Building
In the 1950s the then Prime Minister Robert Menzies had established a plan to develop Canberra, and construct other important national buildings. A 1959 plan featured a new building for the High Court on the shore of Lake Burley Griffin, next to the location for the new Parliament House, and the National Library of Australia. This plan was abandoned in 1968, and the location of the Parliament was moved, later settling on the present site on Capital Hill.
In March 1968, the government announced that the court would move to Canberra. In 1972 an international competition was held attracting 158 entries. In 1973 the firm of Edwards Madigan Torzillo Briggs was declared the winner of the two-stage competition. Architect Chris Kringas was the Principal Designer and Director in charge working with Feiko Bouman. In March 1975, only one month before construction began, Kringas died aged 38. Following his death, Feiko Bouman, Hans Marelli and Colin Madigan supervised the construction of the design. The constructed building is relevantly identical to the 1973 competition design.
Construction began in April 1975 on the shore of Lake Burley Griffin, in the Parliamentary Triangle. The site is just to the east of the axis running between Capital Hill and the Australian War Memorial. The High Court building houses three courtrooms, Justices' chambers, and the Court's main registry, library, and corporate services facilities. It is an unusual and distinctive structure, built in the brutalist style, and features an immense public atrium with a 24 metre-high roof. The neighbouring National Gallery was also designed by the firm of Edwards Madigan Torzillo and Briggs. There are similarities between the two buildings in material and style but significant differences in architectural form and spatial concept. The building was completed in 1980, and the majority of the court's sittings have been held in Canberra since then.
The High Court and National Gallery Precinct were added to the Australian National Heritage List in November 2007.
Read more about this topic: High Court Of Australia
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