Robert Woodward (architect)
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Robert Raymond (Bob) Woodward (5 June 1923 – 21 February 2010) was an Australian
architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
who gained widespread recognition for his innovative
fountain A fountain, from the Latin "fons" ( genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were o ...
designs.


Background and early career

Robert Raymond Woodward was born in Wentworthville in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
's western suburbs, the son of a public service accountant. Woodward was educated at Granville Technical Granville and
Sydney Technical College The Sydney Technical College, now part of TAFE NSW, is a technical school established in 1878, that superseded the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts. The college is one of Australia's oldest technical education institutions. History The Sydney M ...
. He served in the army during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
working as an armourer. He was initially stationed with the Lachlan Macquarie 54th Regiment in Bathurst, then at Victoria Barracks where he completed an armoury course at East Sydney Technical College. Woodward later explained that being in the army at a young age had taught him to be responsible for the work he was doing and how to give instructions effectively. It also opened up the opportunity to study architecture at the University of Sydney School of Architecture, Design and Planning after the war as part of the huge post-war repatriation intake of ex-servicemen. Woodward commenced his architectural degree in 1947 and was impressed by teachers such as Leslie Wilkinson,
George Molnar George Molnar () (25 April 1910, Nagyvárad – 16 November 1998, Sydney) was born in Nagyvárad, Austria-Hungary and came to Australia in 1939 as a sponsored migrant, to take up a job as government architect. His talents were such that in ...
and Lloyd Rees. As a student he worked for Harry Divola and Peddle Thorp & Walker, while he represented Australia in the 440-yard hurdles at the 1950 British Empire Games in New Zealand. After graduating with honours in 1952 he joined the
Royal Australian Institute of Architects The Australian Institute of Architects, officially the Royal Australian Institute of Architects (abbreviated as RAIA), is Australia's professional body for architects. Its members use the post-nominals FRAIA (Fellow), ARAIA (Associate Member) an ...
and worked briefly for Peddle Thorp & Walker, detailing industrial buildings, but soon headed off for England. He toured Europe with friends from Sydney before settling in Finland where he was privileged to work for a year with
Alvar Aalto Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto (; 3 February 1898 – 11 May 1976) was a Finnish architect and designer. His work includes architecture, furniture, textiles and glassware, as well as sculptures and paintings. He never regarded himself as an artist, see ...
. He also spent another year in Finland working for the firm of Viljo Revell. Upon his return he went into partnership, forming Woodward, Taranto and Wallace, specialising in commercial and industrial architecture. Woodward considered that architectural education in Finland was impressive in the way that it demanded that its students actually build structures. He considered that "architects need to understand materials" and was impressed by 'Aalto's multi-disciplinary approach where landscape is involved in the building, and interior design, lighting, furnishings, fabrics... I think Aalto's main contribution, and this is to put it very simplistically ... was that he was able to get the best of Bauhaus as well as organic work... Aalto's principles, as stated by him, are that essentially everything in architecture is related to biology. If you take a leaf from a tree, for example, you can see... design principles which should apply to architecture itself. The first item is cellular structure which Aalto saw as the cells being spatial - not physical elements put together but spaces, and a leaf is made up of a whole multitude of similar cells. They mightn't be the same but they are similar and from one family. The way they are structured together is a flexible combination of those elements - cellular structure, flexible combination and the repetition...'Johnson, 1996, pp189-190 Woodward returned to Sydney in 1954 where he had some job offers from big firms, but instead formed a small partnership with Phil Taranto in
Bankstown Bankstown is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 19 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the Canterbury-Bankstown region. Bankstown is the administrative centre ...
, they were later joined by Scott Wallace. They worked on small scale sites like a fruit shop in Bankstown, where they rationalized the work spaces, designed light fittings and introduced mirrored walls to increase the impression of light and plenty - innovations which were widely "copied and mass produced".Johnson, 1996, p193


