :incl Wh.11f I hl'al re." 1hl' vrcw
1111q,1.d lo llll' l'\lll'íll 'l1l l ', .111d l'Vc·n lhc·rc· it
i, a prclud c lo lhl' dos<'d perfrnm ancc
' l" ll'l'. St lllll'l1111,·, tlll' bu rldrng, lr;rn1l' 1I1l'
vi, w, oubid l' l u in,ick-, sul h '" lhL portais
oi tlll' An1.1l· M l'n1orr;rl, or bcnl'ii l lrom a ml'mu
rable Sl'llrng. likc 1he fcrry wharves
and C:11rnl;rr O u;1y S1a11on.
1 nglish arr hill'cl .1ncl acadcr nic C:olin St John
W ilson pc,sitccl 1haI lhl' room ·can
l)l' unckrstood 111 tc·rn1s or clcgrel's of l'nclos
urc l'rorn ;1gor;,phob,a lo d austro phobia
... lhL· tolally L'nclosc·d n,om; thc· roorn withou
t a cciling (lhl' courtyard) or wrth a gla1ecl
l'l'i ling (lhe Atrrum): thl' room wi th a wall or
w;ills removl'cl, (lhe portIco or loggra): anel
thL· 1hrL·sho ld, a pl;icc or p.1usL' lookin g two
w;1ys bl'IWl'l 'n l he oul l'r anel the inner. ln
propor lion anel gcome try tlil' variant s on 1his
themc are cndll'ss: bul the rnost c.ornplex
;inel subtk in acldrcss is thc aecliculae or "lilllc
house" which takes thl' forn, of a space
within a spacc·. ''
Public rooms are disling uishcd by their qualiti
es - lighl, volu me, propo rtio n, srnle,
graneleur, inlimacy anel symbo lisrn. Throug h
their design, the best can attain beauty,
harmo ny or innale drama . Thc suffusing 1eni1h
al ligh l in lhe Mitchd l Library's rcaclin g
room, lhe clcgan l enlilacl e of room s ai lhe Art
Callery o r the magisterial gravitas of the
various courtro orns are ali mcmo rable archite
ctu ral experie nces. Some public builclin gs
Lornpr ise a primary ro,m,, such as places of
assem bly in rdigio us builelin gs, o r the An1ac
Memo rial in Hyclc Park. A public room does
no t always require size; one of the smallesl
is thc magica i C hilelreri 's C hapei in the crypl
of' St James· C hurch.

Monur nenls anel memo riais

C itics are markccl by monum ents anel memo

riais, the artefac ts of collect ive memo ry.
l ncvitab ly, public placcs bccom c reposi tories
of such memo riais, monu ments,
sculptures anel artworks, comm emorating citizcn
s, visitors, even ts, anniversari es,
tragcel ics, life anel cleath.
Notable among Syelney's myriael monum ents
anel memo riais are the Cenot aph
in Martin Place, anel thc ancho r o f the Sirius
anel obelisk in Macqu arie Place, all wi t h
cleep histori e associa tions. O ueen Victoria
anel Prince Albert are reuniteel in statuary
in Oueen s Square while. nearby, the lri sh famine
is comm emora ted in the splayeel wall
of the Hyde Park Barracks. Marve llous contem
porary works includ e the statue of Ben
C hiíley in C hilley Square, the C hinato wn streetli
ghts anel the sculptu re Edge ofthe trees
on First Covernrnent House Place before the
entrance to the Museu m ofSyd ney.11
Scul ptures embellish t he facacl es of many public
buildin gs, notably the CPO,
Depar tment of Lands buileling, Art Gallery anel
Mitchell Library.13 lnnum erable statues,
plaques, busts anel object s o f remem brance
anel comm emora tion aelorn public rooms ,
inclueling the many war memo riais, such as
those in the Town H all vesti bule and the
Suprem e Court.
Death was accom modat ecl in the former city
cemeteries, both now removecl. The
o lelest was where the T own Hall now stands
, while a second was displaced to allow the
builelin g of Centra l Station .
