Many followers of the page will have come to appreciate my shooting style, regardless of whether or not they’ve seen or become familiar with my target of choice.

 

The start of my mission to photograph all of Perth’s historic and interesting buildings (a feat almost on par with an attempt to receive funds from this year’s tax return!) has been met with potentially as many rejections as a door-knocking Mormon.

 

So a big shout out to the awesome team at the Perth Concert Hall for giving me my first opportunity to document their venue and  history, especially as this year is their 50th anniversary!

 

Upon seeing the auditorium, a nostalgic memory unburied itself from my childhood when I attended an event here. Frog knows what but I have a strong memory of counting all the ceiling squares… over and over… as a distraction to the long wait for the show to start. (Counting everything at that time in my life was the normal things to do for me).

 

In the generous three hours given to photograph the venue in its entirety, despite missing a few areas as a result of the captivating environment quickly draining my time and energy, I broke my record with 2,022 photos taken in a single session! (Only beaten today at the Perth Girls School with 2,241 photos – coming soon!!)

 

I never expected the bright red auditorium colours to ignite a sensory overload, particularly in the following weeks I struggled to minimise the photos to a more appropriate number.

 

The History (Brief at this stage)

Owned by the City of Perth, the Perth Concert Hall is the main venue for the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, more commonly referred to as WASO. Located next to Government House on St Georges Terrace in the Perth CBD, construction began in 1971 and was officially opened on Australia Day, 26 January 1973.

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Designed by Howlett and Bailey Architects with a Brutalist style, the plan was amended several times in 1969, which included the subway tunnel under the St Georges Terrace. Although the tunnel was later mostly demolished, a portion of it remains next to the Perth Concert’s Hall’s carpark and is currently used for storage, although an event was held in there several years earlier.

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The auditorium features a 3,000-pipe organ and has an audience seating capacity of 1,729.