Park Towers, South Yarra

Park Towers is an impressive block of flats in South Yarra.

Designed by Arthur W Plaisted, the flats were constructed in 1938. They consist of two blocks facing each other forming a central courtyard which is open to the street.

The main features of the blocks are the curved windows and balconies (some of which have been enclosed), the metalwork on the ballustrades and the decorative elements around the roofline.

There is a 'chequerboard-like' pattern on the blocks at the ceiling level of the first floor and the entrance to each block is decorated with stunning green tiles.

Taurea, South Yarra

Taurea is an interesting block of flats in South Yarra.

The entrance is flanked by large circular planters which sit just below the level of the ground floor balconies.

The cantilevered porch is rounded.

As are the balconies on the upper storeys.

At the roofline three horizontal lines wrap around the corner while a vertical band of geometric shapes reached almsot to the ground. It reminded me of the work of Burley-Griffin.

Ahlwyn, South Yarra

This block of flats, called Ahlwyn, offer a nice contrast between the cream render surrounding the balconies and windows and the red brick of the rest of the structure.

They were constructed in 1936 to a design by Arthur W Plaisted in Park Street, South Yarra.

The metalwork on the fence and gate, to me, are reminicient of French deco metalwork.

The lettering above the front entrance which spells out the name and number of the flats add period style and sit in front of a series of horizontal lines set in the render.

The pair of lamps add another decorative element to the composition and even the brickwork above the entrance has small sections of bricks set out from the wall to provide further interest.

Change Rooms, Fawkner Park

The main sports in Melbourne are cricket in the summer and football in the winter so it is not surprising that the change rooms in Fawkner Park carry panels representing these two sports. What is marvellous for me is that these panels have been done in an art deco style.

The cricket panel shows a batsman under a blazing Australian sun completing a fabulous shot to the boundary. The fieldsman, with his collar up, hasn't even moved.

The footy panel is my favourite. It is rare to see Australian Rules Football represented in deco style and this shows one of the most exciting aspects of the game. Under ominous clouds a player leaps for a high mark while the defender tries to punch the ball away. He almost takes on a ballet pose as he attempts to spoil the mark. Behind him, in the distance, the unmistakable four posts of an Aussie Rules goal.

Cricket, footy and deco perhaps there is only one city in the world where this could happen ... sports mad Melbourne.

Arnold Court, South Yarra

Arnold Court is another block of flats in the inner Melbourne suburb of South Yarra. Originally built in 1940, all the balconies would have been open like the top two in this picture.

The block is symmetrical with curved balconies leading to the central stairway above the front entrance. The centre of the building is marked on the roofline by a concave point with similar concave diamond patterns displayed in the render. A series of steps also draw the eye to the buildings apex while a horizontal band from each step turn into a vertical band leading back to the main entrance. Three bold horizontal provide simple decoration for each of the balconies.

This photo shows the decorative grills on the windows above the front entrance. The door has a similar grill. They seem to have a French influence to me, much like the door of nearby Abercarn flats. The name and street number are proudly displayed in relief ironwork above the doorway, another common deco feature.

Arnold Court is typical of art deco flats in Melbourne. They tend to be three storeys tall because the planning laws at the time dictated that any higher required a lift so three storey walk-up flats are very, very common in the Melbourne suburbs.

Abercarn, South Yarra

This fantastic Art Deco door belongs to a block of flats in South Yarra, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia. The name Abercarn is nicely worked into the design of the door, sitting on top of a series of frozen fountains, decreasing in size as you move down the door.

I love that the paint is worn off at the bottom of the right-hand door. Purists might want a pristine paint finish but, to me, it shows that the building is lived in and the old door might sometimes stick and need a bit of persuasion with a well placed foot.