A public artwork under the rail bridge that crosses Melbourne Street – on approach to the Cultural Centre – celebrates the memory of a long-lost landmark from Brisbane’s early encounters with modernity. The artwork (above and below) features archival images… Read More ›
1920s
Queensland Art Deco furniture makers: Hixco
Most people in Queensland did not live in Art Deco houses during the interwar years. However a taste for the modern could still be satisfied in more modest ways, through interior furnishings that reflected the international style. Queensland furniture manufacturers,… Read More ›
Video: Pineapple Hams
Pineapple Hams graced many a Christmas table in the Art Deco era, and were marketed in Queensland with eye-catching ads. Want to see more videos about Queensland’s Art Deco history? Check out Video: Deco Beach and Video: Queensland’s Art Deco… Read More ›
Video: Deco Beach
Be transported to the beach during a Queensland Art Deco summer and see for yourself the fun fashions and playful antics, backed by a lively little jazz tune. Want to see more videos about Queensland’s Art Deco history? Check out Video: Queensland’s Art… Read More ›
Miegunyah House Museum: Art Deco fashion collection
It is one thing to read about the Art Deco fashions that graced Queensland streets in the 1920s, but it’s quite another to see the original garments up close. Miegunyah House Museum has brought us this rare chance with its… Read More ›
Art Deco on show: The Brisbane Ekka
Since the inaugural event in 1876, the Brisbane Exhibition (or “Ekka” as it has been affectionately known since 1921) has embraced the dual values of tradition and progress, combining a celebration of the Queensland pastoral story with a curiosity for… Read More ›
Styling modernity: the 1920s bob
The Art Deco era ushered in a new, modern taste for the streamlined and geometric, evident in all areas of design from architecture and furnishing to fashion and transport. Hair was no exception and the 1920s saw women across the… Read More ›
Out of the rubble: Art Deco in North Queensland
Cyclones are an inescapable feature of living in a tropical climate like Queensland. Since 1858, over 208 of these destructive rain and wind storms have lashed the east coast. The environmental, economic and psychological costs to communities, families and individuals… Read More ›
Dame Fashion: The Queenslander Pattern Service
For over a decade, at the height of the Art Deco era, The Queenslander news weekly helped city and country women alike keep up with the latest in modern fashion. The Queenslander Pattern Service, which went through various incarnations between… Read More ›
Sporting women: 1920s fashion
Queensland and sport go hand-in-hand, so sportswear seems a natural place to start when thinking about the influence of Art Deco sensibilities on local women’s fashion. Across the Western world, the 1920s saw a boom in women’s sporting participation, linked… Read More ›