Best Overend

`Acheson Best Overend ARAIA ARIBA (15 October 1909 – 28 July 1977) was a Melbourne based Australian architect. He is best known for the Cairo Flats in Fitzroy, built 1935–1936, a daringly Modernist design for Melbourne in the 1930s.

Early life

Best Overend was born in Launceston, Tasmania on 15 October 1909. He was the son of Harold Acheson Overend, a Methodist minister and Emily Trahair, a businesswoman, and was educated at Wesley College, Melbourne. Overend was educated in architecture at Swinburne Technical College and later attended the evening classes at the University of Melbourne Architectural Atelier.

Military service

Overend served in the Royal Australian Air Force in World War II. He rose to the rank of Squadron Leader and was mentioned in dispatches.

Career

In 1926 he became an articled pupil in the practice of architect Hugh Vivian Taylor, who was an expert in acoustics and specialised in the design of theatres and broadcasting stations. During this time, he worked on additions to Station 2AY Broadcasting Studio in Albury in 1930, and the remodelling of the Crown Theatre for HO Peterson Esq. Overend moved to London in 1931, where he first worked for Raymond McGrath, a fellow Australian who was then working on the interiors of the BBC's Broadcasting House. Overend soon left in July 1931 to work for modernist architect and designer Wells Coates. Under Wells Coates he worked as chief draftsman for over eighteen months when the office was developing the iconic Isokon Flats.

In September 1931 he received a job offer from Serge Chermayeff (whose office adjoined McGrath's) to do the drawings and calculations for a house which he designed on his own. Wells later rejected the offer on behalf for Overend as he refused to let Overend work under Chermayeff as his subordinate. Overend passed his RIBA examinations in 1932 and joined the Architectural Association.

Overend was also a prolific writer, contributing regularly to ''The Argus'', ''Australian Home Beautiful'', and a variety of other esteemed publications. He was widely recognised for his exceptional ability to identify and articulate emerging trends well before they became evident to the broader public. With a forward-thinking approach, Overend consistently provided insightful commentary on innovations, highlighting their practical applications and advantages. His writings served as a valuable resource for designers and homeowners, offering them guidance and inspiration to adopt and implement these advancements in their projects. Through his work, Overend played a significant role in shaping the discourse around modern design and construction practices in Australia.

Practice in Melbourne

Overend returned to Melbourne in March 1933. The people he met and worked for, the experiences he had overseas, rounded off his formal architectural education. He was then offered a partnership with H. Vivian Taylor and G. A. Soilleux, architects of 499 Little Collins Street in May. It was only shortly after he was elected as an Associate of the RVIA. The firm later known as 'Messrs H. Vivian Taylor, Soilleux and Overend' specialized in cinema design. Important examples included the Windsor Theatre, Albert Street, Windsor, 1936 and the Padua Theatre, Brunswick in 1937, both now demolished, with only the heritage listed Rivoli Theatre in East Hawthorn still standing. Other commissions include service stations in Carlton and in Flinders Street at Queens Bridge in 1933.

While working at Taylor & Soilleux, and drawing on influences from his time working under Wells Coats in London, he designed Cairo Flats in 1935, a two story block of flats in Melbourne, for which he is best known. In 1937 he left the partnership to travel overseas again, sailing for Japan, but was diverted to Shanghai, where he found work with Lester Johnson & Morris, and worked on the design of an ultra-modern skyscraper for the Bund waterfront. The project was halted with the Japanese bombardment of the city in September, which Overend reported on extensively for the Australian press. In May 1938, Overend opened his own firm in Melbourne, and his projects were mainly residential before World War II began.

Between 1938 and 1955 Overend was appointed to the Housing Commission of the Victorian Architect's Panel where he advocated prefabricated housing solutions. He has been credited with the design for the Gippsland 'new town' of Churchill, announced in 1965.

