Sir Roy Burman Grounds (18 December 1905 – 2 March 1981) was an Australian architect. His early work included buildings influenced by the Moderne movement of the 1930s, and his later buildings of the 1950s and 1960s, such as the

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and list of most visited art museums in the world, most visited art mu ...

and the adjacent

Victorian Arts Centre Arts Centre Melbourne, originally known as the Victorian Arts Centre and briefly called the Arts Centre, is a performing arts centre consisting of a complex of theatres and concert halls in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, located in the central M ...

, cemented his legacy as a leader in Australian architecture. Artist Marr Grounds was his son.

Early life and education

Born on 18 December 1905 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 ...

, Grounds was educated at several schools, including

Scotch College Melbourne Scotch College is a private school, private, Presbyterian Day school, day and boarding school for boys, located in Hawthorn, Victoria, Hawthorn, an inner-eastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Victoria, Austral ...

and Melbourne Church of England Grammar School. In the mid 1920s, he began his articles with the architectural firm of Blackett, Forster and Craig, where Geoffrey Mewton was doing the same. By 1928 they were both studying at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

Architectural Atelier, where they won first prize in an Institute of Architects Exhibition for a house costing under £1000. They both also won scholarships to further their studies later that year. After graduating in 1928 they travelled to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

together with another student, Oscar Bayne, where they all shared digs.Goad, P and Willis, J (2012). "The Encyclopaedia of Australian Architecture", p. 452-453. Cambridge University Press, Victoria, Australia. After working in London for a while, Grounds worked in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

for two years. It was there that his son, Marr Grounds was born.

Career

On his return to Australia in 1932, Grounds shared an office with Mewton, who had already set up a solo practice the previous year, where they worked on projects separately, but published under "Mewton & Grounds". One of their first projects that is attributed to Grounds was radically modern for Melbourne - located in the hills of Upper Beaconsfield, Wildfell, built in 1933, was a long flat roofed rectilinear composition of white painted brick, with red and cream brick details and corner windows. This was followed in 1934 by the Milky Way Cafe in Little Collins Street, a venture of the United Milk Producers Society to encourage milk consumption, with modern tubular steel furniture and flush recessed lighting panels. While Mewton produced many designs in a Modernism combining the brick volumes of

Willem Dudok Willem Marinus Dudok (6 July 1884 – 6 April 1974) was a famous Dutch modernist architect. He was born in Amsterdam. He became City Architect for the town of Hilversum in 1928 where he was best known for the brick Hilversum Town Hall, comp ...

with European Bauhaus starkness, Grounds' distinctive work was influenced by the simple, rough modernism of US West Coast architect William Wurster. The most notable expression of this influence are a series of houses including Portland Lodge, Lyncroft and the Ramsay House, all on the

Mornington Peninsula The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located in the south of Greater Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to ...

, the Fairbairn House in

Toorak Toorak () is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Stonnington local government area. Toorak recorded a population of 12,817 at the 2021 census. The name ...

and the house for the Chateau Tahbilk winery. Grounds also designed in a more

Streamline Moderne Streamline Moderne is an international style of Art Deco architecture and design that emerged in the 1930s. Inspired by Aerodynamics, aerodynamic design, it emphasized curving forms, long horizontal lines, and sometimes nautical elements. In indu ...

style, with his own family holiday house on the peninsula nicknamed "The Ship" due to its long horizontal asbestos-cement sheet flat forms topped by a pipe railing and a glass walled lookout, and the similarly styled Rosanove House in nearby Frankston. In about 1937, Grounds ended the partnership with Mewton, spending time in England again until 1939. Grounds returned and established a solo practice between 1939 and 1942, and designed a series of unusually modern flat developments in the Toorak area which further established his reputation as a modernist: Moonbria, with its balustrades topped with Swedish blue tiles and Quamby 1939-41, both situated in Toorak, are buildings which consist of studio, one or two-bedroom apartments. 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 ...

he served in the

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(1942—1945) as a Flight Lieutenant, performing works and camouflage duties. After the war, Grounds retired for a few years, returning in 1951 as a senior lecturer at the School of Architecture at Melbourne University. In 1953, he resumed his architectural practice and produced a series of houses, including his own, based on pure geometric shapes. The Leyser House was triangular, the Henty House was circular, and his own house was square, with a central circular courtyard. This theme was repeated in later projects, including the circular Round House in Hobart, and the square Master's Lodge at Ormond College. Roy Grounds House

When Grounds, Frederick Romberg and Robin Boyd formed their partnership in 1953 all were well established in Victoria. Each brought substantial work to the practice, which they usually worked on separately, and the firm became very successful. Shine dome

Grounds' first large commission was for the

Australian Academy of Science The Australian Academy of Science was founded in 1954 by a group of distinguished Australians, including Australian Fellows of the Royal Society of London. The first president was Sir Mark Oliphant. The academy is modelled after the Royal Soci ...

