A particular building has been brought to our attention and refuses to leave our heads so we feel it’s our Modernist Australian duty to bring it to yours.
The subject: ‘Corbould House’, Surfers Paradise, (c.1958) an architectural waterfront wonder which has stood seemingly unchanged all this time. Not for sale but possibly uninhabited.
We suppose the nature of the Gold Coast as a place built upon care-free holiday-making, is home to a transitory younger population and a more disengaged elderly one, which, in a heritage context that requires squeaky wheels and observant busybodies to cite that which is worth worth saving, makes for a very dour situation. This premier example, a Gropious-like work of highly regarded architect Edwin Hayes (of notable Mid-Century firm Hayes and Scott) is, like so many now gone, simply falling under the radar.
Although loved and photographed by a few local architects and other nerds, initial inquries with the City Architects Office suggest nada in terms of cultural or architectural recognition (other than a scant mention on a few local surveys). Without treading on toes we believe that this, if any building in the area, deserves not only a good hard look by officialdom but at least some recommendations for possible heritage preservation. Anyone can make a submission on this front, and of course we particularly like to light a fire under the locals who, no doubt, are used to seeing landmark after local landmark fall into the abyss.
It is all very well to ‘like’ and post a fire/thumbsup/drool/hearteyes emoji but we’d remind you all that once the fencing is up and the bulldozers move in, it’s pretty much a lost cause and no amount of ranting online will reverse any deals and decisions already done. Know that only ol’fashioned proactivity and making yourself heard to council at the very least, is the way the best of our local Mid-Century heritage can and will be preserved.
**Update**
And so it transpires as we feared. We despondently report that The Gold Coast, QLD reasserts its position as the most destructive locale in the country. A place of no memory nor celebrated built legacy to speak of, with the complete obliteration of this wonderful and rare Modernist home.
Corbould House. Edwin Hayes. Built 1956. Demolished 2019.
