Motorclassica 2012 was held in The Royal Exhibition Building located in the heart of Melbourne. The venue and the selection of Australia's best motoring classics makes for a unbeatable combination. Well worth adding to your calendar for 2013.
Thank you to Joy and Trevor for their photo contributions.
The following is an extract from the website for The Royal Exhibition Building and further information can be obtained at
www.museumvictoria.com.au/reb
Details of Motorclassica can be found at
www.motorclassica.com.au
The Building
The Melbourne International Exhibition: The Interior Under the Dome, 1880.
Source: Museum Victoria
The Royal Exhibition Building is the only surviving Great Hall that once housed a 19th-century international exhibition and is still used for exhibitions. Joseph Reed, of the firm Reed and Barnes, was the architect. Reed’s was a grand design, influenced by Rundbogenstil, a round-arched architectural style combining elements from Byzantine, Romanesque, Lombardic and Italian Renaissance buildings. The dome’s design was influenced by Brunelleschi’s 15th-century cathedral in Florence.
When it was built, the Great Hall was the largest building in Australia, and the highest building in Melbourne. It is brick, set on a bluestone base, and has long central naves and stunted transepts. There are four triumphal entrance porticoes, one on each side. The building is set in ceremonial gardens, which were designed by Reed and William Sangster. A wide avenue lined with plane trees links the front, southern entrance of the building with the city beyond. There was a viewing platform around the dome that allowed visitors to survey the progress of the booming city.