National Breweries, Montreal

The Art Deco Montreal website has a comprehensive list of Art Deco buildings in chronological order. This building, National Breweries by architect Harold Lea Fetherstonhaugh is listed for the year 1931.

Unicorn Hotel, Paddington

The Unicorn Hotel in Oxford St, Paddington is another typical Sydney streamline brick pub.

I especially like the unicorn and the rule of three supports at the base of the flagpole.

Folk Dancing @ Gare Centrale, Montreal

I am really enjoying looking at the various details in the Art Deco friezes by Charles Comfort at Montreal's Gare Central.

The other day I posted some of the sports that are represented among the scenes of Canadian life.

Today I have zoomed in on some folk dancers and the accompanying fiddler. The way the woman's hair has been stylised into a horizontal wave is a common deco technique but it one of which I never tire. I love the severe straight line Confort has used for the top of her hair.

This portion of the frieze also shows some of the other symbols and motifs that are included in the overall confusion of the scenes.

Above the dancers there is a dove carrying a branch which could symbolise peace or Noah's deliverance from the flood or both.

There is also a shamrock above the fiddler and a fleur de lis between the dancers. These and other symbols elsewhere in the friezes represent the peoples who have emigrated to Canada.

Below this panel some of the words of the Canadian National Anthem can be seen. In this case they are in French. At the other end of the ticketing hall the National Anthem is in English.

I like these scenes so much, I've isolated the detail and created some designs on Zazzle. I think they look great.

Saltdean Lido, Saltdean

The Saltdean Lido was designed by architect R H W Jones and was opened in 1938.

Saltdean and Rottingdean Local Historian, Douglas d'Enno, author of The Saltdean Story has provided some wonderful information for the www.saltdean.info website. The site includes historic photos of the lido and details of Saltdean during the pre-War period.

d'Enno draws comparisons between the Saltdean Lido and the 1935 De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill-on-Sea. There are certainly common elements.

Lidos were very popular in the UK during the 1920s and 30s but now many have survived into the 21st Century. It is nice to see Saltdean Lido is one of the rare survivors.

Sherbrooke Hotel, Miami

The Sherbrooke Hotel on the corner of Collins Avenue and 9th Street in Miami South Beach is a fine example of streamline design.

It was constructed quite late, post WWII, 1947. The architects were MacKay and Gibbs. It is a building as a ship, the corner parapet acting as a bridge. There is even a couple of portholes, one each side of the main entrance.

Often streamline buildings have regular, horizontal bands of windows but the Sherbrooke Hotel has an unusual arrangement of different sized windows.

As is often the case in sunny climates concrete eyebrows provide shading for the windows.

Sport @ Gare Centrale, Montreal

The Gare Centrale in Montreal was designed by J Campbell Merrett and opened in 1943.

The ends of the ticket hall bear large blue and white murals by Charles Comfort depicting all aspects of Canadian life.

Today I've picked out some sports that are included such as Ice Hockey (above).

Golf

Lacrosse

Gridiron

Skiing and Ice Skating

Empress Theatre, Montreal

The Empress Theatre was not part of any of the tours during the 10th World Congress on Art Deco in Montreal in May 2009 but it was mentioned during Dane Lanken's presentation on Montreal Movie Palaces.

Despite the rain I was glad I was able to make my own way out to see it.

The Empress was designed by Montreal architect Alcide Chaussé with decoration by Emmanuel Briffa. It opened in 1927.

Briffa has created a facade made up of Egyptian motifs, reliefs and hierglyphics.

Coming just 5 years after Howard Carter discovered the unplundered tomb of Tutankhamun Briffa has included a Pharoah's mask in the style of Tutankhamun although the feet appear to belong to the Sphinx rather than a Pharoah's mask. Above that is a winged sun disk, a common Egyptian symbol appropriated by many architects and designers of the period.

A common scene from Egyptian tombs is the Pharoah being blessed by a Goddess. Briffa has included this on the facade of the Empress as well although I wouldn't vouch for the authencity if the hierglyphics. Too many cartouches for my liking.

The Egyption decoration is continued at street level with doorways placed in Egyptian settings. The sun disk is placed directly above the entrance which is flanked by columns topped with stylised palm fronds. I like the Art Deco touch of the 'rule of three' stepped elements in the corner of the doorway decorated with hierglyphics.

The Empress was locked up when I visited and I couldn't see any of the interior which was gutted by a fire in 1992. I doubt there is much left to see.

The Empress Cultural Centre Inc are a charitable not-for-profit who are working to revitialise the old theatre as a multifunctional performing arts centre. I wish them luck and all the success in the world.