Australian architecture

The architecture of the Australian continent. Traditionally, Aboriginal settlements tended to be based around caves, or a construction of bark huts, arranged in a circular group; there was some variation in different areas.

Architecture of the early settlers includes Vaucluse House and the Sydney home of Australian politician William Charles Wentworth. Queensland has old-style homes built on stilts for coolness beneath their floors. Outstanding examples of modern architecture include the layout of the town of Canberra, by Walter Burley Griffin (1876–1937); Victoria Arts Centre, Melbourne, by Roy Grounds (1905–1981), who also designed the Academy of Science, Canberra, 1958–59; and the Sydney Opera House, 1957–73, by Jørn Utzon.

A distinctive Australian tradition of modern architecture has more recently emerged, ranging from the purist work of Harry Seidler (1923–2006) to the regionalist vernacular of Russell Hall.