Syelney, metropo lis of wonelrous natural waterw
ays, plays with water in its m any
founta ins. ln Hyde Park the gushin g sprays
of the sublim e Archibald Fountain contra st
with the tranqu illity of the Pool of Reílection
and Sanelringham Carclens' shallow basin.
The Botani c Carelen at Farm Cave boasts extens
ive ponds, while M acqua rie Place's
elisc of water nestles quiet ly into the shadec
l park. This public art is freely available anel
collectively enriching. lts q ualities and meani
ngs embel lish the ci ty.

PUBL IC ELEM ENTS : PRES ENCE, PERSI

STEN CE ANO C H ANCE

li woulel have been conven ient, seemingly, to

organise Public Sydney's builcl ings and
places by functio n or use, both domin ant theme
s in architectural classification . AII
buildin gs (excep ting follies) are comm issione
d with specifi c functio ns definecl in their
brief, anel the ro le of the architect is necess
arily to accorn moclate these. H oweve r, as
Sycl ney's public builclings illustrate, functio
n is not so specifi c as to determ ine forn,.
'Form follows functio n·, that ubiqui tous clictum
, made 'functionalism ' an ieleolo gical
tenclency that clomin atecl 20 th-cen tury archite
cture. This expressio n derivecl from the
use anel m isuse o f American architect Louis
Sullivan·s saying , intenel ecl to be existen t ial
rather than cleterm inistic.2 ' Functio nalism conten
cled l hat the intend ed functio n was
the prime genera tor in the design ofbuilclings,
the rai son cl'être of modem architecture,
as opposecl to type, style, fo rm, craft or o thcr
mocles of conce ption. l t was used as a
O\>l'OSITE: \A(vnyurd Park w1<.lercvns1nwion Jor 1/ie rnercil css counter to outclat eel 19 th-cen tury
underground r~ iluiay._ . , m odes of compo sition, baseei on axes,
pho1ugraph er unknown. cl930. Ncw Srn1s C hurch syrnrn etry anel lhe orders.
anel 1he towcr oi St Phrlrp , are
\ 1.,1bk hevon<l
·u se· is an alterna tive conce pt to function.
Mu111 reudirig n;im1.Stcl ll' l.1hra1yo/ New Sowh o ften subslit uted to give emphasis to
\.\{1k s.Sydnry. photogr:iphcr
.rnd d.ih: unkn<,wn hurnan activity in conlraclistinc tion lo functio
nal progra m. U se encam passes the daily
A li< )V L C h, na1ow11.< 21)1 )1J. photog raph O 13n ·11 ac1ivi1i es l o which a building, place or artefoc
13o:1rclma11. Srrvell1gh1, by t is put. At its most eloct rinairc, people
1th r M, G,c-gor are recluced to ·users'. W hile use· rnn be cmplo
yed in purcly utilitm ian terms, broade r
Moru11 J>l<u,•.v1eu11~,k1t1g rnward:,; George Sr /mm conce pts of use can spcnk 10 human approp
Cemuap h. phntogr:iplwr riatio n, which rnay bc cen tral, pcriph eral,
unknow n.1\ LJt.'tunlx ·r 1978. TI1c Ccnow
ph 1s by ~n 1lpLor Sir Bcn r:i m M:h,.h nnal. counter or irrelcvant 10 the o riginally in tcnclec
l functio n.
