Maurice Hurst

Maurice Hurst (1929–2003) OAM, was one of Queensland's leading architects of the Noosa style of architecture. Maurice Hurst is considered a forerunner in Australian architecture. Having trained and worked in England, he then returned to practice his skills in both architectural design and drafting. Not only a style innovator and a conservation pioneer, Hurst acted as a staple of Queensland's domestic architecture for more than half a century. Mostly working in the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane regions, Hurst defined and shaped the area stylistically and spiritually for years.

Biography Maurice Hurst was born 20 September 1929 in Hastings, England, the son of a publican. Hurst trained at the Brixton and Hammersmith School of Building and Architecture from 1946 where he met friend Bernard Joyce. First developing skills in drafting and architectural annotation, it was during this period that it is believed Hurst developed his trademark sketching style and visualization techniques.

After receiving his Masters from the College of Art and Architecture in 1952, he worked with Joseph Emberton in 1953. Hurst was employed with various commercial architectural firms and practices in London. He completed his British military service from 1953 to 1955, being posted to Egypt where he worked on the Suez Canal with the Royal Engineers. Due to Hurst's declining health, the partnership with Harris ceased in 1993 and Hurst soon retired.

Legacy After a long and industrious career, particularly in Queensland, Maurice Hurst died 13 November 2003. a collection of drawing and models from prominent Queensland Architects of the era.

Notable works

Church of England, Thargomindah, 1959 As architects frequently used by the Anglican Church during the 1950s, the firm in which he worked designed many churches of which these are examples – the first often illustrated in Australian architectural histories as an example reconciling traditional ecclesiastical form to the tropics, The second (not realised) in an even more extreme climate has a square plan for changes in liturgy, and multiple roof vents which recall vestments. New town at Gumdale, 1960

Hurst worked as the conceptual drawer on the speculative proposal for a new town after British precedents, made at the end of a building boom which started with the lifting of war-time building restrictions and ended with credit squeeze at the end of 1960. Roe House, Brookfield, 1963, this low set brick house on a concrete slab was set into the side of a hill. It was designed to make the house complement the natural environment. Frost House, Kenmore, 1965, Fishermen's Village, Tweed Heads O'Reilly's Tourist Resort, Canungra Nicholsons, Indooroopilly The Keep, Kenmore Budley, Alexandra Headlands