Followers

Tuesday, April 21, 2020



Frequent contributor to this blog and fellow Hawaii resident, Larry K., helped me solve 
a nagging question I had about this photo.  I have seen it identified as from the St. Kilda's Sea Baths in Melbourne, Australia, but the architectural details don't match other photos of that venerable place at all.  Larry has recently been researching Australian photo sources and informs me that this is the swimming pool in Victoria Park, Kalgoorlie, Western Australia from 1917 by J.J. Dwyer. 
 Many thanks to Larry for  his help.

6 comments:

  1. Reminds me of the time in the US when swimming nude at the Y was a requirement for the males.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This structure is similar to the derelict old pool at my old school. Apparently nude swimming was compulsory. Roof fell in about 1970, new pool built 1972, swimming trunks were optional in my first year.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The general design type showed up in a number of places, including Stockholm.

      Delete
    2. Yes, they do. I've seen one in France.

      Delete
    3. Ah yes. in the Eugene Jansson photographs and artwork. Also in a few of the Muybridge images. So evocative of that era. The men's swimming pond in Highgate London still has similar structures. Often populated with muscular nude young men chatting after doing endurance swims. The quality of light is the same as in Jansson's work. Sadly these days the swimming is not nude.

      Delete