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Federation Square


Federation Square
Photo Information
Copyright: Janice Dunn (Janice) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3204 W: 262 N: 7964] (34497)
Genre: Places
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-07-31
Categories: Daily Life, Architecture, Artwork
Camera: Canon EOS 300D, Tamron AF28-300 XR
Exposure: f/13.0, 1/400 seconds
More Photo Info: [view]
Photo Version: Original Version
Travelogue: Melbourne, Australia 2006
Date Submitted: 2006-08-03 5:48
Viewed: 5408
Favorites: 1 [view]
Points: 40
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
Federation Square, AKA Fed Square

Another photo from my trip to Melbourne last week.

PLEASE don’t tell me that the walls are crooked or I should have removed the lines overhead!!

The walls ARE ALL crooked.
The wire lines are attached to the buildings and to each other, as if to hold them upright and all together.

The story of Federation Square and how it became the landmark it is today involves six hard years and more than 5000 people. Behind every bit of the distinctive triangular façade, every wall, every window, there’s a story of battles, disputes and decisions, as the creative vision of the architects clashed with the demands of time and budget.

The story of Federation Square began in 1997 when an international design competition to create one of the great civic, cultural and commercial spaces on top of a railway yard which separated the city of Melbourne from it's river.

A jury unanimously selected two unknown London-based architects from 177 entries. And six months before it’s opening in October, 2002, the project was more than $200 million over budget.

Their radical design soon divided community opinion:

“It’s just dead ugly!”
“It’s an appalling waste of public money.”
“At least it’s a bit different.”

And my thoughts of Fed Square. Me, a New Zealander visiting Melbourne:
“I liked it! Strange, weird, interesting, lovely, very different. BUT certainly eye-catching! AND VERY EXPENSIVE!!”

Quoting it’s website:
“Conceived as a tribute to the first 100 years of Australian nationhood, Federation Square opened on 26 October 2002.

Standing in the heart of central Melbourne and linking the city centre with the Yarra River, Federation Square fuses art, architecture, hospitality and promenading into a distinct and striking public space. Visitors can stroll around Federation Square's expansive desert-toned plaza, which affords commanding views of Melbourne's riverside and cityscape, or enjoy food and wine at one of the 20 captivating restaurants, cafes and bars interspersed throughout the square.

Visitors can also take in a comprehensive collection of Australian art at the Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia, or walk next door to see the state-of-the-art Australian Centre for the Moving Image.

Federation Square is also home to the Melbourne Visitor Centre - a one-stop shop for visitors to learn all there is to see and do in Melbourne and Victoria.

www.federationsquare.com.au
scubie, kokos101, uranium, vsinopoulos, cstathoulis, mjdundee, jkneze2, lucbus, Refugee, njmv79 has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To corjan3: Federation SquareJanice 1 02-26 21:24
To dorisday: Kia oraJanice 1 08-09 21:53
Very Cheeky Kiwi!!!cstathoulis 1 08-04 07:57
To cstathoulis: Red FedJanice 1 08-04 00:33
To cstathoulis: federation square..Dawn 1 08-03 23:57
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Critiques [Translate]

Hello Janice.
Very well captured and great story with it, thanks.
Jan

Hi Janice

...the walls are crooked and you should have removed the lines overhead...

Hahaha, just joking (I did read your comment!). An excellent capture of a bit of important history here, and hope to see it one day myself. Thanks for the excellent background story too. Well done!

Carlo

  • Great 
  • niner Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor [C: 222 W: 11 N: 0] (2068)
  • [2006-08-03 9:26]

Hi Janice,
great place, dramatic photo. Tnx for educational note!
D

janice, this is excellent architecture photo, great colors and sharpness.
TFS
zoran

Hi janice,
Another good photo,
your photos are a photography-class for me,
You have chosen good angle,
And nice perspective,
Sharpness is good,
But it makes me do a mistake!!!(crooked buildings),
shadows and lights are good too.
Thanks...
Ali

Excellent cityscape, with special attention to the ultra modern building. Very nice detail, colors and excellent warm lighting. Informative note!
Well done!
Vassilis

  • Great 
  • Mitra Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor [C: 1153 W: 70 N: 1116] (16)
  • [2006-08-03 13:18]

Very well seen & captured. what a strange walls. Well done.
mitra

Well seen
good balanced tone
Ruud

Hi Janice,

Now this should be interesting to see as there was no Federation Square when I was there! However, sounds like the place to go regarding info on what to see and do!
Great POV as we can see some of the tall & "new" buildings in the background.

Well done
Constantinos

  • Great 
  • Dawn Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1101 W: 98 N: 3374] (17650)
  • [2006-08-03 23:56]

Strange things they do in Melbourne..eh Janice.. crooked buildings being held up with wires.. must be those greek builders! LOL..

Nicely captured... did you use the clarify tool here ?

Thanks for the info.
Kind regards
Dawn.

Hello Janice - a Kiwi in Melbourne?
Hope you did at least also visit some of the beautifull National Parks around the capital.
Yes - the new face of the city polarizes and I bet the main intention of the ones who decided the radical change simply was:
be different. Somehow they have emanaged to be different from everything - sometimes even different from good taste. But - this is only my opinion about Federation Square and its surroundings. Fantastic note. TFS Janice. Greetings from a cool August in Germany (22°c)
Thomas

Futuristic! Looks like a computer model of a future square.

  • Great 
  • lucbus Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1809 W: 92 N: 1864] (10358)
  • [2006-08-04 7:32]

Hi Janice,
Very nice photo of this crooked building :)))
This is a very nice photo to present us this square with a great colors and lighting. I like this POV with this wall leading us to the right to discover the rest of the square. Very well done.
Luc

Hi Janice,

Carlo beat me to the comment I was going to make :).
It has been about 35 years since I have actually been into the CBD of Melbourne. Back then it was just another dirty, noisy city. Excellent photo with a variety of interesting angles, busy, bright and colourful. TFS,
David

Hi Sweetie,
Kinda busy but I like it and I'm glad you didn't try to do any PS "magic" on this image, very brave of you to leave stuff in and challenge us. Hope you had a good holiday.
Karen

Looks like Spiderman House (LOL!)

Indeed an eye catching building. I am sure , it will be the source of a lot of contractidory opinions in various public forums in Melbourne (*_^).

At least , No Tourist can miss it!

TFS,
Robert

Another great shot and good to read the story too, I have enjoyed looking at all your pictures from your tip!

Hello Janice Dunn,
beautifully taken picture, great PoV, well done,
Nelson

Great shot.
It's very popular place.
Especially with different multicultural exhibitions.

Hello Janice,
Must say I am in tow minds on whether I like the design. Yes, I do, and while I do not have the urge for "vertical" lines to be "vertical" this just seems to be rather disordely. Patterns without a pattern. Or something to that effect. It gives the impression of being unfinished. But that does not detract from your photo which shows the contrast of the building with the more conventional ones to the right. Definitely worth points from me.
Neels

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