Montsalvat is an

artists' colony An art colony, also known as an artists' colony, can be defined two ways. Its most liberal description refers to the organic congregation of artists in towns, villages and rural areas, often drawn by areas of natural beauty, the prior existence o ...

Eltham Eltham ( ) is a district of southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is east-southeast of Charing Cross, and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The three wards of Elt ...

, a suburb of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Victoria, Australia. Established by

Justus Jorgensen Justus Jorgensen (12 May 1893 – 15 May 1975) was an Australian artist and architect. He is best known for establishing the artist colony Montsalvat, located in Eltham. He was born in East Brighton, Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwu ...

in 1934, the colony is set among gardens on five hectares (12 acres) of land, and is home to dozens of buildings, including houses, halls, studios, galleries and stables. All of Montsalvat's buildings were designed and built by residents using materials from a variety of sources, including Victorian era buildings then being demolished in the city centre. The grounds and buildings are currently used for exhibitions, performances, conferences, seminars, weddings and receptions; however, artists working in a variety of mediums continue to reside in Montsalvat. Several classes on various disciplines of art are offered year round by the resident artists. Today Montsalvat is a popular tourist attraction and the entire complex is listed on the

Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, Australia. It has statutory weight under the Heritage Act 2017. The Minister for Planning is the responsible Minister. H ...

Etymology

The name Montsalvat features in both German and English

mythology Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

. In the opera ''

Parsifal ''Parsifal'' ( WWV 111) is an opera or a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is loosely based on the 13th-century Middle High German epic poem ''Parzival'' ...

'' by German composer

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

, Montsalvat is the castle, built by Titurel, where the

Holy Grail The Holy Grail (french: Saint Graal, br, Graal Santel, cy, Greal Sanctaidd, kw, Gral) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miracul ...

is protected; and in Act III of his namesake opera,

Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in Germany, German Arthurian literature. The son of Percival, Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which fi ...

sings of it as home. In the English legend of " King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table", ''Montsalvat'' is mentioned as the home of the Holy Grail. Though established only in 1934, Montsalvat has created its own myths and legends.''Montsalvat – A Symphony of Mud and Stone'', Sigmund Jorgensen (2001) Montsalvat means "Saved Mount" in

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

History

Background

Montsalvat is the creation of Justus Jorgensen and the work of many hands. Born in 1894, Jorgensen trained as an architect with a Melbourne firm of architects, Schreiber & Co. Later, he turned his talents to painting, enrolling at the National Gallery School of Art in Melbourne, whose principal was a leading member of the

Heidelberg School The Heidelberg School was an Australian art movement of the late 19th century. It has latterly been described as Australian impressionism. Melbourne art critic Sidney Dickinson coined the term in an 1891 review of works by Arthur Streeton and ...

of Artists,

Frederick McCubbin Frederick McCubbin (25 February 1855 – 20 December 1917) was an Australian artist, art teacher and prominent member of the Heidelberg School art movement, also known as Australian impressionism. Born and raised in Melbourne, Victoria, McCubb ...

. In 1917, after hearing a lecture by the artist

Max Meldrum Duncan Max Meldrum (3 December 1875 – 6 June 1955) was a Scottish-born Australian artist and art teacher, best known as the founder of Australian tonalism, a representational painting style that became popular in Melbourne during the interwa ...

, Jorgensen decided to join the Meldrum Studio and adopt his

tonalist Tonalist (foaled February 11, 2011) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2014 Belmont Stakes, beating the favored California Chrome, who was attempting to win the Triple Crown. Tonalist won the Peter Pan Stakes in ...

technique. In 1924 Jorgensen married a medical student from

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

, Lillian Smith. In the same year the couple travelled to Europe with a group of artist friends including John and Polly Farmer, Colin Colahan and Archie Colquhoun. The group painted at various places on their way across Italy, Spain, France and England. In their travels they visited many of the great European galleries to study the old and modern masters of European painting. Meldrum joined the group while they were painting in

Cassis Cassis (; Occitan: ''Cassís'') is a commune situated east of Marseille in the department of Bouches-du-Rhône in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, whose coastline is known in English as the French Riviera, in Southern France. In 2016, it ...

