148-523: The Ringwood Library: Edmond and Corrigan was situated in the Eastern suburbs of Melbourne , Victoria , within the Ringwood Plaza complex, completed in 1995. The building stood alone as an icon in the area of Ringwood and set itself apart from the surrounding plaza and is noticeably differentiates from Eastland shopping centre , which sits to the north of the site. The Ringwood Public Library
296-557: A dime store area of New York's Lower East Side , where he blurred the line between art and commerce by producing and selling brightly painted plaster replicas of hamburgers and cans of soda, dresses, underwear, and other everyday objects: "Museum in b[ourgeois] concept equals store in mine". Oldenburg was one of the most recognizable sculptors identified with postmodernism, a group that included Jeff Koons , Eva Hesse , Louise Bourgeois , Anish Kapoor , Damien Hirst , Rachel Whiteread , and Richard Serra . Postmodern theater emerged as
444-470: A postmodern fashion and the use of different elements like the vaulted roof and polychromatic feature glazing." The colours used in this polychromatic fashion were also continued on through to the external tiling which was broken up by silver in appearance futuristic looking sliding door. Edmond and Corrigan's Ringwood Library was demolished in 2013 to make way for the Eastland stage 5 expansion and
592-426: A 2011 museum exhibition, Postmodernism: Style and Subversion 1970–1990 : "Anything could be mixed and matched – or mashed up, as is said today – and anything was fair game for inspiration.” The composer Jonathan Kramer has written that avant-garde musical compositions (which some would consider modernist rather than postmodernist) "defy more than seduce the listener, and they extend by potentially unsettling means
740-402: A 9,993 km (3,858 sq mi) metropolitan area also known as Greater Melbourne , comprising an urban agglomeration of 31 local municipalities , although the name is also used specifically for the local municipality of City of Melbourne based around its central business area . The metropolis occupies much of the northern and eastern coastlines of Port Phillip Bay and spreads into
888-505: A Hansom Cab (1886), the fastest-selling crime novel of the era, is set in Melbourne, as is Australia's best-selling book of poetry, The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke (1915) by C. J. Dennis . Contemporary Melbourne authors who have set novels in the city include Peter Carey , Helen Garner and Gerald Murnane . Melbourne has Australia's widest range of bookstores, as well as the nation's largest publishing sector. The city also hosts
1036-553: A Postmodern Literature . According to scholar David Herwitz, American writers such as John Barth (who had controversially declared that the novel was "exhausted" as a genre), Donald Barthelme , and Thomas Pynchon responded in various ways to the stylistic innovations of Finnegans Wake and the late work of Samuel Beckett . Postmodern literature often calls attention to issues regarding its own complicated connection to reality. The postmodern novel plays with language, twisted plots, multiple narrators, and unresolved endings, unsettling
1184-442: A break from modernism . They have in common the conviction that it is no longer possible to rely upon previous ways of depicting the world. Still, there is disagreement among experts about its more precise meaning even within narrow contexts. The term began to acquire its current range of meanings in literary criticism and architectural theory during the 1950s–1960s. In opposition to modernism's alleged self-seriousness, postmodernism
1332-673: A campaign to revive the economy with an aggressive development campaign of public works coupled with the promotion of the city as a tourist destination with a focus on major events and sports tourism. During this period the Australian Grand Prix moved to Melbourne from Adelaide . Major projects included the construction of a new facility for the Melbourne Museum , Federation Square , the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre , Crown Casino and
1480-474: A cause for aesthetic celebration. Their further influence on the conversation about postmodernism, however, would be largely mediated by French poststructuralism . ) If literature was at the center of the discussion in the 1970s, architecture was at the center in the 1980s. The architectural theorist Charles Jencks , in particular, connected the artistic avant-garde to social change in a way that captured attention outside of academia. Jenckes, much influenced by
1628-502: A contributing factor to the Australian economic depression of the 1890s and the Australian banking crisis of 1893 . The effects of the depression on the city were profound, with virtually no significant construction until the late 1890s. At the time of Australia's federation on 1 January 1901 Melbourne became the seat of government of the federated Commonwealth of Australia . The first federal parliament convened on 9 May 1901 in
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#17327940630861776-521: A departure from French Impressionism . Similarly, the first citation given by the Oxford English Dictionary is dated to 1916, describing Gus Mager as "one of the few 'post' modern painters whose style is convincing". Episcopal priest and cultural commentator J. M. Thompson, in a 1914 article, uses the term to describe changes in attitudes and beliefs in the critique of religion, writing, "the raison d'être of Post-Modernism
1924-463: A major renewal of the CBD and St Kilda Road which significantly modernised the city. New fire regulations and redevelopment saw most of the taller pre-war CBD buildings either demolished or partially retained through a policy of facadism . Many of the larger suburban mansions from the boom era were also either demolished or subdivided. To counter the trend towards low-density suburban residential growth,
2072-538: A matter of dispute. Various authors place its beginnings in the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. In the mid-1970s, the American sociologist Daniel Bell provided a general account of the postmodern as an effectively nihilistic response to modernism's alleged assault on the Protestant work ethic and its rejection of what he upheld as traditional values. The ideals of modernity, per his diagnosis, were degraded to
2220-401: A nearby shopping mall. The library was highly accessible as it was situated near the centre of transport-related facilities and services, including public transport and car parks. The library was designed differently from its retail neighbours in order for it to serve as a local landmark. On approach the entrance of the library created a sense of elevation from ground level which is created from
2368-477: A new library, Realm, constructed as part of the development. Melbourne Melbourne ( / ˈ m ɛ l b ər n / MEL -bərn , locally [ˈmæɫbən] ; 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 Australia, after Sydney . Its name generally refers to
2516-474: A new literary form. Also in the arts, the term was first used in 1949 to describe a dissatisfaction with the modernist architectural movement known as the International Style . Although these early uses anticipate some of the concerns of the debate in the second part of the 20th century, there is little direct continuity in the discussion. Just when the new discussion begins, however, is also
2664-629: A pastoral estate in Bulleen , now the Heide Museum of Modern Art . The city is also home to the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art , as well as numerous independent galleries and artist-run spaces. In the 2000s, street art proliferated in Melbourne , with Banksy saying its graffiti scene "leads the world", and "laneway galleries" becoming major tourist sites; Hosier Lane for example attracts more Instagram hashtags than some of
2812-683: A political dimension. One manifestation of postmodernism in fashion explored alternatives to conventional concepts of elegance. Rei Kawakubo ’s Spring/Summer 1997 collection featured "dresses asymmetrically padded with goose down, creating bumps in unexpected areas of the body". Issey Miyake ’s 1985 dreadlocks hat "offered an immediate, yet impermanent, ' multi-culti ' fashion experience". Vivienne Westwood took "an extremely polyglot approach", from early work with copies of 1950s clothes, to exploration of historic modes and cultural influences: her first runway show, "Pirate", merged British history, 18th- and 19th-century dress, and African textile design, with
