Anatol Kagan

Anatol Kagan (4 October 1913, St. Petersburg, Russian Empire – 2 July 2009, Hunters Hill, Australia) was a Russian-born Australian architect. Over a professional career that spanned more than seven decades, and three continents, Kagan was active not only in the field of architecture and design but also as a writer, translator, lecturer and political activist.

Early life and training

Born in St Petersburg, Kagan was the son of Abraham S Kagan (rus. Абрам Каган; 1889 - 1983) - a university lecturer/publisher and a school teacher. As a young child, Anatol witnessed the atrocities of the Russian Revolution, which aroused a deep concern for social justice that would remain with him for the rest of his life. In 1922, Kagan's father became one of many intellectuals to be exiled from the new Soviet Union aboard the so-called Philosophers' Ships. The family settled in Berlin, where Kagan's father re-established his publishing business and Kagan himself commenced his architectural studies at the Technische Universität Berlin. Completing his Diploma of Architecture in 1937, Kagan found himself unable to obtain work in Berlin, as he was a foreigner. This, coupled with the increasingly unstable political situation in Germany at the time, prompted the family to leave Berlin. Intending to emigrate to Australia, Kagan travelled to Melbourne via London, where he worked for a few months in an architect's office. His parents and younger sister settled in the United States, and Kagan would not see them again until 1962.

Architectural career

After arriving in Melbourne in 1939, Kagan worked in the offices of several prominent architectural firms of the day, including Hugh & Arthur Peck, Seabrook & Fildes, Joseph Plottel, and Geelong-based firm of Buchan, Laird & Buchan.

By 1960, Kagan had tired of designing luxury houses for moneyed businessmen.