Design of the High Court of Australia

Abstract

The High Court of Australia is a seminal work of architecture, recognised nationally after twenty-five years by the Royal Australian Institute of Architects 'Enduring Architecture' award, and internationally, as one of only ten Australian buildings registered on the Union of International Architects 'Architectural Heritage of the 20th Century'. Since its construction in 1980, the design of the High Court has been consistently ascribed to the architect Colin Madigan – a director of the firm Edwards Madigan Torzillo and Briggs. It is said to embody a 'unity of concept' with Madigan's National Gallery, and to accord with 'universal' principles, geometric 'design laws' and the 'craft-based attitude' of 'Madigan's architecture'. Such sustained references have effectively established a dominant and institutionally sanctioned narrative. A body of other acclaimed work produced by the firm is similarly construed as Madigan's oeuvre. In fact, the design of the High Court resulted from a national competition held between 1972 and 1973. Documented evidence credits its 'Design Team' and identifies architect Christopher Kringas as the 'Director in Charge'. The stated 'Design Concept' does not mention universal principles or geometric laws, nor does the High Court's architectonic design accord with such descriptors. Kringas's design role is further evident in the firm's most significant work. This thesis traces and critically reviews the prevailing narrative of the design of the High Court. Behind-the-scenes correspondence, original archives and oral histories expose machinations around its authorship and build a counter-narrative that re-contextualises the High Court according to Brutalist ideology, nation building agendas, individual agency and design experimentation, crystallised by an architectural competition. An alternate reading of the High Court design is developed, pointing to a radicalisation and shift of the Brutalist agenda, and salient innovations previously unexamined.