2960-508: A prime example of postmodernism. The setting is a future dystopia where "replicants", enhanced android workers nearly indistinguishable from humans, are hunted down when they escape from their jobs. The film blurs boundaries between genres and cultures, and fuses disparate styles and periods: futuristic visuals "mingle with drab 1940s clothes and offices, punk rock hairstyles, pop Egyptian styles and oriental culture." The blending of film noir and science-fiction into tech noir illustrates
3108-727: A prominent example of the latter style in the CBD. The 1926 Nicholas Building is the city's grandest example of the Chicago School style, while the influence of Art Deco is apparent in the Manchester Unity Building , completed in 1932. The city also features the Shrine of Remembrance , which was built as a memorial to the men and women of Victoria who served in World War I and is now a memorial to all Australians who have served in war. Residential architecture
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#17327940630863256-525: A rap and ethnic music soundtrack. Postmodern film aims to subvert the mainstream conventions of narrative structure and characterization , and to test the audience's suspension of disbelief . Typically, such films also break down the cultural divide between high and low art and often upend typical portrayals of gender , race , class , genre , and time with the goal of creating something that does not abide by traditional narrative expression. Certain key characteristics are used to separate
3404-456: A rapid clearing trend to sunny and relatively calm weather and the temperature rising back to what it was before the shower. This can occur in the space of minutes and can be repeated many times a day, giving Melbourne a reputation for having "four seasons in one day", a phrase that is part of local popular culture . The lowest temperature on record is −2.8 °C (27.0 °F), on 21 July 1869. The highest temperature recorded in Melbourne city
3552-420: A reaction against modernist theater. Most postmodern productions are centered on highlighting the fallibility of definite truth, instead encouraging the audience to reach their own individual understanding. Essentially, thus, postmodern theater raises questions rather than attempting to supply answers. In the 1970s, a disparate group of French theorists – often grouped together as "poststructuralists" – developed
3700-425: A suburban landmark that is easily distinguishable from the surrounding town. On the other hand, the interior planning is simplified, with an open plan interior. This space included an entrance lobby that rose into double height space. The location of the collections and other facilities were clearly stated on oversized signposts, which could be seen from every location within the library and acts as Post-Modern play on
3848-432: Is Flinders Street station and its main regional rail and road coach terminus is Southern Cross station . It also has Australia's most extensive freeway network and the largest urban tram network in the world . Aboriginal Australians have lived in the Melbourne area for at least 40,000 years. When European colonisers arrived in the 19th century, at least 20,000 Kulin people from three distinct language groups –
3996-463: Is "diffuse, fragmentary, [and] multi-dimensional". Critics have described it as "an exasperating term" and claim that its indefinability is "a truism". Put otherwise, postmodernism is "several things at once". It has no single definition, and the term does not name any single unified phenomenon, but rather many diverse phenomena: "postmodernisms rather than one postmodernism". Although postmodernisms are generally united in their effort to transcend
4144-578: Is a bore". The term "postmodern dance" is most strongly associated with the Judson Dance Theater located in New York's Greenwich Village during the 1960s and 1970s. Arguably its most important principle is taken from the composer John Cage 's efforts to break down the distinction between art and life. The Judson dancers "[stripped] dance of its theatrical conventions such as virtuoso technique, fanciful costumes, complex storylines, and
4292-627: Is becoming unaffordable for some. Public housing is managed and provided by the Victorian Government's Department of Families, Fairness and Housing , and operates within the framework of the Commonwealth-State Housing Agreement, by which both federal and state governments provide funding for housing. Melbourne is experiencing high population growth, generating high demand for housing. This housing boom has increased house prices and rents, as well as
4440-489: Is characterized by its playful use of eclectic styles and performative irony , among other features. Critics claim it supplants moral, political, and aesthetic ideals with mere style and spectacle. In the 1990s, "postmodernism" came to denote a general – and, in general, celebratory – response to cultural pluralism . Proponents align themselves with feminism , multiculturalism , and postcolonialism . Building upon poststructural theory, postmodern thought defined itself by
4588-512: Is closely linked with the writings of critic-turned-architect Charles Jencks , beginning with lectures in the early 1970s and his essay "The Rise of Post-Modern Architecture" from 1975. His magnum opus , however, is the book The Language of Post-Modern Architecture , first published in 1977, and since running to seven editions (in which he famously wrote: "Modern architecture died in St. Louis, Missouri, on 15 July 1972 at 3:32 p.m. (or thereabouts) when
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4736-562: Is home to more skyscrapers than any other Australian city , the tallest being Australia 108 , situated in Southbank. Melbourne's newest planned skyscraper, Southbank By Beulah (also known as "Green Spine"), has recently been approved for construction and will be the tallest structure in Australia by 2025. The CBD and surrounds also contain many significant historic buildings such as the Royal Exhibition Building ,
4884-561: Is known for its music, theatre and arts scenes, as well as its diverse range of cultural events and festivals, including the Melbourne International Arts Festival , Melbourne Fringe Festival and Moomba , Australia's largest free community festival. For much of the 2010s, Melbourne topped The Economist Intelligence Unit 's list of the world's most liveable cities , partly due to its cultural attributes. State Library Victoria , founded in 1854,
5032-437: Is largely protected from the ocean, resulting in greater temperature variation across seasons. Melbourne's urban area is approximately 2,704 km , the largest in Australia and the 33rd largest in the world. The Hoddle Grid , a grid of streets measuring approximately 1 by 1 ⁄ 2 mi (1.61 by 0.80 km), forms the nucleus of Melbourne's central business district (CBD). The grid's southern edge fronts onto
5180-693: Is not defined by a single architectural style, but rather an eclectic mix of large McMansion -style houses (particularly in areas of urban sprawl), apartment buildings, condominiums, and townhouses which generally characterise the medium-density inner-city neighbourhoods. Freestanding dwellings with relatively large gardens are perhaps the most common type of housing outside inner city Melbourne. Victorian terrace housing, townhouses and historic Italianate , Tudor revival and Neo-Georgian mansions are all common in inner-city neighbourhoods such as Carlton, Fitzroy and further into suburban enclaves like Toorak . Often referred to as Australia's cultural capital, Melbourne
5328-565: Is noted for its street art , live music and theatre scenes. It hosts major annual sporting events, such as the Australian Grand Prix and the Australian Open , and also hosted the 1956 Summer Olympics . Melbourne ranked as the world's most livable city for much of the 2010s. Melbourne Airport is the second-busiest airport in Australia and the Port of Melbourne is the nation's busiest seaport. Its main metropolitan rail terminus
5476-484: Is often referred to as Australia's garden city, and the state of Victoria is known as the garden state . There is an abundance of parks and gardens in Melbourne , many close to the CBD with a variety of common and rare plant species amid landscaped vistas, pedestrian pathways and tree-lined avenues. Melbourne's parks are often considered the best public parks in all of Australia's major cities. There are also many parks in