Achievements

* Published in '' The Argus''
* Published in the ''Home Beautiful'', an art magazine from Geelong entitled Manuscripts
* Published in ''Table Talk''
* Awarded Prize-Winning Nursery Design in 1930
* Writer for the column, "Architecture and Property" in ''The Argus''
* One of four architects on the Architects Panel of the Housing Commission of Victoria from 1938 to 1955
* President of the Victorian Chapter of Australian Institute of Architects, 1961–1963
* National President of the Australian Institute of Architects, 1967–1968
* Awarded title of MBE in the 1977 New Years Honours for services to architecture
* To celebrate his contributions to the field of residential architecture, the Victorian chapter of the Australian Institute of Architects give out an annual award named after Best Overend.

Notable works

Armytage House

One of Overend's first works in this partnership was the design of the Armytage House, Mont Albert Road, Balwyn, 1933. An article in the ''Australian Home Beautiful'' talked about the simplicity of materials, and how this principle determined the form and finish of this house both internally and externally. The sweeping concrete stair ' apparently unsupported' and expressed on exterior by a curved corner tower, was a notable feature of the design. The house was demolished in 1980.

The Ascot Vale Estate

The Ascot Vale Estate, built on the site of the former Ascot Vale Racecourse, holds a significant place in Melbourne’s post-war urban development and social housing history. The racecourse, which operated from 1899 to 1945, was repurposed for military use during World War One and World War Two before the state government compulsorily acquired the land in 1946 as part of a nationwide effort to address the post-war housing shortage.

By 1947, Best Overend, deputy chairman of the Housing Commission of Victoria’s Architects’ Panel (1945–1955), completed the estate’s designs. Overend was a strong advocate for affordable and well-designed modernist housing, and played a key role in shaping the Housing Commission’s approach. His vision for the estate was influenced by his earlier work on Cairo Flats in Fitzroy, a celebrated example of modernist apartment living. Following a tour of Cairo Flats, Overend successfully persuaded his colleagues to adopt a similar design philosophy for Ascot Vale Estate, shifting the Commission’s focus from slum clearance to large-scale new developments.

The estate consisted of more than 50 freestanding housing blocks and was designed to accommodate over 2,500 residents. It featured hundreds of flats and 50 freestanding houses, primarily intended to rehouse individuals displaced by the Commission’s slum reclamation policies. Recognising the urgent housing shortage, the Commission expanded its efforts and developed substantial new housing estates.  Today, the Ascot Vale Estate stands as a landmark of post-war public housing, reflecting the architectural and social shifts that defined mid-20th-century Melbourne.

Cairo Flats

In December 1935, Overend was asked to design a block of 40 flats in Nicholson Street, Fitzroy. He proposed 28 apartments, mainly studio flats with a single main room, as well as some with a separate bedroom. The development included a shop, a communal dining room, storage rooms, and an apartment for a manager. They were planned as a U-shaped block around a garden, with two main long wings facing north with small balconies and large window-walls allowing maximum sun penetration. The building was completed in December 1936.

Koornong School

The Koornong School was established in 1939 by Clive (1908–1977) and Janet (1911–1992) Nield, inspired by the natural and artistic milieu of Warrandyte. Despite the uncertainties posed by the war in Europe, the Nields envisioned a modern, self-governing school set amidst the eucalypt bushland along the Yarra River in Warrandyte North. Their aim was to create a free-thinking educational environment, with architecture reflecting their belief that learning spaces are integral to a child’s development.

Best Overend was chosen to design buildings that aligned with this progressive educational concept. He used flat or skillion roof buildings, external studwork, and stone chimneys, all arranged organically within the bush setting by the river. Students actively contributed to the construction of key facilities, including an art studio, a swimming pool, and a dining room. However, wartime restrictions and financial mismanagement created significant challenges, culminating in the school’s closure in 1947. The experiment ended amidst chronic financial difficulties following the Second World War. Tragically, many of the original buildings were destroyed by bushfires in 1962.

House in North Balwyn

Another of Overend's projects for a house was built on a hillside in 1939. It is located in North Balwyn. /sup> The house was two stories high, and is a rectangular prism. It is made from brick, cement sheets, steel, and timber. Each area inside was separated by a sliding curtain. /sup>

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Overend, Best
1909 births
1977 deaths
People from Launceston, Tasmania
People educated at Wesley College (Victoria)
20th-century Australian architects