 'Purpost: "a l 1Jnlr;rstIng LO IKl'iJI ;iclvan cn l by C o l111 '-i t Jc,h n WdsCJn, 111 p:, q
10
IL·n, ix· r the 11 , m L' u m, tricting aspl'cts o ffunctio n:disl dot tri nc. in part tn L'rnbr«ct
thl' v:,gari,·, or
usl'. Dt:riving hi s thought íro111 thc philusuphcr W1ttgcn, 1v,n, Wii,,,n
i>roposl'cl a ,rnllc' humanist cuncl'pliun: '" purposcfulnv s," [,s] ... tht: I)rc,pu,iIion l hut
"lh<" m earnng lil's in thc LN:· ... íhl' s,mpll' clircuncss o f th,s pruposrt ic,n rnakts Püs,ibl
a unit y o f trc:nment o n thl' subjl'ct o f fun ctio n:il purpose that is ali oí :, pil'Le ac ro,s e
lhe c nt,rc spcctrum of"use" íro m the simply utilit ari an tu thc purdy symboli c, lruni lhe
humblest shcltcr to thc most cxaltecl m o numcnt.'1' H c aimccl l o bridge thc d1l h<Jtorny
betwel'n fun ction anel aestheti cs, which he íelt t:rocled purpose as a central cc,ncc-rn of
archit ectu re, substituting il with styli stic preoccupation s.
The conceptual clefinition anel specific eletail of function anel use are typically
co ntainecl in the architectural bri ef. prepared when thc project is comrni ssioned. Such a
brief, particularly fo r a complex building such as a courl o r hospital. ca n bc encyclopedK
in its cxtcnl anel prescription oí the multiple íunctio nal relationships int cndccl . Thr brief
is almost always tieel to a moele of delivery anel buelget, anel subject to political pressures.
Som etimes the tcrn1 'program', a more o pen-enelecl ca tegori sation of the in tended uses.
is employeel in prelerence to 'brief '.
1n public space. Functionalisl classifications are imposed elifferent ly. Engineering
cl cl c rminacy, bluntly applieel, 0 111 skew the cletail eel design of lhe streel toward s narrow

circulatio n or scrvicing cri teri a. Likewise. parks are often described as bei ng for ei ther
·aclive· or 'pa ssive· rcc rcation. yel such curt tags in no way ael equately account for thc
brcadth oí activitics in a park as complcx anel ava ilablc as Hydc Park or lhe Domain.
or with the grea t historical eleplh of Macquarie Place. Subject lo environment. use and
urban change. thc characler of public places frequentl y metamorphoses over time.
These factors are well articul ated by French philosopher H enri Lefebvre, who
concentrated on funcl amcntally clemocratic consiclerations, maintaining that , 'The right
to the city manifests itselí as a superi o r form oF ri ghts: [the] righl to freeelom, [t he nght
of the individual to takc parl in sociely], to habitat anel l o inhabit. lhe right to theoeuure
[work] . to parlicipation anel oppropriotion (clearly disti nct from the ri ght oF property), are
im plied in the right to the ci ty'.' 0
The ·event'. an exceptional congregation or ac tivity - such as the closure oF the
H arbour Bridge For the Ncw Year's Eve fi rewo rk s, street marches, parties like the Syd ney
Festival and Gay anel Lesbian Mardi Gras. Worlcl Youth D ay, Vivid , marathons and public
mourning - varies the day-to-day use of public spaces and infrastructure. When crowd s
anel major events appropriate the city's public spaces. overriding thei r commonplace
spat ial and funct ional o rganisation. 'Space becomes Place anel Time becomes
Occasion·. as iníluential Dutch architect and anthropologist Alelo van Eyck incisively
o bserveel ."' Thi s ca n enable fresh ways o f experiencing social life in public space. The
city's ielentity can at times be defineel by events such as centennial celebrations or global
occasions, For example stagi ng the O lympic Games.
lhe ci ty is always open to possibilities. as the 'public- ness· of place generally out lasts
or supplan ts specific Functions. Even the powerFul Forces oF economics can be transilory.
yielding dramatically divergent outcomes in successive elecades. This is demonslrated
by the cutting through of Martin Place over a century, even though the land resumed
was prime real estate. Another is lhe Rocks' resistance to the incursion oftall buildings.
despite repeateel altempts to impose them eluring the I960s and I970s by the publicly
owneel anel operated authorities that cont roll eel the area."