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 ...

. The construction of its

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete, also called ferroconcrete or ferro-concrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having higher tensile strength or ...

dome was a considerable technical achievement. Opened in 1959, it won the Meritorious Architecture Award of the Canberra Area Committee of 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 ...

(RAIA) and the Sulman Award for Architectural Merit. The Academy building also led to other work in Canberra, initially for the firm and later Grounds himself. Grounds opened a Canberra office in the Forrest Townhouses (1959), which he designed and partly financed. In 1959 the firm was awarded the commission to design the

and

Arts Centre An art centre or arts center is distinct from an art gallery or art museum. An arts centre is a functional community centre with a specific remit to encourage arts practice and to provide facilities such as theatre space, gallery space, venues fo ...

, with Grounds named in the contract as the architect in charge. When Boyd and Romberg were mildly critical of the preliminary geometric designs that Grounds showed them, relations between the partners became strained, and in 1962 Grounds left the partnership, taking the commission with him and setting up his own company with Oscar Bayne. National Gallery of Victoria 2024

Under a building committee chaired by the philanthropist Ken Myer, Grounds devoted the next twenty years of his life to the completion of the Arts Centre. His longest-serving architectural associates throughout this period were Alan Nelson, Fritz Suendermann, Lou Gerhardt and Allan Stillman. While the gallery was brought in on time and budget, the complicated

Yarra River The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia. The lower st ...

site for the Concert Hall and Theatre Complex resulted in building delays and criticism. Unlike the fate that befell Jørn Utzon on the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue Performing arts center, performing arts centre in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive b ...

project, Grounds managed to hold on to his commission from the

Victorian Government The Victoria State Government, also referred to as the Victorian Government, is the executive government of the Australian state of Victoria. As a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, the State Government was first formed in 1851 when Vic ...

despite tumult within his company in the late 1970s. Grounds showed

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

the massive excavations shortly before his death. Much of the theatres' interior designs were completed by

John Truscott John Edward Truscott (23 February 1936 – 5 September 1993) was an Australian actor, production designer, costume designer and artistic director. He won two Academy Awards for his work on the 1967 film '' Camelot''. Career Truscott began hi ...

after Grounds' death. One of his last designs was

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

's iconic 18-story octagonal tower and Wrest Point Hotel Casino complex.

Recognition and honours

*1959: RAIA Meritorious Architecture Award *1959: Sir John Sulman Medal for Architectural Merit *1961: Canberra Medallion *1968: RAIA Gold Medal,

*1969:

Knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

as a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

*1969: elected a life fellow of the RAIA *1998: ACT 25 Year Award for Vasey Crescent Houses, Campbell *2001: ACT 25 Year Award for

*2018: ACT Award for Enduring Architecture renamed the Sir Roy Grounds Award for Enduring Architecture

Death and legacy

Grounds died on 2 March 1981. His early work included buildings influenced by the Moderne movement of the 1930s, and his later buildings of the 1950s and 1960s, such as the

and the adjacent

, cemented his legacy as a leader in Australian architecture. In 2011, with the opening of the

Museum of Old and New Art The Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) is an art museum located within the Moorilla Estate, Moorilla winery on the Berriedale, Tasmania, Berriedale peninsula in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is the largest privately funded museum in the South ...

(MONA) in Hobart, Tasmania, two houses designed and built there by Grounds in 1957–1958 for Claudio Alcorso on the Moorilla Estate—the Courtyard House and the Round House—became respectively the entrance and the library of Australia's largest private museum.

Family and personal life

Grounds married Regina Marr, an American divorcee (aka Virginia Lammers; Marr was her maiden name). Their son, artist Marr Grounds, was born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in 1930. There was not a close relationship between father and son, and the parents split in 1939 and divorced a couple of years later in 1941. Roy Grounds created a scandal when he left his wife for the wife of Tom Ramsay, Alice Bettine Ramsay. Ramsay (son of William Ramsay) was known as "Mr Kiwi Boot Polish". The Grounds family lived in the affluent suburb of

at the time. Marr was married to artist Joan Grounds for some time, and died in

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

in 2021. Although he lectured in architecture, he never practised as an architect. He was known for his sculpture, and for co-founding the art workshop Tin Sheds at

Sydney University The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

with Donald Brook.

Key works

Mewton & Grounds Attributed to both but likely Grounds: * 'Portland Lodge', Henty House, 1 Plummer Avenue, Olivers Hill, Frankston, Victoria (c1935) (this is adjacent to his 1953 Henty House) * Fairbairn House, 236 Kooyong Road,

Toorak, Victoria Toorak () is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the City of Stonnington Local government areas of Victoria, ...

(1935–1936) * Flats, 2-6 North Road,

Brighton, Victoria Brighton is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, 11 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the City of Bayside Local government areas of Victo ...

