Perth, Australia : Best House in the Universe as We Know It

Man. Where to start. Last blog post, I was forty stories up, in an abandoned skyscraper, looking down on a peoples takeover of Bangkok. Rocket launchers, tanks, death, destruction, and Pad Thai with spicy Papaya Salad. Yes, it was heaven. Unfortunately, as with all anarchic movements, eventually, they are beaten into submission by the man. So, I packed up, said goodbye to my new friend Sui Min, and left the land of smiles. This year, so far, I have visited more than twenty countries. Deep in the heart of Bulgaria, I couldn't but think of my favourite architect, Iwan Iwanoff. For those of you who need to get up to speed, Iwan Iwanoff, born in Bulgaria, built some of the best houses on earth, right here in Perth, between the 50's and 70's. Unique, ahead of their time, mesmerising, both timeless and un-date-able. First thing I wanted to do on my return to Perth was further research into this Honorary Herculoidian's body of work.

The Schmidt-Lademann House, in Floreat, is quite simply one of the best houses I have ever laid my eyes upon. Built in 1959, this is, as my architect associates would say "fuck off awesome". What can I tell you about? The elegant formalism, the modernist function, or the usonion simplicity and economy of locally sourced stone walls? Fuck it, I would rather just put it out there - this is Perth's best house. I haven't even seen the interior. I'm pretty sure if I did, I would simultaneously weep, quiver, and shit my pants. Perth's best house. Not to mention, it has held this title for over four decades. The Aldrich residence, currently under construction, will be the next contender for the title. More on this unbelievably complex project, another day.

Below the Schmidt-Lademannt pics, are photos of some other Iwanoff's not previously featured on 6000times. The brutal letterbox and wall detail were taken at the Feldman House, 1969, Dianella. Finally, the Frank House, also of 1969, Coolbinia wraps up a long overdue Iwanoff update. My thanks goes to the neighbour, who gave me a tour around the Frank property. The Frank House elevation is clearly not as impressive as Schmidt-Lademann, however, a quick walk around demonstrated the genius of Iwanoff.  Features such as central courtyard walled on three sides, and wooden louvres providing airflow built into many of the windows, quickly dispelled any doubts that this house is indeed special.

So, yep, back in Perth. There are a few things planned for this blog, all of which involve architecture, abandoned structures, art, and often, asians. A.A.A.A. Stay tuned, subscribe, bookmark. It's good to be back. Click Read More to see the photos. Enjoy.

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Abandoned Junky Den of Death - Perth, 6000, Western Australia

Conveniently located right in the middle of the Perth 6000 postcode, lies another abandoned warehouse. Situated close to public transport, parks, and the Northbridge entertainment precinct, it features vaulted exposed-beam ceilings, and open plan design. Currently utilised as a training ground for drug abuse, homeless living, and of course, interior decoration, art, and design, internally it does look amazing. You can't buy interior decoration like this. This is patina. You can't buy patina. You can't fake patina. You know why? Because you can't buy time. Nobody can. For sale now, I'm fairly certain realestate.com.au won't be showing you photos like these. Please enjoy a photo tour of another of Perth City's abandoned buildings.

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Restaurant Review : Good Fortune Roast Duck House, Northbridge. Plus, Abandoned Sail Factory Photo Tour

Good Fortune Roast Duck restaurant, William Street, Northbridge. An institution. However, during a recent visit, something terrible happened to me. I feel so dirty. So ashamed. So... so... white. I ordered the boneless roast duck with noodles, and an extra serving of choy sum. Its a great lunch time treat. Always delivered to the table quickly. This time,  something was wrong. Very wrong. Trinny and Susannah wrong. Although I am finding it difficult just remembering the experience, I have to write it down here, you know, to let it out, and move on with my life. Yes, I got the dreaded - Guilo Special. AKA the whitey deluxe. No duck sauce. No plum sauce. Am I really, just another Guilo?

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Iwan Iwanoff, Artist - Three More of Perths Best Houses, plus, Amok and Abandoned in Northbridge

Iwan Iwanoff was prolific. Lucky Perth. This modernist piece is located in the inner-city garden suburb of Coolbinia. Perths Best Architecture has covered this one recently, if you haven't checked the site, you should. Over there, its all about architecture. Over here, well, just look at the "labels" list for this blog. This may be the Flaumen residence, 1965. Sources sketchy on that one.