, a small French village near the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

coast. Later, some of them moved to Paris where Jorgensen established himself in a studio at 147 Rue Broca in the 13th Arrondissement. He returned to Australia in 1929. During this period, Jorgensen enjoyed considerable success both in Paris and London, with exhibitions at several major galleries including being hung at the prestigious

Royal Academy Summer Exhibition The Summer Exhibition is an open art exhibition held annually by the Royal Academy in Burlington House, Piccadilly in central London, England, during the months of June, July, and August. The exhibition includes paintings, prints, drawings, sc ...

in both 1926 and 1927, a rare honor for an Australian. The influences of this period in Europe are apparent both in his painting and in the architecture of Montsalvat. Jorgensen bought a home and studio in the Melbourne bayside suburb of

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

and later leased an old warehouse in Queen Street, Melbourne as his city studio where he could work and teach. Artist houses in Montsalvat

In 1956 the studio had to be vacated when the building was demolished to make way for the

Royal Automobile Club of Victoria The Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV) is a motoring club and mutual organisation. It offers various services to members, including insurance and roadside assistance. It has about 30,000 ordinary club members who have access to the li ...

(RACV). The Queen Street classes had attracted many students and the studio had become an important hub of intellectual and

bohemian life Bohemianism is the practice of an unconventional lifestyle, often in the company of like-minded people and with few permanent ties. It involves musical, artistic, literary, or spiritual pursuits. In this context, bohemians may be wanderers, a ...

in conservative Melbourne. Jorgensen had continued to accept architectural work and in 1934 while working on the design and construction of a studio in

for the painter and cartoonist Percy Leason, he decided that it was here he wanted to live, and so the Montsalvat dream began. Jorgensen invited his students and friends to join him in Eltham where he harnessed their collective enthusiasm in the building of Montsalvat. Among those early students and friends were author and critic Mervyn Skipper, his wife Lena and their three children – Helen, Sonia and Matcham. Arthor Munday, George Charlmers, Lesley Sinclair, Sue Vanderkelen, Ian Robertson, Helen Lempriere, John Smith,

John Busst John Horatio Busst (1909–5 April 1971) was an artist and Conservation movement, conservationist in Queensland, Australia. He is best known for leading a successful campaign to protect Queensland's Great Barrier Reef and its tropical rainforests ...

and Myra Skipper. Percy Leason and his family lived next door and then there were the many friends who came to join in the work and the camaraderie of the camp. Two notable Australian artists said to be associated with Montsalvat were

Leonard French Leonard William French OBE (8 October 1928 – 10 January 2017) was an Australian artist, known principally for major stained glass works. French was born in Brunswick, Victoria to a family of Cornish origin. His stained glass creation ...

and Albert Tucker.

Early Montsalvat

The Eltham district had been settled since the 1850s; some of these early pioneers had used mud bricks to build their farmhouses, but the method had long been abandoned. Jorgensen saw value in the building technique. The local soils appeared suitable for both adobe (

mudbrick A mudbrick or mud-brick is an air-dried brick, made of a mixture of loam, mud, sand and water mixed with a binding material such as rice husks or straw. Mudbricks are known from 9000 BCE, though since 4000 BCE, bricks have also bee ...

) and pisé de terre (

rammed earth Rammed earth is a technique for constructing foundations, floors, and walls using compacted natural raw materials such as earth, chalk, lime, or gravel. It is an ancient method that has been revived recently as a sustainable building method. ...

) and it was cheap, so he set his students to work. He dispatched Arthur Munday, to the State Library in Melbourne to research the technique. There was little written material available, as the methods has been handed down from father to son. Arthur finally found in the writings of the ancient

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

historian

Pliny Pliny may refer to: People * Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'') * Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...

some of the information they were looking for.

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. ...

for the roofs came from a friend's recently demolished house, discarded fire bricks,

tiles Tiles are usually thin, square or rectangular coverings manufactured from hard-wearing material such as ceramic, stone, metal, baked clay, or even glass. They are generally fixed in place in an array to cover roofs, floors, walls, edges, or o ...

and other material came from other sites. The recently demolished Bijou Theatre (in Bourke Street) proved a rich resource which provided the beautiful

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...

circular staircase, architrave mouldings and some of the doors and windows. Helen Lempriere's family donated materials and money to build the ornamental pond. The many doors that open onto the pond area are from the cubicles that were the students' bedrooms, which have now been combined into one long studio. (The original inhabitants' initials can be seen on the front doorstep of each room). The small

bluestone Bluestone is a cultural or commercial name for a number of dimension or building stone varieties, including: * basalt in Victoria, Australia, and in New Zealand * dolerites in Tasmania, Australia; and in Britain (including Stonehenge) * felds ...

tower,

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

studio and Long Gallery were added later to form the closed courtyard.