5624-543: Is one of the world's oldest free public libraries and, as of 2018, the fourth most-visited library globally. During the 19th-century boom period, Melbourne-based authors and poets Marcus Clarke , Adam Lindsay Gordon and Rolf Boldrewood produced classic visions of colonial life, and many visiting writers recorded literary responses to the city: for Henry Kendall , it was a "wild bleak Bohemia", while Henry Kingsley stated that, in its rapid growth, Melbourne "surpasses all human experience". Fergus Hume 's The Mystery of
5772-468: Is the Swiss Army knife of critical concepts. It’s definitionally overloaded, and it can do almost any job you need done." From an opposing perspective, media theorist Dick Hebdige criticized the vagueness of the term, enumerating a long list of otherwise unrelated concepts that people have designated as postmodernism, from "the décor of a room" or "a 'scratch' video", to fear of nuclear armageddon and
5920-515: Is to escape from the double-mindedness of modernism by being thorough in its criticism by extending it to religion as well as theology, to Catholic feeling as well as to Catholic tradition". In 1926, Bernard Iddings Bell , president of St. Stephen's College and also an Episcopal priest, published Postmodernism and Other Essays , which marks the first use of the term to describe an historical period following modernity. The essay criticizes lingering socio-cultural norms, attitudes, and practices of
6068-538: The Australian Dream . This, coupled with the popularity of the private automobile after 1945, led to the auto-centric urban structure now present today in the middle and outer suburbs. Much of metropolitan Melbourne is accordingly characterised by low-density sprawl, whilst its inner-city areas feature predominantly medium-density, transit-oriented urban forms. The city centre, Docklands, St. Kilda Road and Southbank areas feature high-density forms. Melbourne
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6216-454: The CityLink tollway . Other strategies included the privatisation of some of Melbourne's services, including power and public transport, and a reduction in funding to public services such as health, education and public transport infrastructure. Since the mid-1990s, Melbourne has maintained significant population and employment growth. There has been substantial international investment in
6364-594: The Empire of Japan , and the government requisitioned the Melbourne Cricket Ground for military use. In the immediate years after World War II , Melbourne expanded rapidly, its growth boosted by post-war immigration to Australia , primarily from Southern Europe and the Mediterranean . While the "Paris End" of Collins Street began Melbourne's boutique shopping and open air cafe cultures,
6512-507: The Enlightenment . It is also critical of a purported cultural shift away from traditional Christian beliefs. The term "postmodernity" was first used in an academic historical context as a general concept for a movement by Arnold J. Toynbee in a 1939 essay, which states that "Our own Post-Modern Age has been inaugurated by the general war of 1914–1918". In 1942, the literary critic and author H. R. Hays describes postmodernism as
6660-602: The Heidelberg School of impressionists, named after a suburb where they camped to paint en plein air in the 1880s. The Australian tonalists followed in the 1910s, some of whom founded Montsalvat in Eltham , Australia's oldest surviving art colony. Mid-century Melbourne became a stronghold of figurative modernism through the paintings of the Antipodeans and Angry Penguins ; the latter group often met at
6808-617: The Melbourne Bounce genre and the Melbourne Shuffle dance style, both of which emerged from the city's underground rave scene. Established in 1861, the National Gallery of Victoria is Australia's oldest and largest art museum, and houses its collection across two sites: NGV International in Southbank and NGV Australia at Federation Square. Several art movements originated in Melbourne, most famously
6956-544: The Melbourne Town Hall and Parliament House . Although the area is described as the centre , it is not actually the demographic centre of Melbourne at all, due to an urban sprawl to the southeast, the demographic centre being located at Camberwell . Melbourne is typical of Australian capital cities in that after the turn of the 20th century, it expanded with the underlying notion of a 'quarter acre home and garden' for every family, often referred to locally as
7104-426: The Melbourne Town Hall , St Patrick's cathedral, though many remained incomplete for decades. The layout of the inner suburbs on a largely one-mile grid pattern, cut through by wide radial boulevards and parklands surrounding the central city, was largely established in the 1850s and 1860s. These areas rapidly filled with the ubiquitous terrace houses, as well as with detached houses and grand mansions, while some of
7252-793: The Melbourne Writers Festival and the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards . In 2008, it became the second UNESCO City of Literature . Melbourne is home to many theatres , eight of which are concentrated in the East End Theatre District , including the Victorian era Athenaeum , Her Majesty's and Princess theatres, as well as the Forum and the Regent . Other heritage-listed theatres include
7400-739: The Mornington Peninsula , part of West Gippsland , as well as the hinterlands towards the Yarra Valley , the Dandenong Ranges , and the Macedon Ranges . As of 2023, the population of the metropolitan area was 5.2 million (19% of the population of Australia ); inhabitants are referred to as "Melburnians". The area of Melbourne has been home to Aboriginal Victorians for over 40,000 years and serves as an important meeting place for local Kulin nation clans. Of
7548-463: The Otway and Macedon Ranges , which block much of the rainfall arriving from the north and west. Port Phillip is often warmer than the surrounding oceans or the land mass, particularly in spring and autumn; this can set up a "bay effect", similar to the " lake effect " seen in colder climates, where showers are intensified leeward of the bay. Relatively narrow streams of heavy showers can often affect
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#17327940630867696-483: The Royal Exhibition Building , subsequently moving to the Victorian Parliament House, where it sat until it moved to Canberra in 1927. The Governor-General of Australia resided at Government House in Melbourne until 1930, and many major national institutions remained in Melbourne well into the twentieth century. During World War II the city hosted American military forces who were fighting
7844-792: The Selwyn fault , which transects Mount Martha and Cranbourne . The western portion of the metropolitan area lies within the Victorian Volcanic Plain grasslands vegetation community, and the southeast falls in the Gippsland Plains Grassy Woodland zone. Melbourne extends northward through the undulating bushland valleys of the Yarra Valley 's tributaries— Moonee Ponds Creek (toward Melbourne Airport ), Merri Creek , Darebin Creek and Plenty River . The city reaches southeast through Dandenong to
7992-597: The World Heritage -listed Royal Exhibition Building (1880), the General Post Office (1867), Hotel Windsor (1884) and the Block Arcade (1891). Comparatively little remains of Melbourne's pre-gold rush architecture; St James Old Cathedral (1839) and St Francis' Church (1845) are among the few examples left in the CBD. Many of the CBD's Victorian boom-time landmarks were also demolished in
8140-676: The Wurundjeri , Bunurong and Wathaurong – resided in the area. It was an important meeting place for the clans of the Kulin nation alliance and a vital source of food and water. In June 2021, the boundaries between the land of two of the traditional owner groups, the Wurundjeri and Bunurong, were agreed after being drawn up by the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council . The borderline runs across
8288-505: The Yarra River . More recent office, commercial and public developments in the adjoining districts of Southbank and Docklands have made these areas into extensions of the CBD in all but name. A byproduct of the CBD's layout is its network of lanes and arcades , such as Block Arcade and Royal Arcade . Melbourne's CBD has become Australia's most densely populated area, with approximately 19,500 residents per square kilometre, and
