Overview
Calling all architecture fans, folks keen to explore another side of Brisbane and just anyone who likes to peek behind closed doors. Open House Brisbane is back for 2019 and is once again showcasing the city's buildings and structures, letting you peer beyond their facades, and even welcoming you into nooks and crannies that aren't usually open to the public.
Celebrating its tenth year in Brisbane, the event will feature 119 buildings across the weekend of October 12–13, which marks its biggest program yet. Get ready to wander through places that you probably walk past every day, spots you've always wondered about and everything in between. They include The Montague pub in West End, the Spring Hill Baths and The Shingle Inn in City Hall, plus the Fort Lytton Military Precinct (and Lytton Quarantine Station), the Old Windmill Tower and the always-popular homes inside Indooroopilly's Walter Taylor Bridge.
A selection of architecturally distinctive residential buildings also feature, if you'd like a tour of other people's houses. Many require bookings, so planning ahead is recommended.
Other highlights include seemingly every important space along the river at South Bank — Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Queensland Museum, State Library of Queensland, Queensland Art Gallery, Gallery of Modern Art and ABC Brisbane — plus other city-wide favourites such as The Tivoli, Breakfast Creek Hotel, Brisbane Powerhouse, Parliament House, the Treasury Hotel, 4ZZZ's studios and the Queensland Herbarium. Fancy stepping inside the 90-storey Brisbane Skytower in Margaret Street, or the historic Howard Smith Wharves? They're also on the bill.
Queensland Herbarium by Sheena Cheema
While plenty of this year's locations were on the program in 2018, newcomers include All Hallow's Convent, Brisbane Racing Club, 25 King Street, the William Terrace carpark and one of West End's best-kept secrets: the Ryan Street Library. It's a footpath spot where locals can stop by, borrow a book, exchange their own or donate reading material — and it's inspired, architecturally, by a similar setup in Stockholm.
Open House Brisbane isn't just about walking through spaces, whether you mosey at your own leisure or take a guided tour. It also boasts a program of talks and events running from September 26, including a new signature lecture on Singaporean architecture. Last year's special after-dark section also returns, taking place between September 30–October 11 — complete with everything from art exhibitions to laneway tours.
Brisbane Open House runs over Saturday, October 12 and Sunday, October 13 at a variety of places around Brisbane. For the full program, head to brisbaneopenhouse.com.au.
Top images: Walter Taylor Bridget by Jake Churches, Port of Brisbane by Kim Williams, Government House Fernberg, Spring Hall Baths by Cieran Murphy and Old Windmill Tower by Paul Knie.