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This paper draws on creative research conducted with members of Victoria’s Indigenous communities to explore the notion of Aboriginal “Country” as an implicit critique of the European concept of terra firma and the architectural notion of “site”. Our research and discussion are motivated by a desire amongst a number of members of the Victorian Traditional Owner groups to create an Indigenous Cultural Knowledge and Education Centre in Melbourne. With this in mind, we also discuss the evolution of the Indigenous Cultural Centre in Australia and the challenges faced by the architects who design them, as well as by academics and researchers who seek to do the background research necessary before such a centre can be developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper charts how architects, conservative businessmen and conservative politicians helped develop Melbourne's interwar garden suburbs. It maps the ways in which architects transformed these suburban landscapes into highly charged political symbols that supported the values of the conservative Nationalist, United Australia and Liberal parties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]