Robert Woodward (architect)

This Wikipedia article contains material from Darling Harbour Woodward Water Feature, entry number 1933 in the New South Wales State Heritage Register published by the State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) 2018 under CC-BY 4.0 licence, accessed on 14 October 2018.

The Darling Harbour Woodward Water Feature outside the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre completed in 1988 was one of Woodward’s most important works. It was a beautiful piece of design with its interplay of water, light and surface texture. It is both an irresistibly interactive water element and beautiful spiral sculptural form.

In 1987 he was appointed a Member of Order of Australia for his services to architecture and fountain design.

Due to the success of this fountain, Woodward was approached for further commissions for fountain designs, significantly altering his career path. In 1979, he created the Canberra Times fountain, commissioned for the newspaper’s fiftieth anniversary. Following this, he was commissioned to design a fountain for the High Court of Australia Building in Canberra, a cascade beside the ceremonial ramp. In 1981, he completed a fountain for GJ Coles & Company for the Parliament Reserve in Melbourne.

In his oral history interview with Hazel de Berg in 1972, Woodward stated:

Woodward was the recipient of many awards and honours in his lifetime, including the NSW Institute of Architect’s Civic Design Award for the El Alamein Fountain in 1964, and in 1991 ACT Chapter RAIA Canberra Medallion, for New Parliament House, the 1991 NSW Chapter Civic Design Merit Award for Darling Harbour, the 1991 RAIA Walter Burley Griffin Award for Darling Harbour, the 1991 RAIA Civic Design Award for Darling Harbour, and the 1992 AILA National Awards in Landscape Architecture Civic Design Project Award.

In 1959, Woodward submitted a design to a City of Sydney competition to construct a fountain in Kings Cross, mainly as a professional “design exercise” for himself. The design commemorated the war service of the 9th Division of the Second Australian Imperial Force. He won the competition in the name of his firm Woodward & Taranto and went on to build the El Alamein Fountain, as it became known, was completed in 1961. Combining his architectural and earlier metalwork training he developed the “dandelion” inspired fountain which became one of the world’s most copied designs. The fountain won the New South Wales Institute of Architects Civic Design Award in 1964. This was an immediate success and led to the gradual reorientation of his career into national and international prominence as a fountain designer. In 1968 the Woodward Taranto Wallace partnership was dissolved and Woodward continued alone as a sole practitioner with a focus on fountain design, joining the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects in 1989. He is responsible for many of the most prominent and admired fountains in Australia.

Robert Raymond Woodward was born in Wentworthville in Sydney’s western suburbs, the son of a public service accountant. Woodward was educated at Granville Technical Granville and Sydney Technical College. He served in the army during World War II working as an armourer. He was initially stationed with the Lachlan Macquarie 54th Regiment in Bathurst, then at Victoria Barracks where he completed an armoury course at East Sydney Technical College. Woodward later explained that being in the army at a young age had taught him to be responsible for the work he was doing and how to give instructions effectively. It also opened up the opportunity to study architecture at the University of Sydney after the war as part of the huge post-war repatriation intake of ex-servicemen.

Woodward returned to Sydney in 1954 where he had some job offers from big firms, but instead formed a small partnership with Phil Taranto in Bankstown, they were later joined by Scott Wallace. They worked on small scale sites like a fruit shop in Bankstown, where they rationalized the work spaces, designed light fittings and introduced mirrored walls to increase the impression of light and plenty – innovations which were widely “copied and mass produced”.

Woodward commenced his architectural degree in 1947 and was impressed by teachers such as Leslie Wilkinson, George Molnar and Lloyd Rees. As a student he worked for Harry Divola and Peddle Thorp & Walker, while he represented Australia in the 440-yard hurdles at the 1950 British Empire Games in New Zealand. After graduating with honours in 1952 he joined the Royal Australian Institute of Architects and worked briefly for Peddle Thorp & Walker, detailing industrial buildings, but soon headed off for England. He toured Europe with friends from Sydney before settling in Finland where he was privileged to work for a year with Alvar Aalto. He also spent another year in Finland working for the firm of Viljo Revell. Upon his return he went into partnership, forming Woodward, Taranto and Wallace, specialising in commercial and industrial architecture.

Robert Raymond (Bob) Woodward AM (5 June 1923 – 21 February 2010) was an Australian architect who gained widespread recognition for his innovative fountain designs.