A limitation of functionali sm is obsolescence: once its function has been
superseded, a building wou ld logically be substituteel without sentiment. Commercial
buildings are elemolished and replaced constantly, as economics demands and changes
in ownership anel function make unavoidable. However, public builelings cio not so
readil y fit this typical process of replacement, frequently proving to bc remarkably
persistent. ln their case. accommodating change seeks other means: aclelition.
aelaptat ion and reorganisation. lhe investment anel envi ro nmen tal resources embodied
in the structu re of such bui lel ings are not to be idly squanelered. As Sydney shows. over
t ime public builelings elevelop deepening associations with place. becoming testamenl
to lives livecl and to collective memory, in separable from our image oft he city.
Sometimes ílexibility comes without undue cos t and intervcntion; al othcr times.
in response to changes in brief, expectation anel usage. technology, size and operation
of the instilutions housed in them. buildings are changecl or replaceel while their
central function is maintained. At the Supreme anel Commonwealth Law Courts ai
O ueens Square. a 26-storey tower has been gutted to comprehensively upelate the
co urts. Likewisc. acros s M acq uari e Street al Sydney H ospital. construction. adaptation.
clem o lition anel moderni sation have con tinucd throughoul the inslitution·s two
A80VF /n,erio,. Wtm1<•11 , Wanl. SyJ11ey Ho,pual. photograp hcr and da, e
unln,,v.n centurics of opc ration.
·111, M,m t<J1Jrt)',lfd Jn<l rlMT Jdd11 1<J1h, µh<Jtograph () .lr.> hn Gollings,2004. Even a city as young as Sydney presents the most incongruou s of fun ctional
'fh< Mm, " tht hc•dquanu, o i tht 11isto nc Houses TnN oi New South \va les. transformati o ns anel reversais. O n Macquarie Streel one wing oFthe General Hospital
(Jl'l"J':i!TL V,,ur ,u k,,11 a/Juve Marr111 /JlcJce. phmowaph Fr,rnk Hurl ey. 1950, . becomes lhe colonial then slatc parliament. whilc another becomes thc Royal M,nt,
1
A'o1b l'J rx1t"nd MJrun Pl.iu• ea!-11w..ird wwnnh M JcquJ nc S1rcl't arC' 111 progre~!\. then courts. then heaclquarters For a cu ltural in stitulion . Next cloor. a conv,ct barrac~s
i°' •t'W lkl.mmt Ma rk~ he,rig demoluheJ . phtllt)grJphl·r unkr1own. c. l91J. MLHJe·~
becomes a cou rt s comple>., thc n a mu seum cleclica tecl to its original use. Arou nel
ri, Jf ~ -t bu1f,Jing w.l!> in lac. t fx:ing <l1~mJ n1 k·d. rat h1.. 1 than demoli ... ht:d.
•~;,tJ r'ilrlJ.f /foilJin~. phoir1g1.Jphtr w1k now11. I,"'( 1ehrua,y 1') 14. Eh:1111..·111~ oi thc C ircu lar Ouay, the controlling bastinn nf C ustnms H ousc- ,s transl<irmccl int o an
• ••. ,. 1:..- '"•' ,, ~1J r~ t t b1.11lding wt rt.• n.• t by lkodru k 0 111hc ,.m1f' , 1h· 1n
u ·unJ opcn cultural venue incorpora ti ng thc Ci ty Library. a power station bccomcs a n11 ning
·, 11rt 1V l, 1.1111,~ l1.u11din~ ..H1d l l1ppodr0m<. (l.11,.-rt he-C:;p111,IThl.',11 re).
mu Sl'LLlll (now dcluncl anel awa nrng rc,nvention), anel the M ari timl' Services Bon rd
hcadq,wrtcrs becomcs the Mu seu 111 ofConte111porary Arl. At Walsh Bay a timber wharf
bccomes a tlll'atrc anel dance centre. overlooked from its percl1 o n Observatory Hill by
a fort that bcco111es an observatory anel thcn a centre for astronomy. Nearby. the Military
H ospi tal is converted into Fort Street Public School. in tu rn transfo rmed into th e
National Trust heaclquarters anel S H Ervin Gallery. ln the city's south. an open market is
raisecl . anel mutates into a hippoclrorne. then a cinema. then a theatre. at thc Capi tol. ·11
is in changi ng that things repose·, intuited the ancient G reek phi losopher Heracli tu s.'"