8436-552: The market town of Melbourne , Derbyshire . That year, the settlement's general post office officially opened with that name. Between 1836 and 1842, Victorian Aboriginal groups were largely dispossessed of their land by British colonists. In 1840, the Superintendent of the Port Phillip District , Charles La Trobe issued a directive to banish Aborigines from the immediate vicinity of Melbourne. This
8584-409: The modernist movement . Even here, however, there continued to be disagreement about such basic issues as whether postmodernism is a break with modernism, a renewal and intensification of modernism, or even, both at once, a rejection and a radicalization of its historical predecessor. While discussions in the 1970s were dominated by literary criticism, these were supplanted by architectural theory in
8732-468: The "implosion of meaning", and stated that anything that could signify all of those things was "a buzzword". All this notwithstanding, scholar Hans Bertens offers the following: If there is a common denominator to all these postmodernisms, it is that of a crisis in representation: a deeply felt loss of faith in our ability to represent the real, in the widest sense. No matter whether they are aesthestic [sic], epistemological, moral, or political in nature,
8880-456: The 1950s. Their stance against modernist poetry – and Olson's Heideggerian orientation – were influential in the identification of postmodernism as a polemical position opposed to the rationalist values championed by the Enlightenment project. During the 1960s, this affirmative use gave way to a pejorative use by the New Left , who used it to describe a waning commitment among youth to
9028-467: The 1980s. Some of these conversations made use of French poststructuralist thought, but only after these innovations and critical discourse in the arts did postmodernism emerge as a philosophical term in its own right. According to Hans Bertens and Perry Anderson , the Black Mountain poets Charles Olson and Robert Creeley first introduced the term "postmodern" in its current sense during
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#17327940630869176-767: The 2010s the State Government of Victoria initiated a number of major infrastructure projects designed to reduce congestion in Melbourne and encourage economic growth, including the Metro Tunnel , the West Gate Tunnel , the Level Crossing Removal Project and the Suburban Rail Loop . New urban renewal zones were initiated in inner-city areas like Fisherman's Bend and Arden , while suburban growth continued on
9324-462: The 2024 Global Financial Centres Index . The city's eclectic architecture blends Victorian era structures, such as the World Heritage -listed Royal Exhibition Building , with one of the world's tallest skylines . Additional landmarks include the Melbourne Cricket Ground and the National Gallery of Victoria . Noted for its cultural heritage , the city gave rise to Australian rules football , Australian impressionism and Australian cinema , and
9472-498: The American architect Robert Venturi , celebrated a plurality of forms and encourages participation and active engagement with the local context of the built environment. He presented this as in opposition to the "authoritarian style" of International Modernism. In the 1970s, postmodern criticism increasingly came to incorporate poststructuralist theory, particularly the deconstructive approach to texts most strongly associated with Jacques Derrida , who attempted to demonstrate that
9620-608: The Bay was filled with teatree scrub where boorrimul (emu) and marram (kangaroo) were hunted. The first British settlement in Victoria , then part of the penal colony of New South Wales , was established by Colonel David Collins in October 1803, at Sullivan Bay , near present-day Sorrento . The following year, due to a perceived lack of resources, these settlers relocated to Van Diemen's Land (present-day Tasmania ) and founded
9768-522: The Black Mountain poets an exemplary instance of the new postmodern type, Hassan celebrates its Nietzschean playfulness and cheerfully anarchic spirit, which he sets off against the high seriousness of modernism. (Yet, from another perspective, Friedrich Nietzsche 's attack on Western philosophy and Martin Heidegger 's critique of metaphysics posed deep theoretical problems not necessarily
9916-461: The British magazine, "Design". A characteristic of postmodern graphic design is that "retro, techno, punk, grunge, beach, parody, and pastiche were all conspicuous trends. Each had its own sites and venues, detractors and advocates." In 1971, the American literary theorist Ihab Hassan made "postmodernism" popular in literary studies with his influential book, The Dismemberment of Orpheus: Toward
10064-598: The Colony of Victoria, with Melbourne as its capital. The discovery of gold in Victoria in mid-1851 sparked a gold rush , and Melbourne, the colony's major port, experienced rapid growth. Within months, the city's population had nearly doubled from 25,000 to 40,000 inhabitants. Exponential growth ensued, and by 1865 Melbourne had overtaken Sydney as Australia's most populous city. An influx of intercolonial and international migrants, particularly from Europe and China, saw
10212-476: The Melbourne CBD in the back-beaches of Rye , Sorrento and Portsea . Melbourne has a temperate oceanic climate ( Köppen climate classification Cfb ), with warm summers and cool winters. Melbourne is well known for its changeable weather conditions , mainly due to it being located on the boundary of hot inland areas and the cool southern ocean. This temperature differential is most pronounced in
10360-493: The Western world. The Industrial Revolution , urbanization , secularization , technological advances , two world wars , and globalization deeply disrupted the social order. Modernism emerged in the late 1800s, seeking to redefine fundamental truths and values through a radical rethinking of traditional ideas and forms across many fields. Postmodernism emerged in the mid-20th century with a skeptical perspective that questioned
10508-584: The area and established a settlement at the site of the current Melbourne Immigration Museum . Batman and his group arrived the following month and the two groups ultimately agreed to share the settlement, initially known by the native name of Dootigala. Batman's Treaty with the Aboriginal elders was annulled by Richard Bourke , the Governor of New South Wales (who at the time governed all of eastern mainland Australia), with compensation paid to members of
10656-441: The arts in general, it instead turned to address the more general problems posed to society in general by a new proliferation of cultures and forms. It is during this period that it also came to be associated with postcolonialism and identity politics . Around this time, postmodernism also began to be conceived in popular culture as a general "philosophical disposition" associated with a loose sort of relativism . In this sense,
10804-551: The association. In 1836, Bourke declared the city the administrative capital of the Port Phillip District of New South Wales , and commissioned the first plan for its urban layout, the Hoddle Grid , in 1837. Known briefly as Batmania, the settlement was named Melbourne on 10 April 1837 by Bourke after the British Prime Minister , William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne , whose seat was Melbourne Hall in
10952-499: The availability of all types of housing. Subdivision regularly occurs in the outer areas of Melbourne, with numerous developers offering house and land packages. However, since the release of Melbourne 2030 in 2002, planning policies have encouraged medium-density and high-density development in existing areas with good access to public transport and other services. As a result of this, Melbourne's middle and outer-ring suburbs have seen significant brownfields redevelopment. On
11100-760: The avant-garde picture palace The Capitol and St Kilda's Palais Theatre , Australia's largest seated theatre with a capacity of 3,000 people. The Arts Precinct in Southbank is home to Arts Centre Melbourne (which includes the State Theatre and Hamer Hall ), as well as the Melbourne Recital Centre , Malthouse Theatre and Southbank Theatre , home of the Melbourne Theatre Company , Australia's oldest professional theatre company. The Australian Ballet , Opera Australia and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra are also based in
