Filigree architecture is a modern term given to a phase in the history of Australian architecture. The phase was an embellishment of the "Australian verandah tradition",Apperly, Irving, & Reynolds (1994), pg 63 where the verandah evolved from its functional usages to become highly ornamental.
The filigree style was a vernacular tradition of buildings possessing prominent verandahs that screened the facade, cloaking the exterior in an ornamental veil that obscured the rest of building. On filigree style buildings, the verandah was the dominant visual element. The term "filigree" refers to the intricate texture of this verandah screen, which was often perforated to let air and light pass through, creating dazzling displays of shadows.
In the Victorian era, the style exploded into popularity. Double- and triple-storey verandahs lined the main streets, with some rare examples reaching up to four storeys. Victorian Filigree style verandahs were made almost exclusively from cast iron, and their delicate appearance gave rise to the term cast iron lacework.E. G. Robertson (1962), pg 5 In the Federation era, the style evolved into the Federation Filigree style, when timber eclipsed cast iron as the predominant material of choice and the shape and form of the verandah became more novel.Apperly, Irving, & Reynolds (1994), pg 108-111
The style was mainly popularised by speculative builders, but it did not have a class consciousness, being used both on humble workers cottage developments and grand mansions, as well as by prominent commercial architects such as Richard Gailey and Andrea Stombuco. Neither was it reserved for a single setting, being used on domestic, commercial and governmental buildings, becoming particularly well associated with Australian terrace houses and pub verandahs.Apperly, Irving, & Reynolds (1994), pg 111Turner (1985), pg 115-136
These strong associations have led to the filigree style being "regarded as distinctly Australian."Apperly, Irving, & Reynolds (1994), pg 60 While ornamental cast iron verandahs can be found elsewhere in the world, Australia possesses a unique interpretation of the design and form of this style, as well as a prevalence unseen elsewhere.Miles Lewis, ‘10.02.10 The Verandah in Australia’, in The Culture of Australian Building [dynamic web publication], as at April 2023
Terminology History
"Filigree" was first proposed as a style descriptor by architectural historian Richard Apperly, and was popularised in A Pictorial Guide to Identifying Australian Architecture: Styles and Terms from 1788 to the Present (1989) by Richard Apperly, Robert Irving & Peter Reynolds. The book attempted to establish a series of guidelines governing Australian architectural styles, splitting them into six distinct, chronological eras: Old Colonial, Victorian, Federation, Inter-War, Post-War and late-twentieth-century.Apperly, Irving, & Reynolds (1994), pg 17-19
A particular focus of Apperly, Irving, & Reynolds was recognising unique, Australian trends that had so far been unrecognised in academia.Apperly, Irving, & Reynolds (1994), pg 18-19 They coined the term "filigree" to describe the prevalence of buildings possessing prominent verandah and balcony structures that dominate the facade, hiding the building's external walls behind an intricately textured verandah screen that subsumed the building. The term "filigree" refers to the intricate texture of the balustrades, columns, brackets and friezes that make up that verandah screen, which was often perforated to let air and light pass through. This lacy, filigree screen was designed to stand dominant of the main building, creating an in-between space that was both public and private.
Apperly, Irving, & Reynolds divided Filigree architecture into two main phases. Victorian Filigree described architecture with a visually dominant verandah or balcony constructed during the Victorian era (). The primary verandah construction material in this era was cast iron, often referred to as cast iron lacework. Federation Filigree describes the continuation of this verandah tradition into the Federation era (. In this period, cast iron (though still in usage) was eclipsed by the demand for novel, naturalised materials such as timber and hand-worked wrought iron.
Verandah structures and decorative cast iron were common components of Victorian and Federation architecture, and the prevalence of these components on Italianate, Gothic and Second Empire styled buildings indicates their popularity at the time. However, their presence did not necessarily characterise a building as being of the filigree style, this term being reserved for buildings whereby the lacework verandah is the main external design feature.
Origins
The first verandah structures built by European settlers were bungalow-type buildings perhaps inspired by examples found in other parts of the British Empire through the connection of military officers who had served in India.Miles Lewis, ‘10.02.1 The Verandah in Australia’, in The Culture of Australian Building [dynamic web publication], as at April 2023 The Lieutenant Governor Major Francis Grose had served in North America during the War of Independence, and likely would have encountered verandahs during his time there. In 1793, Grose added a verandah to the frontage of the house in which he was residing. In 1794, during Grose's tenure as Lieutenant Governor, a single storey verandah was added along the front of Government House, and in 1802 it was extended along the side of the new eastern additions.Miles Lewis, ‘10.02.2 The Verandah in Australia’, in The Culture of Australian Building [dynamic web publication], as at April 2023 Captain John Macarthur and his wife Elizabeth built their farmhouse at Parramatta in 1793 with a verandah running along the northern aspect overlooking the river. The verandah in this early period often acted as an external passageway, serving as the access point to rooms which did not connect to each other internally.Miles Lewis, ‘10.02.4 The Verandah in Australia’, in The Culture of Australian Building [dynamic web publication], as at April 2023 Most crucially, verandahs also served to protect against harsh sun and torrential rain.
