cameron offices - john andrews.

Cameron Offices, Belconnen Town Centre. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.

In the volumes of varied disciplines in the school of architecture, one common thread must surely be consistent - the pleasure of inhabiting the structure. Whether it be as a residence, or as a building used for shorter stays, any building must surely have to conform to various measures for pleasurable human occupation for it to then be considered a successful design.

 

In the short life of the Brutalist movement, it seems as though that fundamental was in some ways bypassed, as so many of the Brutalist structures designed and built in the seventies and eighties have since been de-commissioned, their intended purpose having been unachievable or simply, they were unpleasant buildings to inhabit.

 

Not all, but almost any true Brutalist building is a working design, a commercial structure housing, more often than not, administrative businesses or car parks, or buildings that have no reason for soft aesthetics to play any part in their success as a matter of commercial longevity for either their creators, or their eventual owners. The Cameron Offices in Belconnen, a satellite of Canberra, Australia's national capital are a perfect example of a superstructure designed along a set of principals, to satisfy a need. Sadly, not by any shortcoming of their brilliant creator John Andrews, their purpose was contrived and the vast, dominating structure lasted barely 20 years before being almost completely demolished in 2007.

 

The Cameron Offices were designed with the intention of becoming the focal point of the centre of Belconnen. Their construction began in 1970 and took a whopping seven years to complete. The basis of the design is a series of pavilions, seven in total, linked by walkways. Gardens in between each pavilion were planted out with native Australian vegetation and look as though they served as gigantic atriums for office staff to spend their disposable time wandering around and conversing. One can imagine what John Andrew's period artistic renditions of these atriums might have looked like.

 

The primary material of construction is concrete, and I think that speaking for myself this is potentially why like many other examples of Brutalism, this design is so inspiring to me. Concrete, an unwieldy material - not for the amateur craftsman, not a material that someone can really imagine using unless they have the equipment and the experience necessary to manipulate it. Relatively complex in construction and heavy when complete, with a cold and unwelcoming air about it. But the Brutalist architects like Andrews did magnificent things with concrete, Cameron Offices had several outdoor sculptures such as the 'Optic Galaxy' a seven meter high assembly of curved geometric arrangements and a water fountain that offered relief from the sharp angles of the rest of the building. In engineering terms the offices were a triumph; a system of  large pretensioned beams spanned over the courtyards, creating a pergola effect over the gardens and at the same time connected to the post tensioned columns which supported the floor slabs of the wings. The floor slabs stepped back on the north elevation as the building approached ground level, creating natural overhang shading to the glazed walls. Brilliant? Possibly, but not brilliant enough.

 

The concrete finish was very porous, allowing it to become stained by moisture over the years and in Canberra's cold and often bleak winters, this cement behemoth was not a particularly comfortable place to be. It was drafty and unwelcoming and many former workers from the government offices that inhabited it dont look back with fondness.

 

Having raised these points, and noting now that the building is almost 90% gone, it might raise questions as to why this building, this mega-structure rates as one of my favourite designs. It was a prominent building, in an undeveloped area. When it was built, it was Australia's largest office complex and, it raises emotions in people: some love it, whilst others loath it. Many of the traditionally more appreciated eras of architecture dont promote such emotion, intrigue or even disgust.

 

The Cameron Offices was listed on the Australian Heritage Listing as it was a very significant design within the movement that it belonged. Strangely, and despite the heritage listing that it received, more of it was demolished than was previously understood by most architecture enthusiasts and lovers of the building were lead to beleive. It was somewhat misplaced, had a complicated and ultimately a short life - but it broke with convention, made a statement and made people take notice. Love it or hate it, all will agree that it was truly unique, it will be remembered by design junkies, architects and the Canberra inhabitants for years to come.