The Great Hall

Work on the Great Hall began in 1938 with a local tradesman Len Jarrold as the leading hand. Jorgensen had originally designed a modest structure of mud brick, however during the excavation a reef of

mudstone Mudstone, a type of mudrock, is a fine-grained sedimentary rock whose original constituents were clays or muds. Mudstone is distinguished from '' shale'' by its lack of fissility (parallel layering).Blatt, H., and R.J. Tracy, 1996, ''Petrology. ...

was uncovered. The unique

ochre Ochre ( ; , ), or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colours produced ...

tones of the stone inspired Jorgensen to re-design and the resulting larger structure was the Great Hall. He was fortunate in that

Whelan the Wrecker Whelan the Wrecker was a family owned and operated demolition company that operated from 1892 until 1992, based in Brunswick in the city of Melbourne. The company became well known through the 1950s and 1970s when signs stating that "Whelan the ...

s were demolishing the charming Royal Insurance Building which stood at 414, Collins Street, Melbourne, which contained the limestone windows and the stone balconies carved in the Gothic manner, that now adorn the Great Hall and give it its unique character. Students carved other windows and the gargoyles, which incorporated the traditional grotesque faces as seen in

medieval architecture Medieval architecture is architecture common in the Middle Ages, and includes religious, civil, and military buildings. Styles include pre-Romanesque, Romanesque, and Gothic. While most of the surviving medieval architecture is to be seen in c ...

. Extra stone for the walls came from a nearby quarry and the

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

and

from demolition sites across Melbourne. Some of the flagstones and roofing slates had originally been shipped from Ireland and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

ballast Ballast is material that is used to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within a boat, ship, ...

aboard the sailing ships that serviced Australia in the 19th century. Wooden staircase in The Great Hall at Montsalvat

Work on the Great Hall was interrupted by the outbreak

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Some of the students enlisted in the armed forces while others assisted on the home front. Montsalvat was turned into a farm and market garden. Jorgensen and his now smaller 'team' turned their creative abilities to these new projects, building the barns and sheds. Materials were scarce, but they managed to scrounge odd bits and pieces – from discarded broken bricks and rusty galvanized iron to timber poles cut from the bush. Additional to the market garden was the dairy and poultry farm with the produce being sold through the local markets. The Department of the Army took an interest and allowed a skilled joiner and cabinetmaker, Phil Taffe to help with the project. Phil, although almost blind, worked on the new buildings and helped make some of the

refectory A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the La ...

tables, stools, carved chairs and other furniture that can be seen in the Great Hall today. After the war, work on the Great Hall and other buildings resumed. The slate floor in the hall and the wooden floors above were finally put in place. Students were given the task of carving the

corbels In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal jutting from a wall to carry a superincumbent weight, a type of bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in the wall, whereas a console is a piece applied to the st ...

and other embellishments around the windows and doors as part of their training. Some of the stonework came from Wilson Hall at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

, which had been badly damaged by fire in 1952. Local tradesmen joined the team, as did some new students and aspiring artists fresh back from the horrors of the war, like

Clifton Pugh Clifton Ernest Pugh AO, (17 December 1924 – 14 October 1990) was an Australian artist and three-time winner of Australia's Archibald Prize. One of Australia's most renowned and successful painters, Pugh was strongly influenced by German Expr ...

Gordon Ford Gordon Ford (1918–1999) was an Australian landscape designer who created rugged gardens which were noted to be of a distinctly Australian style. After returning from service in New Guinea in WWII, he settled near Montsalvat, where he dug out ...

and Joe Hannan and tradesmen Horry Judd, Bill Floyd, Wallt Stephens, Ken Howard, plus several refugees from Europe and Asia.

