September 2022: Wiradjuri Country
From the moment I read Destination NSW’s description of the Riverina town of Leeton as “the jewel in Australia’s Art Deco crown” I wanted to see that for myself. I love that architectural era – the symmetry and the simplicity; the geometric shapes, lines and curves; the elaborate, sylised details.
Like it’s larger neighbour Griffith, Leeton was built as part of the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Scheme, but has managed to keep its collection of Art Deco buildings – built 1910 to the 1940s – largely (wonderfully) intact.
What we did
Art Deco tour
Take the Leeton Art Deco Heritage Walking Tour. There’s a downloadable audio guide or you can pick up a printed brochure from the Visitor’s Centre. This takes you around the best examples.
Leeton has 21 buildings listed in the Art Deco Society of New South Wales‘ register and most of those are along Kurrajong and Pine Avenues. But there are Art Deco details everywhere you look – in the tiles, the leadlighting, the entry ways.
Among the many notable buildings are the 1919 Hydro Hotel – a great example of Spanish Mission style of this period with its verandah colonnades and gable entry. It was built as accommodation in the hey day of the irrigation scheme, and is still an accommodation facility today.
The 1927 Roxy Theatre is a cracker – and undergoing a multi-million dollar refurbishment at the moment. The large red neon sign was installed in 1933 and the building is still used as a theatre. The renovation will retain the theatre but add some great new multipurpose spaces
The Walter Burley Griffin designed water towers with their unusual neo-gothic crowns are icons of the Leeton streetscape . The first tower was constructed in 1912, the second in 1937, and the third (shorter) one in 1973 (to mimick the style). It’s so very Art Deco to render something so functional with this extravagant ornamentation.
The museum
My personal favourite in this Art Deco town was the fantastic heritage-listed building now housing Leeton Museum and Art Gallery. What a place! Built in 1938, it is the former administrative headquarters of the Water Conservation and Irrigation Commission.
A beautiful old building whose history is inextricably linked to the town’s own story and the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Scheme. It’s fitting that the well-curated museum covers so much of this history so well. There’s an art gallery space on the lower floor with changing exhibitions.
The Burley Griffin Link
The style and vision of urban desiner Walter Burley Griffin is a feature of several towns in the NSW Riverina, including Leeton. He was commissioned to design the town about 1913 while he was overseeing the construction of the national capital, Canberra (which he also famously designed). Griffin’s vision was for a town square near the intersection of Pine and Kurranjong Avenue around which all the important civic and administrative buildings would cluster.
The design also featured all sorts of parklands for recreation and the circular layout of some streets echoed the design of Canberrra and also nearby Griffith (another of his projects). He and wife Marion were responsible for the almost outlandish design of the memorable water towers in Chelmsford Place.
There’s a sculpture of Burley Griffin at the foot of the water towers that should not be missed. It celebrates the vision and the work of the designer and is based on an image of him from the 1930s. Until you look at this work from just the right angle, it looks like a three dimensional jumble of unrelated Art Deco shapes, but at a certain point an image of Burley Griffin is revealed. The work is by Dave Jones and Greg Pritchard.
Henry’s house
It’s a strange but true fact that quintessential Australian poet and writer, Henry Lwson, wound up in Leeton about 1915. By that time, Lawson was a depressed alcoholic and had been in and out of jail and in mental institutions. A group of his friends and supporters managed have a job created for him as publicist for the irrigation scheme. At that time, alcohol was banned within the boundaries of Leeton – a fact that clearly motivated the plan.
He remained in town for three years and did produce a lot of writing which is considered to be the last significant creative period of his life. The tiny soldier-settler cottage where he lived in those years is now a private home, but you can take a look, and there is a sculpture of the man in the garden to remind you he was there.
Wonderful wetland
A stroll through the picturesque Fivebough Wetland on the edge of Leeton is an interesting break from the hustle and bustle in town. It’s listed under the Ramsar Convention as a wetland of international significance – an important breeding place and habitat for numerous waterbirds. It’s culturally significant for Wiradjuri traditional owners.The trail leads you to some viewing platforms.
Where we ate
We were only in Leeton for a day trip, so there wasn’t a great deal of time for dining. However, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast at The Coffee Tree at 101 Pine Avenue. Great bacon and egg roll and excellent coffee.
Later in the day we called into Riverina Veggie – which sells just what it says – fresh local fruit and vegetables. They also sell freshly squeezed orange juice which seemed like a must while in one of the state’s premium orange growing areas. It was sensational and just the pick-up we needed after many hours walking around Leeton.