Early double-storey verandahs were often constructed out of timber and stone, such as the Rum Hospital (), which ran in a long ribbon along a prominent ridgeline on the eastern fringe of Sydney. Another prominent early example of the style was the quadruple-storeyed Royal Hotel on George Street, Sydney (), whose heavy, towering appearance was much remarked upon by visitors.Fowles (1848), pg 50 In 1841, Samuel Lyons, a successful auctioneer and former convict, built Lyons Terrace overlooking Hyde Park. It was one of the first terraces which had raised party walls that projected above the roofline, as required by the Building Act 1837, which had been passed by the Legislative Assembly of New South Wales three years earlier. Lyons Terrace was three storeys, with a long double-storey verandah draped in cast ironwork running along the breadth of it. It was a relatively large building in Sydney for its time, and it obviously had an effect on the young city. It was repeatedly painted and photographed by locals and visitors alike, and curiously, time and time again it is marked in maps of the city, as if considered a landmark. The double-storey verandah of Como House, South Yarra (1847), is of unusual design, consisting of spiked fence railings.E.G. Robertson & J. Robertson (1984) On Strickland House, Vaucluse (), reputedly designed by John Frederick Hilly, a masonry colonnade of Doric columns wraps around the lower level, while the upper level balcony features cast iron railings and Sydney-style cast iron openwork columns.
Victorian Filigree
Starting with the period of the gold rushes of New South Wales and Victoria, the economy entered into a boom period which lasted until the 1890s. During this time, and often at the expense of the original Aboriginal inhabitants, European-Australians prospered. With this prosperity came a growing demand for ornate styles of architecture, and this boom-time optimism found its physical expression in florid configurations of cast iron lacework decorating the facades of opulent buildings.Apperly, Irving, & Reynolds (1994), pg 60-63
Cast iron was not a new material, but technological advances in its production meant that it could now reach a mass market. These lacy filigree screens were at first simple; on Lyons Terrace only the balustrade was made from cast iron lacework, but the style eventually developed to include brackets, friezes, fringes and sometimes even double-friezes. Some examples in East Melbourne show the change in materials over time: Burlington Terrace, East Melbourne (), designed by Charles Webb, features a cast iron balustrade with timber brackets and columns; Lawson Terrace, East Melbourne (), features cast iron balustrade and key-frieze, with timber columns and brackets; and Hepburn Terrace, East Melbourne (), features a balustrade, frieze, brackets and columns all made from ornamental cast iron.
The basic silhouette of Lyons Terrace (three storeys with a two-storey verandah) was incredibly influential and copied repeatedly by terrace rows around the country, such as Fitzroy Terrace, East Melbourne (); Carlton Terrace, Wynyard (); Denver Terrace, Carlton (); Carlingford Terrace, Surry Hills (); Tasma Terrace, East Melbourne (); Lawrenny Terrace, Surry Hills (); Hughenden Terrace, Petersham (1884); and Herberto Terrace, Glebe (1885).K. Smith & B. Smith (1989) pg 85 However, not all multi-storey terraces followed the Lyons silhouette. Holcombe Terrace, Carlton (1884), designed by Norman Hitchcock, is a three-storey terrace draped in a matching three-storey veil of lacework. Its polychrome brick facade shimmers underneath the cast ironwork verandah, and the lacework has been painted in cream and maroon to mirror the brickwork, creating a blur of colour that astonishes onlookers. Other notable, still-standing terraces with triple-storey verandahs include Marine Terrace, Grange Beach (1884); Waverly Terrace, Melbourne (1886); and the singular terrace houses Katoomba House, Millers Point (); Moira, Paddington ();Sands Directory (Relevant Editions: 1882-1892), John Sands Ltd., Sydney and Bundarra, Surry Hills ().Robertson (1962), pg 114 The four-storey Milton Terrace, Millers Point (1880-82), features three levels above ground and a basement level below. Perhaps one of the finest terrace rows in Sydney is the four-storey Brent Terrace, Elizabeth Bay (). Praised for its "florid ornateness", this magnificent row of eight features three levels of matching cast iron lace from the foundry of Dash & Wise.Robertson (1962), pg 160-165