Landscape architecture

In 1959, Woodward submitted a design to a City of Sydney competition to construct a fountain in Kings Cross, mainly as a professional "design exercise" for himself.Johnson, 1996, p194 The design commemorated the war service of the 9th Division of the
Second Australian Imperial Force The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was the volunteer expeditionary force of the Australian Army in the Second World War. It was formed following the declaration of war on Nazi Germany, with an initial strength of one ...
. He won the competition in the name of his firm Woodward & Taranto and went on to build the El Alamein Fountain, as it became known, was completed in 1961. Combining his architectural and earlier
metalwork Metalworking is the process of shaping and reshaping metals in order to create useful objects, parts, assemblies, and large scale structures. As a term, it covers a wide and diverse range of processes, skills, and tools for producing objects on e ...
training he developed the "
dandelion ''Taraxacum'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, which consists of species commonly known as dandelions. The scientific and hobby study of the genus is known as taraxacology. The genus has a near-cosmopolitan distribu ...
" inspired fountain which became one of the world's most copied designs. The fountain won the New South Wales Institute of Architects Civic Design Award in 1964. This was an immediate success and led to the gradual reorientation of his career into national and international prominence as a fountain designer. In 1968 the Woodward Taranto Wallace partnership was dissolved and Woodward continued alone as a sole practitioner with a focus on fountain design, joining the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects in 1989. He is responsible for many of the most prominent and admired fountains in Australia. In his oral history interview with
Hazel de Berg Hazel Estelle de Berg (; 21 March 1913 – 3 February 1984) was an Australian pioneering oral historian and broadcaster who conducted recordings locally and abroad including the United Kingdom and United States. De Berg recorded her collections ...
in 1972, Woodward stated:De Berg, 1972, p7111 Woodward suggested that he did not restrict himself to fountain design, as he explained to De Berg:De Berg, p7112, 7122-3 Due to the success of this fountain, Woodward was approached for further commissions for fountain designs, significantly altering his career path. In 1979, he created the
Canberra Times ''The Canberra Times'' is a daily newspaper in Canberra, Australia, which is published by Australian Community Media. It was founded in 1926, and has changed ownership and format several times. History ''The Canberra Times'' was launched in 1 ...
fountain, commissioned for the newspaper's fiftieth anniversary. Following this, he was commissioned to design a fountain for the High Court of Australia Building in Canberra, a cascade beside the ceremonial ramp. In 1981, he completed a fountain for GJ Coles & Company for the Parliament Reserve in
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
. The Darling Harbour Woodward Water Feature outside the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre completed in 1988 was one of Woodward's most important works. It was a beautiful piece of design with its interplay of water, light and surface texture. It is both an irresistibly interactive water element and beautiful spiral sculptural form. Woodward was the recipient of many awards and honours in his lifetime, including the NSW Institute of Architect's Civic Design Award for the El Alamein Fountain in 1964, and in 1991 ACT Chapter RAIA
Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...
Medallion, for New Parliament House, the 1991 NSW Chapter Civic Design Merit Award for Darling Harbour, the 1991 RAIA Walter Burley Griffin Award for Darling Harbour, the 1991 RAIA Civic Design Award for Darling Harbour, and the 1992 AILA National Awards in Landscape Architecture Civic Design Project Award. In 1987 he was appointed a Member of Order of Australia for his services to architecture and fountain design.