Place anel permanence

ln Syclney, as in 111ost cities, the public places anel works of publ ic architectu re are
among the rnost end uring. Bridge Street's civic character was esta bli shecl at the
ou tset, the reservations anel successive constructions on lhe promontories of D awes
anel Bennelong points have announced the city to the harbou r, anel the Parliarnent
bu ildi ng anel The Mint, over 200 years, have hacl a bewilderin g succession of functions
anel uses that bear no relatio n to either the brief or circumstances that brought them
into existence as the General Hospital. ln marked differentiation to the dictates of
functionalism, or such dull co nceptions as 'new uses fo r old buildings·, the buildings
themselves tencl to attract anel suggest appropriate uses.
ln 171earchitectureof'theci!)!, ltali an architect Aldo Rossi exp laineel the adaptability
anel resil ience of major public works: 'Ci ties tenel to remain on their axes of
development, maintaining the position of their origi nal layout and growi ng acco rd ing
to the elirectio n anel meaning of their oleler artefacts, which often appea r remote from
present day o nes. Someti me these artefacts persist virtually unchanged, enel oweel with
a continuous vitality; other times they exhaust themselves, anel then o nly the persistence
of their fo r111 ... their locus remai ns. The rn ost meaningful perm anences are those
provieled by the street anel the plan.'3º
Rossi terrneel the enelu ring architect ural elements of a city 'u rban artefacts',
permanen t though aelaptable primary elements that enca psulatc its rnemory anel image.
Such urban artefacts are usually elefiniti ve in thei r placement anel architectural qualities,
anel bcyo nel fu nctional categorisation." Syel ney boast s two of the g reatest urban
artefacts createel in any city d uring the 20th centu ry, the Syelney Opera H ouse anel
Harbour Bridge, siteel prouel o n their respective heaellanels, framing the city anel its cove.

1 Syclney has witnessecl clramatic intera ct io ns of public places with its site, landform and
... -,- •-·
lL lln~
,'. llOVE: Tl1eh"'baura11J Cilyo/ Syd11ev.)ro1111/,c siceplcvfS1.h1111c, Churc/1.
T ht· A mt·n<.a n & Aus1r~lc1~ion PhtJtogr::iphic Compa ny. c1g71. Thb ~how.., thc
•J r1g1 11J I ex tl'lll of lill' Sydncy H o~p,tal rn M acqu~1rrL' Slrce1. with thc Hyclc Park
H.1r r,1L k~ t111 rhe n ~hl ..i nd 1he DornJin bch,nd.
Uuwt.~ Hmu'1y tmJ Furr Mucquorit:. l rom TJraw1ngs in Sydney'.art1s1 unknown,
l184') S<) Frn I M J1 qu;:i nL· 1.., in t hL' ton.:grnund.
í Jl'JJQc;n ·E: Pluri 011J eh~ar,vn oj mil1ru ry barracks. Swnd1sh Lawrem.c Hnrns.
l 1822 .!4 ">u rv1•y drJw1ng, by liv rl ard11T t'U Harns. of 1ht· barracks Jl ru turc
Wynvard Squ . 1r 1•
(,uvernnlt'l ll Pnnrinx <JJ/1re. \ vJr1t1i. phowgraphcr unknown, I89J.171e building.
,_, 111ht· , ,,rw-I oi Phdlip Jnd & ·111 -.Iree1s. has h:1d II ~ lh1rd 1:.iyer of add1 1rons. A
,li ,1111 lfill111 ', plLIUf<.<l 1n !1on1.
!';ru, \ pu, /1 Wa1~ C.ovrrnmem Pm11 111Jf Ü //Ut', ph1,1r,gr:1phn .ind d.11 c unknown.
