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An Arts and Crafts set of Flats - Elwood

This Arts and Crafts style complex of flats may be found in the Melbourne suburb of Elwood.

 

Built in Arts and Crafts style, the flats have a mixture of exposed red brick and stuccoed brick walls which was a typical element of the movement, as are the half timbered gables and the wooden fretwork up under the eaves. The patterns set into the brickwork, particularly those around the bulls-eye window are especially fine, and a tribute to the craftsman that created them.

 

After the Great War (1914 - 1918), higher costs of living and the "servant problem" made living in the grand mansions and villas built in the Victorian and Edwardian eras a far less practical and attractive option for both those looking for new housing, and those who lived in big houses. It was around this time, in answer to these problems, that flats and apartments began to replace some larger houses, and became fashionable to live in.

 

Flats like these would have suited those of comfortable means who could afford to live in Elwood, and dispense with the difficulties of keeping a large retinue of staff. With its simple style, it mirrored the prevailing uncluttered lines of architecture that came out of England after the war.

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Uploaded on January 13, 2020
Taken on January 7, 2020