(1936) Altered. * House, 493 Kooyong Road, Elsternwick (1936) Attributed to Grounds: *'The Ship' (Grounds' family house), 35 Rannoch Avenue, Mt Eliza, Victoria (1935) *Rosanove House, 12 Gould Street, Frankston (c1935, demolished) *Lyncroft, 410 Tucks Road, Shoreham (1935) * Chateau Tahbilk homestead, 254 O'Neils Road, Tahbilk (1935) *Thomas House, 12 Reid Street Balwyn, (c1935, demolished) *Ramsay House, 2 Rendelsham Avenue, Mt Eliza, Victoria (1937) *Second Milky Way Cafe, 175 Collins Street, Melbourne (1937) Roy Grounds *Clendon Flats, 13 Clendon Road, Armadale (1939—1940) *Moonbria Flats, 68 Mathoura Road, Toorak (1939—1941) *Quamby Flats, 3 Glover Court, Toorak (1939—1941) *Clendon Corner, Armadale (1939—1941) *Leyser House, Kew (1952) Altered. * Grounds House and flats, 24 Hill Street, Toorak, Victoria(1953) *Henty House (Round house), 581 Nepean Highway, Olivers Hill, Frankston South (1953) Grounds Romberg & Boyd *Currawong Ski Lodge, 13 Jack Adams Pathway, Thredbo, New South Wales (1957)Currawong Ski Lodge
/ref> *Mirrabooka, 30—34 Moore Road, Vermont, Melbourne *The Courtyard House (1957) and The Round House (1958), Moorilla Estate (both now part of The Museum of Old and New Art), 655 Main Rd, Berriedale, Hobart *Masters Lodge, Ormond College, Melbourne University (1958) *Vice Masters Lodge (alterations), Ormond College, Melbourne University (1958) *

(Shine Dome), 15 Gordon Street, Acton, Canberra (1959) *Forrest Townhouses, 3 Tasmania Circle, Forrest, ACT (1959) *Vasey Crescent Houses, 42, 44 and 46 Vasey Crescent, Campbell, ACT (1960) *McNicoll House, 19 Gordon Grove, South Yarra, Victoria (1962—1963). Roy Grounds & Co. Pty. Ltd. *

CSIRO The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government agency that is responsible for scientific research and its commercial and industrial applications. CSIRO works with leading organisations arou ...

Phytotron Building, Clunies Ross Street, Acton, ACT (1963) *Botany Building (D.A. Brown Building),

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

, Acton Campus, Canberra, ACT (1968) *

, 200 St Kilda Road, Melbourne (1959—1968) * National Gallery Art School and West Garden for outdoor sculptures, Nolan Street, Melbourne (1968—1969) *Medley Building,

(1968—1971) *Frankel House, 4 Cobby Street, Campbell, ACT (1969—1970) * Robert Blackwood Hall,

Monash University Monash University () is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Named after World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the ...

, Victoria (1968-1971) * Swan Hill Pioneer Settlement and Folk Museum expansion,

Swan Hill, Victoria Swan Hill is a List of cities in Australia, city in the northwest of Victoria, Australia on the Murray Valley Highway and on the south bank of the Murray River, downstream from the junction of the Loddon River, Victoria, Loddon River. At the , ...

(early 1970s) * Nicholas families homes, 22 Hill Street,

, Melbourne (c1970) much altered. * Wrest Point Hotel Casino, Hobart, Tasmania (1973) *

Arts Centre Melbourne Arts Centre Melbourne, originally known as the Victorian Arts Centre and briefly called the Arts Centre, is a performing arts centre consisting of a complex of theatres and concert halls in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, located in the central M ...

, 100 St Kilda Road, Melbourne (1969—1984)

Gallery of works

File:Milky Way cafe photo 1935 SLV.jpg, Milky Way cafe File:Shine dome.jpg, Shine Dome, Australian Academy of Science File:National gallery victoria international.jpg, National Gallery of Victoria File:Wrest-Point-Hotel-Casino.jpg, Wrest Point Hotel Casino, Hobart, Tasmania

References

Sources

* Goad, Philip James (1992), "The modern house in Melbourne, 1945-1975", PhD Thesis, Melbourne University. *Jennifer Taylor, ''Australian Architecture Since 1960'', RAIA, 1990 * Philip Goad, ''A Guide to Melbourne Architecture'', Sydney, 1999 * Geoffrey Serle, ''Robin Boyd: A Life'', Melbourne, 1995 * Eric Westbrook, ''Birth of a Gallery'', Macmillan Australia, Melbourne, 1968 * Conrad Hamann,
Grounds, Sir Roy Burman (1905–1981)
', Australian Dictionary of Biography

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grounds, Roy 1905 births 1981 deaths Architects from Melbourne Modernist architects Modernist architecture in Australia Australian Knights Bachelor Recipients of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects’ Gold Medal People educated at Scotch College, Melbourne University of Melbourne alumni 20th-century Australian architects