·: ~11 , J.,,wc.. thc: 1,uildmg ai 1,·r li'~ tou rih bycr of <.1 dcl 1110 11!-
Site, persistcnce anel substitutio ns
geogra phy. The mat eri al evicl ence o f the clialec ti c between nature anel cu lture, between
memory anel era sure, marks anel makes the city to an extraorclinary extent. Although this
lo unclatio n li es submergecl beneat h toclay's city, it s presence unclerpin s the layout.
lhe o ri ginal town li mil was the sho rt es l line between two geographi cal fea tures. an
o bliqu e clrawn from Wooll oom ooloo Bay to lhe heacl o f Darling Harbour (both bays
have since been extensivcly rec laimecl), still largely lhe extent of lh e city centre. The
paths o fth e early main slree l s parall elecl th e Tank Stream, occu pying its sheltered valley.
The nrst briclges on Bridge Stree t anel Pitt Stree t, nea r the Ca pital. cl etermined the
position ofkey streets. Oxford Street typifi es the early riclge roacl s across the territory.
which forma li sed the tracks mael e by the Aboriginal peopl e. ln th e sweeps ofSemi -
C ircul ar Quay (today contracteel to 'Circular Ouay' ), the Farm Cave seawall and Cowper
WharfRoad, th e natural form ofthe bay is rein terpreteel in precise geornet ries. Likewise
Hi ckson Roael approximales the conligu ration of the original shoreline arounel Walsh
Bay anel the north end of Darlin g Harbour.
The city gives ri se to the most unexpecteel , seemingly incongru ous. transformations.
Such substitutio ns are sometimes elescribeel as a palimpsest. or overwritin g, where
the city co ntinually builel s over itself, piling layer upon layer. Bennelong Point was for
millennia a rocky promontory rnarked by the Aboriginal people's middens, testament
to their occupatio n of the cave anel to the joys of dail y life.32 lt then became the site of
the Aborigi nal man Bennelong·s hou se, then Fort M acquari e. after which it was largely
cleareel for a tram sheel anel park, on ly to be repl aceel most recently by the Opera
H ou se anel its fo recourt. Opposite, o n Dawes Point. an open-air observatory gave way
to a battery and barracks, which were then swept away for the Harbour Bridge and its
monumental pylons. Formerly a military enclosure. it is now an open public parkland.
Sydney also el emonstrates the interchangeability of buildings anel public space,
provieling a site remain s in public ownership. The billboarel s anel tarmac long concealing
the remains ofthe lirst Covernment Hou se were rem oveel to create a city square in fronl
of lhe Mu seum of Syeln ey on lhe siteorfirst Covernment House. The expanse of Phillip's
granel 1788 street beca me lhe setting for lhe first perm anent church, in part retained by
present -day Lang Street. Th e site of the colo ny's lirst religio us service is commemoratcd
as Richard John so n Square. The Military Barracks Paraele Crounel, once cleared,
remaineel in partas Wynyarel Park. The town's original cemetery transmuted into the
site for Syelney Town H all, its bounelary still a subliminal but real presence.
The most signilicant g roup of public buildings eraseel in centra l Syel ney was the
Government Printing Office anel Public Library block, which forrnerly faced Bent
Street between Phillip anel Macquarie streets. Thi s group was elemoli shecl in the late
1950s for the State Office Block and Prerni er's Wing, which were in turn disposed of
anel el emolished in lhe 1990s. Accoreling to va n Eyck, 'past. presenl anel future ,nust bc
aclive in the minel 's int erior as a continuum ... [or] the artifacts we make will be withoul
temporal elepth or associative perspecti ve. Man after ali has been accommoclating
hirn self physical ly in thi s worlel for tho usanel s of yea rs ... the ful l scope of thi s enornious
environrnental cxperi ence can no t be combined unl ess we telescope the past'.-" Swt ,n)!
from th e natu ra l site. markeel by projects o f foundati o n anel sorn elimes reversai , ovcrla,d
by uses anel intensified over lime. p laces rnetam o rph ose.