11248-436: The back of the 1850s gold rush and 1880s land boom, Melbourne became renowned as one of the world's great Victorian-era cities, a reputation that persists due to its diverse range of Victorian architecture . High concentrations of well-preserved Victorian-era buildings can be found in the inner suburbs, such as Carlton , East Melbourne and South Melbourne . Outstanding examples of Melbourne's built Victorian heritage include
11396-434: The blocks. The Aboriginal population continued to decline, with an estimated 80% total decrease by 1863, due primarily to introduced diseases (particularly smallpox ), frontier violence and dispossession of their lands. The 1880s saw extraordinary growth: consumer confidence, easy access to credit, and steep increases in land prices led to an enormous amount of construction. During this "land boom", Melbourne reputedly became
11544-551: The city centre was seen by many as stale—the dreary domain of office workers—something expressed by John Brack in his famous painting Collins St., 5 pm (1955). Up until the 21st century, Melbourne was considered Australia's "industrial heartland". Height limits in the CBD were lifted in 1958, after the construction of ICI House , transforming the city's skyline with the introduction of skyscrapers. Suburban expansion then intensified, served by new indoor malls beginning with Chadstone Shopping Centre . The post-war period also saw
11692-399: The city from west to east, with the CBD , Richmond and Hawthorn included in Wurundjeri land, and Albert Park , St Kilda and Caulfield on Bunurong land. However, this change in boundaries is still disputed by people on both sides of the dispute including N'arweet Carolyn Briggs . The name Narrm is commonly used by the broader Aboriginal community to refer to the city, stemming from
11840-546: The city of Hobart . It would be 30 years before another settlement was attempted. In May and June 1835, John Batman , a leading member of the Port Phillip Association in Van Diemen's Land, explored the Melbourne area, and later claimed to have negotiated a purchase of 2,400 km (600,000 acres) with eight Wurundjeri elders. However, the nature of the treaty has been heavily disputed, as none of
11988-430: The city's industries and property market. Major inner-city urban renewal has occurred in areas such as Southbank , Port Melbourne , Melbourne Docklands and South Wharf . Melbourne sustained the highest population increase and economic growth rate of any Australian capital city from 2001 to 2004. From 2006, the growth of the city extended into "green wedges" and beyond the city's urban growth boundary . Predictions of
12136-660: The city's population reaching 5 million people pushed the state government to review the growth boundary in 2008 as part of its Melbourne @ Five Million strategy. In 2009, Melbourne was less affected by the Great Recession in comparison to other Australian cities. At this time, more new jobs were created in Melbourne than any other Australian city—almost as many as the next two fastest growing cities, Brisbane and Perth, combined, and Melbourne's property market remained highly priced, resulting in historically high property prices and widespread rent increases. Beginning in
12284-517: The city's traditional destinations, like the Melbourne Zoo . Melbourne's many public artworks range from the Burke and Wills monument (1865) to the abstract sculpture Vault (1978), the latter a popular reference point amongst Melbourne designers. Postmodern Postmodernism is a term used to refer to a variety of artistic, cultural, and philosophical movements that claim to mark
12432-441: The city. Nauru 's then booming economy resulted in several ambitious investments in Melbourne, such as Nauru House . Melbourne remained Australia's main business and financial centre until the late 1970s, when it began to lose this primacy to Sydney. Melbourne experienced an economic downturn between 1989 and 1992, following the collapse of several local financial institutions. In 1992, the newly elected Kennett government began
12580-532: The city. The establishment of the Melbourne Hydraulic Power Company in 1886 led to the availability of high-pressure piped water, allowing for the installation of hydraulically powered elevators , which led to the construction of the first high-rise buildings in the city. The period also saw the huge expansion of a significant radial rail-based transport network throughout the city and suburbs. Melbourne's land-boom peaked in 1888,
12728-464: The conventional idea of the novel as faithfully reflecting the world. In Postmodernist Fiction (1987), Brian McHale details the shift from modernism to postmodernism, arguing that postmodern works developed out of modernism, moving from concern with what is there (" ontological dominant") to concern with how we can know it's there (" epistemological dominant"). McHale's "What Was Postmodernism?" (2007) follows Raymond Federman 's lead in now using
12876-564: The countryside from the late 1850s. Construction started on further major public buildings in the 1860s and 1870s, such as the Supreme Court , Government House , and the Queen Victoria Market . The central city filled up with shops and offices, workshops, and warehouses. Large banks and hotels faced the main streets, with fine townhouses in the east end of Collins Street, contrasting with tiny cottages down laneways within
13024-660: The decades after World War II, including the Federal Coffee Palace (1888) and the APA Building (1889), one of the tallest early skyscrapers upon completion. Heritage listings and heritage overlays have since been introduced in an effort to prevent further losses of the city's historic fabric. In line with the city's expansion during the early 20th century, suburbs such as Hawthorn and Camberwell are defined largely by Federation and Edwardian architectural styles. The City Baths , built in 1903, are
13172-627: The deconstruction of both cinema and genre. The film can also be seen as an example of major studios using the "mystique and cachet of the term 'postmodern' as a sales pitch", resulting in Hollywood movies that "demonstrate all the postmodern characteristics". From another perspective, "critical responses to Blade Runner fall on either side of a modern/postmodern line" – critical analysis from "modernist" and "postmodernist" approaches produce entirely different interpretations. Early mention of postmodernism as an element of graphic design appeared in
13320-471: The eastern fringe at Gembrook . Melbourne receives 48.6 clear days annually. Dewpoint temperatures in the summer range from 9.5 to 11.7 °C (49.1 to 53.1 °F). Melbourne is also prone to isolated convective showers forming when a cold pool crosses the state, especially if there is considerable daytime heating. These showers are often heavy and can include hail, squalls, and significant drops in temperature, but they often pass through very quickly with
13468-472: The establishment of slums, including Chinatown and a temporary "tent city" on the southern banks of the Yarra. In the aftermath of the 1854 Eureka Rebellion , mass public support for the plight of the miners resulted in major political changes to the colony, including improvements in working conditions across mining, agriculture, manufacturing and other local industries. At least twenty nationalities took part in
13616-575: The five peoples of the Kulin nation, the traditional custodians of the land encompassing Melbourne are the Boonwurrung , Woiwurrung and the Wurundjeri peoples. In 1803, a short-lived British penal settlement was established at Port Phillip, then part of the Colony of New South Wales . Melbourne was founded in 1835 with the arrival of free settlers from Van Diemen's Land (modern-day Tasmania ). It
13764-407: The full height space. The coloured glass window, sage green and grey corrugated steel roof were also a focal point of the facade when observing from the entrance. A sheltered walkway connected the main shopping mall and the library. The utilization of colour and varying roof shapes shown in the interior, were specifically chosen by the architects Edmond and Corrigan , with the sole purpose of producing
