Griffins in Australia

Day 1 | Thursday 30 April
Foundations of the National Capital
We meet in the reception of our hotel in the early afternoon, before making our way to Regatta Point via key sites that trace Canberra’s development: the National Triangle, Surveyors’ Hut and Federation Mall. The exhibition at Regatta Point is an ideal introduction to the Griffin’s visionary design for the National Capital, with its lakeside setting. Here at the National Capital Exhibition Centre, models and photographs bring to life the Griffins’ bold ideas – a city shaped by grand axes, sweeping vistas and its surrounding landscape. After a tour of the Centre, we continue our panoramic coach tour, visiting General Bridges’ grave, and the panorama from Mount Ainslie, where the vision of a ‘city beautiful’ is fully revealed. Canberra’s boulevards, street trees and natural amphitheatre of hills remain central to its design today. Returning to our hotel in the late afternoon, we reconvene this evening for a welcome dinner at a nearby restaurant. Overnight Canberra (D)

Day 2 | Friday 1 May
The Griffins’ legacy in Canberra
We begin the day at the National Library of Australia with a curator-led viewing of the Eric M. Nicolls collection – a rare and extensive archive of Griffin material featuring original plans, photographs and documents. We then visit the Yarralumla Incinerator, designed by Nicholls and hidden within the Royal Canberra Golf Course. With special access, we see how this striking industrial structure embodies the Griffins’ holistic vision for a self-sustaining city, blending functionality with aesthetic design – even in utilitarian industrial structures. Lunch is enjoyed at the National Arboretum, with panoramic views of Lake Burley Griffin and the now realised international arboretum, originally envisaged in the Griffin Plan. Here we also explore the historic 1917 Cork Oak Plantation, part of Charles Weston’s ambitious scheme that saw nearly three million trees planted to bring the new city to life. Before returning to the hotel, there is free time to visit nearby national institutions such as the National Gallery of Australia or the National Portrait Gallery. Overnight Canberra (B, L)

Day 3 | Saturday 2 May
From Canberra to Sydney
Before leaving Canberra, we visit Rivendell House in Kambah, a private residence designed in 1975 by architect Laurie Virr. A rare example of late 20th-century organic architecture, it employs a complex geometric plan centred on a hemicycle, maximising solar access and blending with its secluded bushland setting. Trained in the USA under earth-sheltered architecture pioneer Malcolm Wells, Virr drew inspiration from Frank Lloyd Wright and the Griffins’ organic principles – harmony with nature, honesty in materials and integration with topography. Travelling north, we pause for lunch in the Southern Tablelands before arriving in Sydney’s leafy suburb of Gordon. Here we visit the Tuck House, designed by Harry Seidler in 1950 and overlooking Garigal National Park. Now owned and carefully conserved by heritage architect Jyoti Somerville, it offers a fascinating perspective on post-war modernism in Australia and its roots in the Griffins’ legacy. We continue to our hotel in North Sydney, where we enjoy dinner together at a nearby restaurant. Overnight North Sydney (B, L, D)

Day 4 | Sunday 3 May
Castlecrag and the Griffins’ Vision
Today we immerse ourselves in Castlecrag, the Griffins’ most ambitious Australian experiment – a suburb designed to integrate domestic architecture with the bush landscape and foster a spirit of community. With the Walter Burley Griffin Society, and on the occasion of Walter’s 150th birthday, we enjoy special access to several Griffin-designed houses, all privately owned and rarely open to visitors (last opened five years ago!). Each demonstrates their distinctive approach to siting, materials and design, harmonising with the natural contours of Middle Harbour. We then visit the Haven Amphitheatre, where the Griffins envisioned open-air performance as a focus for cultural life, before a farewell lunch at the Willoughby Incinerator café, housed in one of their striking industrial designs. In the afternoon, we gather at Glenaeon School in Castlecrag for screenings of short films on the Griffins’ Australian projects, held in the aptly named Marion Mahony Griffin Hall – a fitting conclusion to celebrating their remarkable partnership. Our tour concludes at Sydney’s Central Station in the late afternoon. (B, L)