This is purely for juxtapositional purposes. Northbridge delivery truck.

Now this one, kills two birds with one stone. There's a nice flow from the last photo, and Harry Seidlers QV1 in the background will take me from this tangent, and back to another Iwanoff.

We're back. Yes. Another Iwanoff residence. I found out about this one, from an anonymous comment left here. Thanks, Anonymous person. Dalkeith Iwanoff. Year and name, unknown to me. Probably mid 60's. However, it should be said that these houses hurt me. Really, it actually hurts.

As my colleague said today "what the fuck do you think the posty said when he came across this for the first time?". The art of the letter box. Iwanoff was clearly as much artist as architect.

Back in the epicentre of Iwanoff terriory - Dianella. AKA Iwanella, home to many, many Iwanoffs, such as the utterly spectacular Masala House. The Feldman House, 1968, predated Masala by 6 years. Great detail, as usual, starting with the letter box, and finishing off with a good dash of Mike Brady. Fantastic.

Winter in Perth.

So, there we have it. Three more Iwanoff buildings, taking the total on this site, to twenty five. Very prolific! I'm sure there are more Iwanoff's to come. (wink).

In the meantime, it could have been another abandoned building post, but really, it was sunny outside, so I stopped right here. William St, Northbridge.

Just across the street was much better. Dutch artist Amok, from Amsterdam, home of, well, everything good, has been busy with the locals. His international flavor on William St, Northbridge, adds nicely to the pallet already on offer. Thanks Amok, thanks locals. Panoramic picture, click for the full version.

Perth's Abandoned Buildings - Part 2

Where to begin? The Pacific Motel (and licensed restaurant) is superbly located right on the Highgate/Mount Lawley border. A convenient part of town - the Queens Hotel, restaurants, and shopping, are just a few metres away. It's a quick bike ride to the middle of the city.



Balconies are provided to all rooms.

The hallways have had a recent renovation.

Guests can opt for either a north facing standard suite, with Mount Lawley district views...

..and en suite...

..or one of the more spacious, south facing deluxe rooms...

..with Perth CBD views...

..and of course, en suite.

Look, there's no way, at this point, to keep the charade going. This place is quite simply a scary, derelict, abandoned, and crumbling motel. Having formerly lived on this street (6 years ago), I was pretty amazed to see just how bad this building had got. Answer? Pretty fucking bad! Even at its peak, when it was open, the place was scary. Room rates by the hour. Piano bar full of hookers, but...all of that pales in comparison to this utterly disturbed piece of art, currently on display in room 318 (open 24 hours).

"FUCK YOU KEATING"

The pool.

Pretty certain I will be having nightmares tonight.

So, I am pretty much without speech. A crack den in the middle of Mount Lawley. This was a really disturbing place.

On that note, more of Perth's abandoned buildings, coming soon!

Perth's Abandoned Buildings - Part 1, of many more to come...

Abandoned Fremantle Power Station. Pretty hard to do this building justice with photos. The scale of the interior space is huge, open, with soaring ceilings and impeccable interior design. Formerly, there must have been 10,000 panes of glass. Now, there's about three. Despite our best efforts to remove this oversight by the designers, we couldn't throw any bricks high enough to take out the remaining eyesores. Buildings like this are an integral part to the diversity and culture of any modern city. Thankfully, the entire structure has been heritage listed, and there are plans in place to preserve the artwork and remaining fixtures, including a vintage Datsun 120Y sedan.

On this day, visitors to this abandoned building included photographers, artists, and models. Progressive parents had bought their children down to play. One young child was particularly proud of his collection of empty spray cans (thousands litter the floor), his father, not so impressed with the haul. Males, females, young and old. There were no laws, no restrictions, no rules. Smoking inside was OK. Spontaneous conversations were struck with complete strangers. A friendly vibe filled the air. A perfect juxtaposition of respect, and anarchy.

EDIT : There is now a PART TWO of this building, with other area's of magnificent decay! CLICK HERE for Part Two)

To get a sense of the scale, in the first photo, look at the man, standing in the background just above the yellow tag. At a guess, I would say an eight level apartment block could be built entirely inside this space, with room to spare.

Another of Perth's cultural and architectural highlights for sure.