Carclew is a
Federation style mansion built in 1897, located in the Adelaide suburb of
North Adelaide
North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct and suburb of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands.
History
Surveyor-General Colonel William Light of the colo ...
, overlooking the
Adelaide city centre
Adelaide city centre (Kaurna: Tarndanya) is the inner city locality of Greater Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia. It is known by locals simply as "the City" or "Town" to distinguish it from Greater Adelaide and from the City of Ade ...
city from
Montefiore Hill
Montefiore Hill is a small hill in North Adelaide, South Australia, which affords a view over the Adelaide city centre. Location and description
The hill lies within the northern Adelaide Parklands, within the area known as Park 26: Adelaide O ...
. The name is now better known as the cultural organisation dedicated to artistic development of young people, now known simply as Carclew, which has been housed in the building since 1971 (and then named the South Australian Performing Arts Centre for Young People, and with several name changes since).
History
The site was originally sold in the first Adelaide land sale of 1837, purchased by George Curtis for 12
shilling
The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence o ...
s. In 1861 the site contained a simple two-storey brick dwelling, a wall surrounding the house and a stable. It was purchased by a stockbroker
James Chambers in 1861, who in the same year sponsored the expedition of
John McDouall Stuart
John McDouall Stuart (7 September 18155 June 1866), often referred to as simply "McDouall Stuart", was a Scottish explorer and one of the most accomplished of all Australia's inland explorers.
Stuart led the first successful expedition to tra ...
, which was launched from the site. A plaque on the property's surrounding wall commemorates the event. The expedition was the first successful European crossing of the continent, but James Chambers died at the property before Stuart's return.
In 1862 the site was purchased by businessman, politician and philanthropist
Hugh Robert Dixon (later Sir Hugh Robert Denison), who demolished the existing home, leaving only the wall surrounding the property and the stable. Dixon erected the current grander building in 1897 (or 1901?
[) and called it "Stalheim" (perhaps after the town in Norway).]
In 1908, the building was sold to Sir John Langdon Bonython
Sir John Langdon Bonython (;Charles Earle Funk, ''What's the Name, Please?'' (Funk & Wagnalls, 1936). 15 October 184822 October 1939) was an Australian editor, newspaper proprietor, philanthropist, journalist and politician who served a ...
, editor of '' The Advertiser'' and member of the first Parliament of Australia. Bonython renamed the building "Carclew" after the area in Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
where his ancestors had lived.[ The property remained in the Bonython family until 1965, when it was purchased by the ]Adelaide City Council
The City of Adelaide, also known as the Corporation of the City of Adelaide and Adelaide City Council is a local government area in the metropolitan area of greater Adelaide, South Australia and is legally defined as the capital city of Sout ...
.[
After a 2006 architects' report recommending maintenance work on the structure of the building, the ]Government of South Australia
The Government of South Australia, also referred to as the South Australian Government, SA Government or more formally, His Majesty’s Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of South Australia. It is modelled o ...
undertook the construction work, which was completed in October 2009.[
]
Architecture
The house was designed by John Quintin Bruce, a prominent Adelaide architect, who also designed Electra House in King William Street and the Freemasons Hall on North Terrace.
The building is an architecturally significant Federation-style mansion, and stands in a prominent position next to Light's Vision
William Light (27 April 1786 – 6 October 1839), also known as Colonel Light, was a British- Malayan naval and army officer. He was the first Surveyor-General of the new British Province of South Australia, known for choosing the site of ...
. The two-storey building is constructed of sandstone, rusticated brick quoin
Quoins ( or ) are masonry blocks at the corner of a wall. Some are structural, providing strength for a wall made with inferior stone or rubble, while others merely add aesthetic detail to a corner. According to one 19th century encyclopedia, t ...
s and has cement decoration, with timber balconies and verandahs, and an iron roof, except for that of the three-storey tower, which is made of slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
. There is ornate woodwork on the gables.
