Melbourne City Spine Architecture Walk (Central Melbourne)
Creative in design, courageous in innovation - Making headlines as a 'design city', Melbourne thrives on ideas and innovation, fuelled by the imaginations of our city's many designers, architects and artists. Fresh and fearless design abounds in a city where each new idea sparks bigger flames of inspiration in others.
This 1.5 hour City Spine walking tour gives a fantastic overview of Melbourne's diverse architecture. Starting at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art and finishing at the Melbourne Museum, you will visit many of the architectural adventures that have transformed Melbourne from building blocks to building blockbuster.
City Spine & Docklands Architecture Walking Tour
City Spine Walking Tour
1. Australian Centre for Contemporary Art (2002) Wood Marsh Architects
2. School of Drama, Victorian College of the Arts (2002) Edmond & Corrigan
3. Centre for Ideas, Victorian College of the Arts (2004) Minifie Nixon
4. Melbourne Theatre Company & Melbourne Recital Centre (2008) Ashton Raggat McDougall
5. Eureka Tower (2006) Fender Katsalidis (Tip: Look for the Queen Bees by artist Richard Stringer)
6. Queensbridge Square (2006) City of Melbourne
7. Australian Histories and The Travellers (2006) City of Melbourne and Nadim Karam
8. Federation Square (2002) Lab Architecture Studio, Bates Smart
9. Flinders Street Station (1910) IW Fawcett, HPC Ashworth
10. St Paul's Cathedral (1891) William Butterfield, Reed and Barnes
11. Adelphi Hotel (1993) Denton Corker Marshall (Tip: Look up to see the 'edgy' swimming pool built into this five-star hotel.)
12. Manchester Unity Building (1932) Marcus Barlow
13. Melbourne Town Hall (1867) Joseph Reed
14. Capitol Theatre (1924) Walter Burley and Marion Mahony Griffin
15. Council House 2 (2006) City of Melbourne, DesignInc.
16. Curtin House (1922) (Tip: Investigate all six floors inside to discover chic bars, a bookshop, and a rooftop cinema)
17. QV (2005) Denton Corker Marshall; Lyons Architects; Kerstin Thompson Architects; John Wardle Architects, McBride Charles Ryan, NH Architecture
18. State Library of Victoria (1856/1990-2005) Joseph Reed / Ancher Mortlock & Woolley, Geyer
19. Melbourne Central (1988-2005) Kisho Kurokawa, Bates Smart and McCutcheon and Hassetl/Ashton Raggat McDougall
20. Storey Hall (1887/1995) Tappin Gilbert & Dennehy / Ashton Raggatt McDougall
21. RMIT Building 8 (1993) Edmond and Corrigan
22. Royal Exhibition Building (1880) Joseph Reed
23. Melbourne Museum (2000) Denton Corker Marshall.
Federation Square - a centre for design and innovation
The opening of Federation Square in 2002 stirred our city's passion for good design. Today, nearly every Melburnian has an opinion on architecture, and many use Federation Square as an example of excellence. With a unique sloping plaza and a dramatic glass and steel atrium, Federation Square is a fantastic starting point for your journey. It's also home to three key institutions of innovation: Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI), National Design Centre and The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia.
Melbourne Docklands
The west of the city holds a wealth of new design discoveries. There's the Southern Cross Station on Spencer Street, with its unique sculptured rooftop. The station is also the gateway to Melbourne Docklands.
Docklands is the city's latest waterfront precinct, built on the former site of an industrial port. Docklands features some award-winning partnerships between artists and architects. Architecture of note includes:
24. Tower 5 at Yarra's Edge (2000) Wood Marsh Architects. This award-winning apartment tower features a diamond-shaped exterior and bronze torso.
25. Webb Bridge (2003) Robert Owen, Denton Corker Marshall. The bridge creates a meandering thoroughfare between Yarra's Edge and Docklands Park.
26. ANZ Headquarters Hassell. Melbourne's latest 5-star green star energy building.
27. NAB Headquarters (2005) Bligh Voller Neild. Housing more than 3,600 employees, this building features large open spaces and a sunny atria in the heart of the building.
28. Digital Harbour Port 1010 (2006) Ashton Raggat McDougall. With a striking visual facade, Port 1010 reflects the innovation of Melbourne's new Digital Harbour precinct.
Allow one hour to complete Docklands design walk.