13912-547: The government began a series of controversial public housing projects in the inner city by the Housing Commission of Victoria , which resulted in the demolition of many neighbourhoods and a proliferation of high-rise towers. In later years, with the rapid rise of motor vehicle ownership, the investment in freeway and highway developments greatly accelerated the outward suburban sprawl and declining inner-city population. The Bolte government sought to rapidly accelerate
14060-557: The growth corridor of Pakenham towards West Gippsland . In the west, it extends along the Maribyrnong River and its tributaries north towards Sunbury . Melbourne's major bayside beaches are in the various suburbs along the shores of Port Phillip Bay, in areas like Port Melbourne , Albert Park , St Kilda , Elwood , Brighton , Sandringham , Mentone , Frankston , Altona , Williamstown and Werribee South. The nearest surf beaches are 85 km (53 mi) south of
14208-523: The height of the ceiling and the large signpost, both of which are super-human scale. This could be an analogy of the purpose of the building, which is to store and disseminate knowledge via reading whilst also elevating the level of understanding of the world as a whole. The Ringwood library used strong methodologies of postmodern architecture and contained many similarities of other work by Edmond and Corrigan such as RMIT building 8 , Athan House and The VCA Theatre building. The building used colour in
14356-465: The infamous Pruitt–Igoe scheme, or rather several of its slab blocks, were given the final coup de grâce by dynamite." ). Jencks makes the point that postmodernism (like modernism) varies for each field of art, and that for architecture it is not just a reaction to modernism but what he terms double coding : "Double Coding: the combination of Modern techniques with something else (usually traditional building) in order for architecture to communicate with
14504-580: The late 1970s and early 1980s, including the Little Band scene and St Kilda 's Crystal Ballroom scene, which gave rise to Dead Can Dance and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds . More recent independent acts from Melbourne to achieve global recognition include The Avalanches , Gotye and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard . Melbourne is also regarded as a centre of EDM , and lends its name to
14652-546: The late 1970s and ’80s." Media theorist Dick Hebdige , examining the " Road to Nowhere " (1985) music video, said the group "draw eclectically on a wide range of visual and aural sources to create a distinctive pastiche or hybrid 'house style' which they have used since their formation in the mid-1970s deliberately to stretch received (industrial) definitions of what rock/pop/video/Art/ performance/audience are", calling them "a properly postmodernist band." According to lead vocalist/guitarist/songwriter David Byrne , commenting for
14800-521: The late-20th century, avant-garde academics labelled American singer Madonna as the "personification of the postmodern" because "the postmodern condition is characterized by fragmentation, de-differentiation, pastiche, retrospection and anti-foundationalism", which they argued Madonna embodied. Christian writer Graham Cray also said that "Madonna is perhaps the most visible example of what is called post-modernism", and Martin Amis described her as "perhaps
14948-417: The level of consumer choice. This research project, however, was not taken up in a significant way by others until the mid-1980s when the work of Jean Baudrillard and Fredric Jameson , building upon art and literary criticism, reintroduced the term to sociology. Discussion about the postmodern in the second part of the 20th century was most articulate in areas with a large body of critical discourse around
15096-402: The library is to provide ease for the user and the architectural design which is external expresses itself internally also. The planning of internal space was divided into spaces such as, the family history section is the only public room isolated from the main collection as it stores priceless archives. The staff work areas, were situated in offices which surround the building, mainly those near
15244-531: The lines between fine art and commercial design. His work, exemplified by the iconic Campbell's Soup Cans series during the 1960s, brought the postmodernist sensibility to mainstream attention. Criticism of postmodernist movements in the arts include objections to departure from beauty, the reliance on language for the art to have meaning, a lack of coherence or comprehensibility, deviation from clear structure, and consistent use of dark and negative themes. Scholarship regarding postmodernism and architecture
15392-474: The loading bay, where provision is made for storage and distribution. There was also a rest room with kitchen equipment. The location of the staff work areas was strategically chosen to assist with the surveillance of deliveries and does not compete with the public aspects of the library. The coloured glass curtain of the main window served to shield from the intense Australian sun. The other windows were low level, with large overhangs for solar protection. Towards
15540-662: The major roads developed as shopping streets. Melbourne quickly became a major finance centre, home to several banks, the Royal Mint , and (in 1861) Australia's first stock exchange . In 1855, the Melbourne Cricket Club secured possession of its now famous ground, the MCG . Members of the Melbourne Football Club codified Australian football in 1859, and in 1861, the first Melbourne Cup race
15688-430: The modernisation of Melbourne. Major road projects including the remodelling of St Kilda Junction , the widening of Hoddle Street and then the extensive 1969 Melbourne Transportation Plan changed the face of the city into a car-dominated environment. Australia's financial and mining booms during 1969 and 1970 resulted in establishment of the headquarters of many major companies ( BHP and Rio Tinto , among others) in
15836-561: The most famous Melburnian of the Edwardian era. The Sidney Myer Music Bowl in Kings Domain hosted the largest crowd ever for a music concert in Australia when an estimated 200,000 attendees saw Melbourne band The Seekers in 1967. Airing between 1974 and 1987, Melbourne's Countdown helped launch the careers of local acts as diverse as AC/DC and Kylie Minogue . Several distinct post-punk scenes flourished in Melbourne during
15984-403: The most postmodern personage on the planet". She was also suggested by literary critic Olivier Sécardin to epitomise postmodernism. Sculptor Claes Oldenberg , at the forefront of the pop art movement, declared in 1961: "I am for an art that is political-erotical-mystical … I am for an art that embroils itself with everyday crap and still comes out on top." That year, he opened The Store in
16132-440: The nation's largest city in 2029–30 at just over 5.9 million, exceeding 6 million people the following year. Melbourne is in the southeastern part of mainland Australia, within the state of Victoria . Geologically, it is built on the confluence of Quaternary lava flows to the west, Silurian mudstones to the east, and Holocene sand accumulation to the southeast along Port Phillip . The southeastern suburbs are situated on
16280-446: The north and Dandenong Ranges National Park to the east. There are also a number of significant state parks just outside Melbourne. The extensive area covered by urban Melbourne is formally divided into hundreds of suburbs (for addressing and postal purposes), and administered as local government areas, 31 of which are located within the metropolitan area. Melbourne has minimal public housing and high demand for rental housing, which
16428-422: The notion of universal truths and reshaped modernist approaches by embracing the complexity and contradictions of modern life. The term "postmodernism" first appeared in print in 1870, but it only began to enter circulation with its current range of meanings in the 1950s—60s. The term "postmodern" was first used in 1870 by the artist John Watkins Chapman, who described "a Postmodern style of painting" as
16576-459: The ordinary. The Shelves containing printed and electronic collections fanned out from the information desk and were arranged in Dewey decimal system. Access to chairs and desks from the shelves was within the same vicinity. The shelves were also arranged in a manner that provided spatial division between different areas, such as children's material, large print and computing facilities. The Planning of
