Ian Clunies Ross Wing

International House’s first accommodation building, now known as the Ian Clunies Ross Wing, had its beginnings when a group of University of Melbourne students and members of the broader community began discussing ways to ease some of the housing problems faced by the city’s international students. You can read more about the path to Clunies in a previous post.

Once the decision had been made to establish an ‘international house’ in Melbourne, the University purchased two properties on Royal Parade in Parkville (“University Council Approval,” 1953). The International House Council considered refurbishing one property as a “temporary recreational centre” for students before deciding to demolish the existing buildings (International House Council, 10 August 1955).

The University appointed Melbourne architects Raymond Berg (1913–1988) and Hubert Waugh (1901–1969) to design the new building, with Leighton Irwin and Co. as the supervising architects (“International House, Hostel for Asian Students,” 1956). Berg was a lecturer in the University of Melbourne’s School of Architecture and contributed to the design of other University buildings including the Raymond Priestley Building (Alexandra, 1989, p. 27).

The initial plans proposed three buildings each of three storeys to be built in three stages (“Another £23,000 Needed,” 1953). In the end only one was completed (Larkins, 2018, pp. 16–17), and it was not until 1963 that International House’s second building, the Samuel Wadham Wing, opened.

The new building gained attention in the Australian press. Hemisphere magazine called it a “£170,000 super-hostel” (“International House: Melbourne has a New Home for Asian Students,” 1957). The Bulletin noted the “remarkable job” by architect Ray Berg (“Personal Items,” 1957). Melbourne’s Age newspaper praised its innovative laundry, “dream kitchen”, and “strikingly modern” interiors (“International House has First Student,” 1956).

[T]he bold use of the primary colours – green, red, blue and yellow – combined with black and Windsor grey, effectively interprets the contemporary theme.

“International House has First Student,” 1956

For generations of IHers the building has been known as ‘Clunies’, but it was not until 1962 that it got its current name. It was then that the International House Council decided to name the House’s first building in honour of Sir Ian Clunies Ross, one of the founders of International House and the first chair of the International House Council (International House Council, 1962).

References and further reading

Alexandra, D. (1989, March). “Obituary: Raymond Berg.” Architecture Australia, 78(2), 26–27.

Another £23,000 needed (1953, December 22). The Herald, 2. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article245043389

Goad, P. (2012). Berg, Ray. In The Encyclopedia of Australian Architecture, edited by Philip Goad and Julie Wills. Cambridge University Press.

International House Council (1962, September 11). Meeting No. 4, 1962. International House Archives.

International House has first student (1956, November 10). The Age.

International House, hostel for Asian students… (1956, November). Cross-Section, University of Melbourne Department of Architecture, [2].

International House: Melbourne has a new home for Asian students (1957, May). Hemisphere: An Asian-Australian Magazine 1(3), 3-4.

Jones. B. (1957, March). International House. Adult Education 1(3), 16-18.

Jones, B. (1957, October 12). International House: A vision realised. The Age.

Larkins, F. (2018). International House Melbourne: Sixty years of fraternitas. Melbourne University Publishing.

“Personal items” (1957, July 24). The Bulletin, 78(4041), 15.

University approves ‘home’ site (1953, September 8). The Argus, 7. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article23308002

University Council approval: Parkville site for International House (1953, September 8). The Age, 4. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article206464108