AWA Tower, Art Deco office building in Sydney Central Business District, Australia
Description
The AWA Tower is an Art Deco office building rising from York Street in central Sydney with multiple floors of workspace. Its base features polished trachyte stone, and a transmission tower crowns the structure as a functional design element.
History
Built between 1937 and 1939, this structure served as a broadcasting and communications facility, making it one of Sydney's tallest buildings for several decades. Its design reflected the technological importance of radio transmission during that era.
Culture
The building displays Art Deco details like a Pegasus relief sculpture and entrance lights shaped like radio valves. These elements reflect the era when broadcasting and wireless communication were new technological marvels.
Practical
The building sits on York Street near Wynyard Park and the railway station in the heart of the business district, making it easy to reach by public transport. As an active office building, access to interior spaces may be limited, so check conditions before planning a visit.
Did you know?
The transmission tower design draws from European radio tower patterns, notably Berlin's Funkturm, bringing continental broadcasting architecture to Sydney in the 1930s. This international architectural influence was uncommon for Australia at that time.
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Art Deco shaped cities from the early 1920s through the late 1930s. The style combines geometric patterns, metallic surfaces, and decorative ornament with functional architecture. Buildings display characteristic vertical lines, stepped forms, and symmetrical facades. The Chrysler Building in New...
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