Modernist Adelaide Walking Tour
Immerse yourself in the mid-century jet age of Mad Men era Adelaide, when a new wave of modernist architecture redefined the city’s streetscapes and skyline. Stuart Symons’ award-winning tours of Adelaide’s 50s, 60s and 70s modernist gems have earned international acclaim, a local cult following and the 2021 City of Adelaide Prize Commendation. From Australia’s first curtain-wall high-rise of the 50s to the International Style of the 60s and the Brutalism of the 70s, this entertaining walk through time will appeal to anyone with a love of architecture and design, history or just looking up and seeing the beauty in our everyday built environment.
‘To showcase and talk about great twentieth-century buildings in Adelaide is jewel-like. It’s a great asset.’ – Kevin McLeod, Grand Designs
Presented by: Modernist Adelaide
Stuart Symons is helping people better appreciate Adelaide’s mid-century architecture. Regular city walking tours, house tours, exhibitions, presentations and his book Modernist Adelaide: 100 Buildings 1940s–1970s tell the story of the rise of modernist architecture in South Australia in the context of its growth internationally.
By profiling the architects and clients, design features and historical points of interest, Stuart unearths a richness and value in these buildings and our city – encouraging people to ‘look up’ and discover the beauty that surrounds them.
Stuart was awarded the City of Adelaide Prize Commendation 2021 and South Australian Emerging Historian of the Year 2019 in recognition of his engagement with the community about Adelaide’s modernist architectural heritage.
The walk will begin out the front of the former Crack Kitchen at 13 Franklin Street, Adelaide. Although the café has closed, this is still our meeting point