Recent history and today

In 1975, Montsalvat became a Charitable Trust with Jorgensen's youngest son Sigmund as the chairman of the Trust and its administrator. In 1989 the work at Montsalvat was recognised by the Victorian Government when the property was placed on Heritage Victoria's Register, soon followed by a classification by the National Trust of Victoria. In October 1998 the Australian Heritage Commission included Montsalvat on the Australian Register of National Estate. (No. 100160) The

Shire of Nillumbik The Shire of Nillumbik ( ) is a local government area in Victoria, Australia. It contains outer northern suburbs of Melbourne and rural localities beyond the urban area. It has an area of 432 square kilometres and at th2021 census the Shire had ...

council has also listed the property as a Heritage Place. In 1996 the red brick barn/workshop/studio towards the entrance was subjected to arson and burnt down. It was subsequently rebuilt and now forms the main entrance and exhibition space known as the Barn Gallery. This is now where the majority of exhibitions and performances are held today. In 2006, an unpaid tax debt forced the current administration to sell land in nearby Christmas Hills after a bitter fight with a Victorian State Government appointed administrator. Montsalvat today is a place where emerging and established artists can present and perform their work. Its visual features are enjoyed by tourists from around the world, and it can be found listed in many major Melbourne tourist guides. Public events (including exhibitions and performances), Film and Photography, Celebrations and Gatherings of many types are held on the property and amongst its buildings frequently. The Great Hall, Long Gallery, Barn Gallery and Chapel are used for private functions including weddings and receptions. Some Melbourne funeral directors use Montsalvat as a funeral venue. Montsalvat houses facilities for commercial gatherings such as seminars and conferences. Its spaces can accommodate up to 200 people, while formal meals can be provided for up to 120 guests.

Cultural depictions

It has been one of the filming locations for two vampire films, ''

Thirst Thirst is the craving for potable fluids, resulting in the basic instinct of animals to drink. It is an essential mechanism involved in fluid balance. It arises from a lack of fluids or an increase in the concentration of certain osmolites, suc ...

'' in 1979, and ''

Queen of the Damned ''Queen of the Damned'' is a 2002 vampire film directed by Michael Rymer, loosely based on the third novel of Anne Rice's '' The Vampire Chronicles'' series, ''The Queen of the Damned'' (1988), although the film contains many plot elements from t ...

'' (2002). It was used for the opening scenes of John D. Lamond's

Ozploitation Ozploitation films are exploitation films – a category of low-budget horror, comedy, sexploitation and action films – made in Australia after the introduction of the R rating in 1971. The year also marked the beginnings of the Australian ...

film, '' Felicity'' (1979). Montsalvat was used as an abandoned monastery in episode 4 of

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...

in 1985. In episode 5600 of

in 2008, it doubled as Portugal. It was also the location for Libby and Dans wedding. It was used for an episode of ''

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries ''Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries'' is an Australian drama television series. It was first broadcast on ABC on 24 February 2012. It is based on author Kerry Greenwood's historical mystery novels, and it was created by Deb Cox and Fiona Eagger. ...

'' in 2013. The episode was titled "Murder under the Mistletoe" and was broadcast on

ABC1 ABC TV, formerly known as ABC1, is an Australian national public television network. It is owned and operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and is the flagship ABC Television network. The headquarters of the ABC TV channel an ...

on 22 December 2013. It was used for the wedding scene in Season 6 of the Australian drama ''

Offspring In biology, offspring are the young creation of living organisms, produced either by a single organism or, in the case of sexual reproduction, two organisms. Collective offspring may be known as a brood or progeny in a more general way. This ca ...

'' in 2016. Scenes for ''

Judy and Punch ''Judy and Punch'' is a 2019 Australian period black comedy film written and directed by Mirrah Foulkes in her feature directorial debut, based on a story by Foulkes, Eddy Moretti, Lucy Punch, and Tom Punch. Starring Mia Wasikowska, Damon Her ...

'' (2019) set in 17th century Britain were filmed here.

References

External links

Official site
{{coord, -37.7280, 145.1521, type:landmark_region:AU, display=title Culture of Melbourne Tourist attractions in Victoria (Australia) Australian artist groups and collectives Artist colonies Buildings and structures in Victoria (Australia) Arts centres in Australia Artists' studios in Australia Shire of Nillumbik