Sorn etirnes the spatial reversai s occur ,it t he scale of l he city. Thc 19 th -ccnt ury c,ty
skyline was elo minateel by the towers, cupo las anel sp,res of majo r civic buildings anel .
churchcs. By rbe cncl o f lhe 20th century thi s hael becn invcrt cd. as commcrcial toivcr,
ca rn e to dorninatc lhe skyline. Thc C ity Coun cil 's sun -access-planc planning con trols,
in force over eleca cles, protect mielwint er sunlig ht to major public spaces such as Hydc
Pa rk, Martin Place. Wynyarel. Pitt Street M ali. First Covernm cn t H ouse Placc anel ,d
Belrnore Park. This has preservccl lower-scalecl 'holl ows·, wi th ares of sun anel sky reta"''
in a ciry of clustcnng towers, al leas t on thc no rth em sides of thcsc public JJlan·s.
:-:::: QJ L]I r·-J D

~~~c~:1 c __ g ~ -,,~,-- =ê0l]º 1-:c,~ -, -,ªc::,::::'.Ir kj~~

D
D

N ames and ori gins

N arn es can revea l rnuch of a ci ty's experi cnccs. Sydney place narn es reíl ecl both il s
you lh and relatively peaceful and passive exislence. Do nald Ho rn e characteri sed lhe
nal ion in these memorable words: 'Au slralia is a lucky country run mai nly by second-
rale people who share its luck ... most o f its leaders so lack curiosity about lhe evenls
thal surround lhem ...'" lt is unsurprising therefore that Sydney lacks places named in
honour oí events. revolution or popular rnovements. or that íew heroes or significant
figures are com mernorated by direct association, lhe nadir being lhe incongru ous and
inappropriately nameel Whitlarn Square. Few di sti nctive place names oí lhe Aboriginal
pcople survive to recorei their o therwise unmarked depriva tio ns; Woolloorn ooloo is an
exception. Even the convicts, roaming their priso n lown, left few evocalive narnes to
reco rd their travai ls. The collective experience seems weak and ho rn ogenous.
Cert ain ly the narnes oí streets, places anel buileli ngs elecree the tow,ú o ri gins; rnan y
English monarchs and dukes are commerno rateel, and each oí lhe early governo rs up
to Macqu ari e is assigneel a street. lnd eed, lhe Macquaries boast t he rno st epo nyrno us
trophies - a strcel, a place, a fort and a 'chair'. anel ol hers beyonel the ci ly cent re. 'Walsh'
anel 'Hickson· elescribe lhe bay anel roael of their own making, respective ly. D awes
firsl surveyed his poinl, never in name to relinqu ish il, whil e Bennelung·s po inl recall s
his presence. The geogra phic subsl rate is occasionally expressed, evocativcly in 'The
Rocks' anel 'Observatory Hill'. The harel physica l work of making or proel uclive activity is
surn elimes recalled, as in the 'Ar;wle C u1· and 'M illers Poi nt'. H istorical al lusions are 1hin,
the Tarpeian Way' perh aps the mosl suggest ive.
The names of civic bui ldings are even more prosaic. 'Syelney' launches the names oí
many struct ures - T own Hall, Opera H ouse, Harbour Bridge, Theat re. Purpose is evidenl
in the períunctory naming of lhe Arl Callery oí N ew South Walcs. Pa rl iarnent H ouse and
the Stat e Library.
T cpiel attempl s have been maele to associa te places with pcople anel event s, such
as l he mismalch of the narn e Barangaroo, lhe perso n. wit h lhe eli ssociateel . reclaim eel
port apron, or the forgettable First Fleel Park. Perh aps 'the Hungry Mile· for the western
st raighl o í Hickson Roael. which all udes l o the trarnp o í thc watersiclc workers looki ng
for cmploymenl duri ng the hardships ofth e Depression yea rs. spcab with sorne
aut horily 10 authcntic expericncc.