16724-483: The parties spoke the same language, and the elders likely perceived it as part of the gift exchanges which had taken place over the previous few days amounting to a tanderrum ceremony which allows temporary, not permanent, access to and use of the land. Batman selected a site on the northern bank of the Yarra River , declaring that "this will be the place for a village" before returning to Van Diemen's Land. In August 1835, another group of Vandemonian settlers arrived in
16872-409: The past tense when discussing postmodernism. Others argue that postmodernism in literature utilizes compositional and semantic practices such as inclusivity, intentional indiscrimination, nonselection, and "logical impossibility." Music critic Andy Cush described Talking Heads as "New York art-punks" whose "blend of nervy postmodernism and undeniable groove made them one of the defining rock bands of
17020-482: The perceived limits of modernism, "modernism" also means different things to different critics in various arts. Further, there are outliers on even this basic stance; for instance, literary critic William Spanos conceives postmodernism, not in period terms, but in terms of a certain kind of literary imagination so that pre-modern texts such as Euripides ' Orestes or Cervantes ' Don Quixote count as postmodern. According to scholar Louis Menand , "Postmodernism
17168-477: The political ideals socialism and communism . The literary critic Irving Howe , for instance, denounced postmodern literature for being content to merely reflect, rather than actively attempt to refashion, what he saw as the "increasingly shapeless" character of contemporary society. In the 1970s, this changed again, largely under the influence of the literary critic Ihab Hassan 's large-scale survey of works that he said could no longer be called modern. Taking
17316-407: The postmodern from modernist cinema and traditional narrative film. One is an extensive use of homage or pastiche , imitating the style or character of other artistic works. A second is meta-reference or self-reference, highlighting the relation of the image to other images in media and not to any kind of external reality. Viewers are reminded that the film itself is only a film, perhaps through
17464-563: The precinct. Many of Melbourne's theatres join the Melbourne Town Hall in hosting the annual Melbourne International Comedy Festival , one of the world's three largest comedy festivals. Melbourne has been called "the live music capital of the world"; one study found it has more music venues per capita than any other world city sampled, with 17.5 million patron visits to 553 venues in 2016. Australia's first global music star, opera singer Nellie Melba , took her stage name from her hometown. Composer Percy Grainger followed her in becoming
17612-482: The prevailing narratives of beauty and objectivity common to Modernism. Author on postmodernism, Dominic Strinati, has noted, it is also important "to include in this category the so-called ' art rock ' musical innovations and mixing of styles associated with groups like Talking Heads , and performers like Laurie Anderson , together with the self-conscious 'reinvention of disco ' by the Pet Shop Boys ". In
17760-412: The public and a concerned minority, usually other architects." In their book, "Revisiting Postmodernism", Terry Farrell and Adam Furman argue that postmodernism brought a more joyous and sensual experience to the culture, particularly in architecture. For instance, in response to the modernist slogan of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe that "less is more", the postmodernist Robert Venturi rejoined that "less
17908-637: The rebellion, giving some indication of immigration flows at the time. With the wealth brought in from the gold rush and the subsequent need for public buildings, a program of grand civic construction soon began. The 1850s and 1860s saw the commencement of Parliament House , the Treasury Building , the Old Melbourne Gaol , Victoria Barracks , the State Library , University of Melbourne , General Post Office , Customs House ,
18056-501: The rejection of any single, foundational historical narrative. This called into question the legitimacy of the Enlightenment account of progress and rationality. Critics allege that its premises lead to a nihilistic form of relativism . In this sense, it has become a term of abuse in popular culture. "Postmodernism" is "a highly contested term", referring to "a particularly unstable concept", that "names many different kinds of cultural objects and phenomena in many different ways". It
18204-547: The representations that we used to rely on can no longer be taken for granted. In practical terms, postmodernisms share an attitude of skepticism towards grand explanations and established ways of doing things. In art, literature, and architecture, this attitude blurs boundaries between styles and genres, and encourages freely mixing elements, challenging traditional distinctions like high art versus popular art . In science, it emphasizes multiple ways of seeing things, and how our cultural and personal backgrounds shape how we see
18352-667: The richest city in the world, and the second-largest (after London) in the British Empire . The decade began with the Melbourne International Exhibition in 1880, held in the large purpose-built Exhibition Building . A telephone exchange was established that year, and the foundations of St Paul's were laid. In 1881, electric light was installed in the Eastern Market , and a generating station capable of supplying 2,000 incandescent lamps
18500-399: The same places (usually the eastern suburbs) for an extended period, while the rest of Melbourne and surrounds stays dry. Overall, the area around Melbourne is, owing to its rain shadow, nonetheless significantly drier than average for southern Victoria. Within the city and surrounds, rainfall varies widely, from around 425 mm (17 in) at Little River to 1,250 mm (49 in) on
18648-475: The side of the library, there was a small garden, which also provided more shade, and views. There was only one small, clerestory window which enabled direct access to sunlight. This window was carefully controlled in order to create a cool, glare-free working environment. The library collections and facilities were all located in a single area, which was easily visible to staff. Their arrangement allowed study and browsing to occur with ease and interaction. However,
18796-416: The spring and summer months and can cause strong cold fronts to form. These cold fronts can be responsible for varied forms of severe weather from gales to thunderstorms and hail , large temperature drops and heavy rain. Winters, while exceptionally dry by southern Victorian standards, are nonetheless drizzly and overcast. The lack of winter rainfall is owed to Melbourne's rain shadowed location between
18944-510: The surrounding suburbs of Melbourne, such as in the municipalities of Stonnington , Boroondara and Port Phillip , southeast of the central business district. Several national parks have been designated around the urban area of Melbourne, including the Mornington Peninsula National Park , Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park and Point Nepean National Park in the southeast, Organ Pipes National Park to
19092-808: The term also started to appear as a "casual term of abuse" in non-academic contexts. Others identified it as an aesthetic "lifestyle" of eclecticism and playful self-irony. Postmodernism encompasses a wide range of artistic movements and styles. In visual arts, pop art , conceptual art , feminist art , video art , minimalism , and neo-expressionism are among the approaches recognized as postmodern. The label extends to diverse musical genres and artists: John Cage , Madonna , and punk rock all meet postmodern definitions. Literature, film, architecture, theater, fashion, dance, and many other creative disciplines saw postmodern expression. As an example, Andy Warhol 's pop art across multiple mediums challenged traditional distinctions between high and low culture, and blurred
19240-650: The traditional name recorded for the area on which the Melbourne city centre is built. The word is closely related to Narm-narm , being the Boonwurrung word for Port Phillip Bay . Narrm means scrub in Eastern Kulin languages which reflects the Creation Story of how the Bay was filled by the creation of the Birrarung (Yarra River). Before this, the dry Melbourne region extended out into the Bay and