The decorated archway at the main entrance leads to an entrance hall. From there, the main staircase leads upstairs to what were once the family quarters. The ground floor included a ballroom
A ballroom or ballhall is a large room inside a building, the primary purpose of which is holding large formal parties called balls. Traditionally, most balls were held in private residences; many mansions and palaces, especially historic man ...
, morning room
A drawing room is a room in a house where visitors may be entertained, and an alternative name for a living room. The name is derived from the 16th-century terms withdrawing room and withdrawing chamber, which remained in use through the 17th cent ...
, parlour
A parlour (or parlor) is a reception room or public space. In medieval Christian Europe, the "outer parlour" was the room where the monks or nuns conducted business with those outside the monastery and the "inner parlour" was used for necessar ...
, kitchen scullery
A scullery is a room in a house, traditionally used for washing up dishes and laundering clothes, or as an overflow kitchen. Tasks performed in the scullery include cleaning dishes and cooking utensils (or storing them), occasional kitchen work, ...
, and conservatory. There was a room for the servants with a separate entrance. The single-storey library was added in 1908.[
]
Youth arts centre
In 1971 Premier Don Dunstan
Donald Allan Dunstan (21 September 1926 – 6 February 1999) was an Australian politician who served as the 35th premier of South Australia from 1967 to 1968, and again from 1970 to 1979. He was a member of the House of Assembly (MHA) for th ...
created the South Australian Performing Arts Centre for Young People, which was incorporated in 1972. In 1976 it was renamed the Carclew Youth Arts Centre. Its mandate was changed in 1982 to focus on performing arts, and the name was changed to the Carclew Youth Performing Arts Centre.
From late 1988, the mandate was widened to include a broader range of the arts, and to include people up to 26 years old and the name changed back to Carclew Youth Arts Centre to reflect this in March 1991. In 2009 the name again changed, this time to Carclew Youth Arts, and finally to Carclew in 2013.[
Carclew is unique in South Australia as a multi-art-form centre for young people. It runs programs, workshops, projects and funding opportunities, including scholarships, project grants and mentoring opportunities. It also provides connections with schools and other arts organisations.
In February 2019, a new program by Creative Consultants was launched through Carclew, to help young artists to earn a stable income over the course of their careers. Also in 2019, the ]City of Adelaide
The City of Adelaide, also known as the Corporation of the City of Adelaide and Adelaide City Council is a local government area in the metropolitan area of greater Adelaide, South Australia and is legally defined as the capital city of South ...
is collaborating with Carclew to deliver the "Emerging Curator Program", a six-month engagement in which three aspiring curators are supported in their professional development.
Governance
The Centre was managed by the Youth Performing Arts Council from 1980, which was established specifically to manage Carclew. After a need for an organisation with a broader focus to manage youth arts policy and programs, the South Australian Youth Arts Board was created and took over in November 1988, at which time the Centre's focus was also expanded.[
Reporting to the Minister for the Arts, Carclew's funding was the responsibility of ]Arts South Australia
Arts South Australia (previously Arts SA) was responsible for managing the South Australian Government's funding for the arts and cultural heritage from about 1996 until late 2018, when it was progressively dismantled, a process complete by early ...
until 2018, when the position of Arts Minister was abolished and it was moved, along with the History of South Australia
The history of South Australia includes the history of the Australian state of South Australia since Federation of Australia, Federation in 1901, and the area's preceding Indigenous Australian, Indigenous and British colony, British colonial soc ...
, Patch Theatre Company
Patch Theatre Company, formerly New Patch Theatre, is an Australian theatre company founded in 1972 and based in Adelaide, South Australia, which performs works for young children.
Patch has performed at international children's festivals in Ko ...
and Windmill Theatre Company, to the Department of Education.
In July 2019, the state budget slashed funding to the History Trust, Carclew and Windmill, as part of "operational efficiency" cuts.
References
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Houses in Adelaide
North Adelaide
Drama schools in Australia
Arts in South Australia
Arts organisations based in Australia