Selected works by Robert Woodward

* El Alamein Fountain, Kings Cross,
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
1959 * St Paul's Church, Wentworthville, Sydney 1964 *Alcoa Forecourt Fountain,
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
1967 *Archibald Memorial Fountain, Restoration of 1933 fountain,
Hyde Park, Sydney Hyde Park, Sydney, is an urban park, of , located in the Sydney central business district, central business district of Sydney, in the City of Sydney local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It is the oldest public parkland in Aust ...
1968 *Bank of California Fountain
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1969 *Dandelion Fountain, 1345_Avenue_of_the_Americas 1969 *Geyser Room Restaurant, New Zealand Pavilion,
Expo '70 The or Expo '70 was a world's fair held in Suita, Osaka Prefecture, Japan, between 15 March and 13 September 1970. Its theme was "Progress and Harmony for Mankind." In Japanese, Expo '70 is often referred to as . It was the first world's fair ...
,
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1970 *Tupperware Forecourt Fountain Orlando,
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
1970 *Chifley Square Fountain Sydney 1971 *Grace Memorial Fountain,
Roselands Roselands is a suburb to the south-western Sydney, south-west of the Sydney CBD, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Roselands is located 16 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district in the City of Canterbury-Banksto ...
Campsie, Sydney 1972 *Berger Foundation Fountain,
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1975 *Wall of Water, Sydney Square, Town Hall, Sydney 1976 *Blue Wave Ceramic Sculpture, Bondi Junction Plaza Sydney 1977 *Mini El Alamein Fountain, Perak Turf Club,
Ipoh Ipoh (, ) is the capital city of the Malaysian States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Perak. Located on the Kinta River, it is nearly north of Kuala Lumpur and southeast of George Town, Penang, George Town in neighbouring Penang ...
, Malaysia 1978 *Canberra Times Fountain,
Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...
1979 *Forecourt Cascades, High Court of Australia Building, Canberra 1980 *Five Islands Fountain donated by the Illawarra Mercury,
Wollongong Wollongong ( ; Dharawal: ''Woolyungah'') is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near water' or 'sound ...
1981 *GJ Coles Fountain, Parliament Gardens,
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
1981 *Lane Cove Plaza proposal, Lane Cove, Sydney 1981 *Mount Street Doughnuts
North Sydney North Sydney is a suburb and commercial district on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. And is the administrative centre for the local government area of North Sydney Council. History The Indigenous people on the s ...
1982 *New South Wales Parliament House Courtyard Fountain Sydney 1983 * Lyric Theatre Fountain, Queensland Performing Arts Centre,
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
1984 *Palmerston City Square Fountain Darwin 1985 *Pacific Bell Forecourt Fountain,
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1988 *Forecourt,
Parliament House, Canberra Parliament House is the meeting place of the Parliament of Australia, the Legislature, legislative body of Politics of Australia, Australia's federal system of government. The building also houses the core of the Executive (government), execut ...
1988 *Darling Harbour Water Feature outside the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre 1988 *Modular Spiral Stair, precast
Bankstown Bankstown is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 19 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the Canterbury-Bankstown region. Bankstown is the administrative centre ...


Selected works

Image:El Alamein Fountain, Sydney.jpg, El Alamein Fountain, Kings Cross (1961) File:Morshead Fountain, Sydney.jpg, Morshead Fountain in the
Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney is a heritage-listed major botanical garden, event venue and public recreation area located at Farm Cove, New South Wales, Farm Cove on the eastern fringe of the Sydney central business district, in the City of ...
(1966) File:Canberra Times Fountain January 2014.jpg, The ''Canberra Times'' Fountain, Canberra (1979) Image:High Court Australia-03JAC.jpg, Cascade at the High Court of Australia Building in Canberra (1980) File:Robert Woodward fountain at NSW Parliament House.jpg, Fountain at NSW Parliament House, Sydney (1983) File:DarlingHarbour2 gobeirne.jpg, Darling Harbour Water Feature, Darling Harbour (1988) File:2015-09-17 Parliament House, Canberra - 1.jpg, Parliament House, Canberra (1988) File:Citibank_Fountain_(870231228).jpg, 1345 Avenue of the Americas (1969)


References


Bibliography

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Attribution


External links


Sculptors Society
(Sydney) website, with photographs, architectural drawings, and 3 essays. {{DEFAULTSORT:Woodward, Robert 1923 births 2010 deaths Members of the Order of Australia 20th-century Australian sculptors Modernist architects Australian landscape architects Australian male hurdlers Commonwealth Games competitors for Australia Athletes (track and field) at the 1950 British Empire Games Australian Army personnel of World War II Architects from Sydney 20th-century Australian sportsmen