19388-461: The traditional stage [and] drew on everyday movements (sitting, walking, kneeling, and other gestures) to create their pieces, often performing them in ordinary spaces." This was developed in particular by the American dancer and choreographer Merce Cunningham , Cage's partner. In the 1980s and 1990s, dance began to incorporate other typically postmodern features such as the mixing of genres, challenging high–low cultural distinctions, and incorporating
19536-560: The urban periphery in Melbourne's outer west and east in suburbs like Wyndham Vale and Cranbourne . Middle suburbs like Box Hill became denser as a greater proportion of Melburnians began living in apartments. A construction boom resulted in 34 new skyscrapers being built in the central business district between 2010 and 2020. In 2020, Melbourne was classified as an Alpha city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network . Out of all major Australian cities, Melbourne
19684-469: The use of intertextuality , in which the film's characters reference other works of fiction. A third characteristic is stories that unfold out of chronological order , deconstructing or fragmenting time to emphasize the constructed nature of film. Another common element is a bridging of the gap between highbrow and lowbrow , . Contradictions of all sorts are crucial to postmodernism. Ridley Scott 's Blade Runner (1982) has been widely studied as
19832-407: The very idea of what music is." In the 1960s, composers such as Terry Riley , Henryk Górecki , Bradley Joseph , John Adams , Steve Reich , Philip Glass , Michael Nyman , and Lou Harrison reacted to the perceived elitism and dissonant sound of atonal academic modernism by producing music with simple textures and relatively consonant harmonies, whilst others, most notably John Cage challenged
19980-422: The whole foundationalist approach to language and knowledge was untenable and misguided. It is during this period that postmodernism came to be particularly equated with a kind of anti-representational self-reflexivity. In the 1980s, some critics began to take an interest in the work of Michel Foucault . This introduced a political concern about social power-relations into discussions about postmodernism. This
20128-482: The world's largest and wealthiest metropolises. After the federation of Australia in 1901, Melbourne served as the interim seat of government of the new nation until Canberra became the permanent capital in 1927. Today, Melbourne is culturally diverse and, among world cities, has the 4th largest foreign born population . It is a leading financial centre in the Asia-Pacific region, ranking 28th globally in
20276-576: The world, making it impossible to be completely objective . In philosophy, education, history, politics, and many other fields, it encourages critical re-examination of established institutions and social norms, embracing diversity and breaking down disciplinary boundaries. Though these ideas weren't strictly new, postmodernism amplified them, using an often playful, at times deeply critical, attitude of pervasive skepticism to turn them into defining features. Two broad cultural movements, modernism and postmodernism, emerged in response to profound changes in
20424-473: The year it hosted the Centennial Exhibition. The brash boosterism that had typified Melbourne during that time ended in the early 1890s. The bubble supporting the local finance and property industries burst, resulting in a severe economic depression. Sixteen small land banks and building societies collapsed, and 133 limited companies went into liquidation. The Melbourne financial crisis was
20572-548: Was 46.4 °C (115.5 °F), on 7 February 2009 . While snow is occasionally seen at higher elevations in the outskirts of the city, and dustings were observed in 2020, it has not been recorded in the Central Business District since 1986. The sea temperature in Melbourne is warmer than the surrounding ocean during the summer months, and colder during the winter months. This is predominately due to Port Phillip Bay being an enclosed and shallow bay that
20720-468: Was also the beginning of the affiliation of postmodernism with feminism and multiculturalism . The art critic Craig Owens , in particular, not only made the connection to feminism explicit, but went so far as to claim feminism for postmodernism wholesale, a broad claim resisted by even many sympathetic feminists such as Nancy Fraser and Linda Nicholson. Although postmodern criticism and thought drew on philosophical ideas from early on, "postmodernism"
20868-489: Was enforced later that same year by the mass-arrest and imprisonment of hundreds of Indigenous people during the Lettsom raid . However, Aboriginal people still managed to continue living near the settlement and by January 1844 there were said to be 675 residing in squalid camps around Melbourne. The British Colonial Office had appointed five Aboriginal Protectors for the Aboriginal people of Victoria, in 1839, but their work
21016-410: Was held. Melbourne acquired its first public monument, the Burke and Wills statue, in 1864. With the gold rush largely over by 1860, Melbourne continued to grow on the back of continuing gold-mining, as the major port for exporting the agricultural products of Victoria (especially wool) and with a developing manufacturing sector protected by high tariffs. An extensive radial railway network spread into
21164-499: Was in operation by 1882. The Melbourne cable tramway system opened in 1885 and became one of the world's most extensive systems by 1890. In 1885, visiting English journalist George Augustus Henry Sala coined the phrase "Marvellous Melbourne", which stuck long into the twentieth century and has come to refer to the opulence and energy of the 1880s, during which time large commercial buildings, grand hotels, banks, coffee palaces , terrace housing and palatial mansions proliferated in
21312-490: Was incorporated as a Crown settlement in 1837, and named after the then- Prime Minister of the United Kingdom , William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne . Declared a city by Queen Victoria in 1847, it became the capital of the newly separated Colony of Victoria in 1851. During the 1850s Victorian gold rush , the city entered a lengthy boom period that, by the late 1880s, had transformed it into Australia's, and one of
21460-664: Was located in Melbourne's east in Ringwood, Victoria . In the 1950s, the town developed into a suburb and is flanked by the Maroondah Highway and the railway line, allowing easy access to Melbourne . With a large proportion of single parent families, the town embodies the changes in Australian society that took place in the latter half of the 20th century. Part of the funds used to build Ringwood Library were contributed by an enterprising local council, who also developed
21608-532: Was nullified by a land policy that favoured squatters who took possession of Aboriginal lands. By 1845, fewer than 240 wealthy Europeans held all the pastoral licences then issued in Victoria and became a powerful political and economic force in Victoria for generations to come. Letters patent of Queen Victoria , issued on 25 June 1847, declared Melbourne a city. On 1 July 1851, the Port Phillip District separated from New South Wales to become
21756-468: Was only introduced to the expressly philosophical lexicon by Jean-François Lyotard in his 1979 The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge . This work served as a catalyst for many of the subsequent intellectual debates around the term. By the 1990s, postmodernism had become increasingly identified with critical and philosophical discourse directly about postmodernity or the postmodern idiom itself. No longer centered on any particular art or even
21904-476: Was the worst affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and spent a long time under lockdown restrictions, with Melbourne experiencing six lockdowns totalling 262 days. While this contributed to a net outflow of migration causing a slight reduction in Melbourne's population over the course of 2020 to 2022, Melbourne is projected to be the fastest growing capital city in Australia from 2023–24 onwards, overtaking Sydney as
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