Mid-century modern

Exploring mid-century architecture and design

The mid-century modern period, often simply called mid-century or mid-century modernist, thrived in the post-war years, fading out by the early 1970s.

Vogue Australia journalist Yeong Sassall says that it is

characterised by a highly fertile creative period that began in the late ’30s and continued through to the ’50s and ’60s, the mid-century movement spans architecture, industrial design, art and graphic design. Broadly speaking, mid-century modern style favours simple and functional forms, organic or nature-inspired shapes and a sense of egalitarianism in its design approach. Mid-century style homes [have] extensive use of glass panels (to let nature in) and geometric lines. (Sassall 2021)

In the Camden area, ranch-style homes were the pinnacle of this domestic architecture in the 1950s and 1960s. These ranch-style homes were owned by local doctors, businessmen, for example, Hennings Jewellers, surgeon Dr Gordon Clowes, gynaecologist Dr Michael Palmer, and others. Unfortunately, many of these homes have been lost.

Exploring Lost Camden, The Legacy of The Hennings House (CHN, 2025)

Exploring Elderslie’s Ranch-Style Homes, lost mid-century Camden (CHN, 2025)

Tarn House, located on Irvine Street in Elderslie, was built in 1963 by Gordon and June Clowes and is an example of ranch-style residential architecture, contributing to Camden’s mid-century modern heritage. Now lost. (M Baker)

A Journey Through Camden’s Mid-Century Housing Architecture (CHN, 2025)

Types of Mid-Century Modernist Housing in Camden (CHN, 2024)

‘Fibro Majestic’: A Celebration of Mid-Century Housing at Campbelltown Arts Centre by Catherine O’Donnell (CHN, 2023)

Mid-Century Modernist Homes in Elderslie (CHN 2018)

The Camden Fibro Cottage and its connection to mid-century housing styles (CHN 2014)

There are many personal stories of those who grew up in mid-century houses and the suburbs around them.

Despina’s story, fond memories of living in Campbelltown (CHN 2024)

Fiona’s story, growing up in Airds (CHN 2020)

Much mid-century architecture has been influenced by the German Bauhaus School, which was shut down by the Nazis in 1933, and many of its scholars went to the USA. The Bauhaus’s emphasis on function and new materials directly influenced Mid-Century Modern features such as large windows, open floor plans, and the use of glass, steel, and plywood of the postwar era. These characteristics are evident in office buildings, commercial buildings and others.

Sir John Sulman Medal for Architectural Excellence in 1963, awarded for a local example of mid-century modernism (CHN, 2021)

Exploring Campbelltown’s Mid-Century Modern Administration Building (CHN 2020)

Campbelltown City Council office extension 1982 – an example of mid-century modernism (CHN 2020)

Airds Shopping Mall demolition, the unmet expectations of mid-century modernism (CHN 2024)