Written by Nicholas McDougall of the Sugar City Art Deco and Modernism Society | Published March 2025
Karl Langer was an Austrian-born architect, town planner, and landscape architect, one of Queensland’s most influential architects. Born in Vienna in 1903, Karl studied architecture in Vienna at the Viennese Academy, graduating in 1926. He also studied Art History at the University of Vienna, graduating as a Doctor of Philosophy in 1933 with a thesis entitled “Origins and Development of Concrete Construction”. In 1935 Karl established his practice in Vienna. Following the annexation of Austria, he came to Australia with his Jewish wife and art historian critic Gertrude Langer.
Karl and Gertrude arrived in Sydney in May 1939, proceeding to Brisbane in July so that Karl could commence work for architects Cook and Kerrison. From their arrival, the Langers dedicated themselves to various civic and professional activities. Their combined efforts greatly influenced the development of Queensland’s arts and design, primarily through organisations such as the Queensland Art Gallery Society, the Australian Council for the Arts, and the Vacation Schools of Creative Arts, in which they fulfilled key roles over many years.
Karl Langer became well known throughout Australia; he came to the attention of Ian Wood, the Mayor of Mackay. Ian Wood entered public life when he was elected to Mackay City Council as an alderman on April 12, 1927. Three years later, in 1930, he was elected as Australia’s youngest mayor. He would serve in all 15 years as Mackay’s Mayor. Known for his progressive views, Ian Wood established the early foundations of the tourism industry in the Mackay and Whitsundays. He pioneered tours, cruises, and resort development on Lindeman Island, the first tourist island in the Whitsundays. Mackay Tours undertook a national campaign to advertise the scenic appeal of Mackay and its surroundings.
In 1944 the Mackay City Council led by Mayor Ian Wood commissioned the design of a new town plan for Mackay, which anticipated the substantial growth of the city and cemented its position as the departure point for exploring Queensland’s most incredible natural wonder, The Great Barrier reef and the Whitsunday Islands.
In June 1945, Dr Karl Langer’s Town Plan for Mackay had pride of place in the Town Hall on Sydney Street. It was optimistically announced the public display of the Plan and reported that the Langer Plan was unanimously proposed for adoption by a special meeting. The special meeting on May 21, 1945, stated that the Plan was to lie on the council table for three months.
The Langer Plan was considered ‘visionary’ by many. The local paper, The Daily Mercury, on June 20, 1945, heralded it with headlines’ Proposals to cover future expansion’ and ‘Provision for an extension over one hundred years’. The Langer Plan addressed future transportation issues for Mackay City by proposing re-routing the railway line that slowed vehicle traffic and posed a danger to citizens.
Dr Langer, seeing the future importance of the motor vehicle, planned for two more bridges across the Pioneer River. His vision also included a university campus along the riverbank and a boulevard that drives around the entire circumference of the city boundaries. His town plan included a reserve for war veterans’ homes, car parking, and protective parklands near schools and residential areas to ensure the safety of children and residents. At the heart of the Plan was a civic centre with administrative offices, a separate concert hall, an open-air theatre, a library, a museum, a healthcare centre and a public square. Langer believed that the square was a virtual space in the city. While the whole Plan may have taken many years to accomplish, the advantage was it could be started immediately and put Mackay at the forefront of enlightened planning in post-war Australia.
In 1952 at the city council election, Mayor Ian Wood, the most vocal of supporters for Langer’s new Plan, was defeated. The new council sacked Langer and ended all progress toward his Plan. His appointment was cancelled at the first general meeting of the new Labor-controlled council. The newly elected mayor was Alderman Jack Bennington, who represented the South Ward of the city council, one of the districts that the new development in the Langer plan would most heavily affect.
Dr Langer was informed by a letter of his termination by Mackay City Council, which had commissioned him to revise the city’s current Plan eight years earlier. In its letter, the council informed Dr Langer that all previous instructions for work to be carried out on behalf of the council were cancelled. Bitter controversy on the merits of the Langer Plan raged for several years within Mackay City Council, mainly along party political lines. Labour had campaigned vigorously against it in council elections, citing the exorbitant cost to Mackay and the threat to people’s homes and jobs.
On many occasions, Ian Wood clarified that the Langer Plan was a long-term proposition, and the city could carry the cost. To this day, many of his plans and concept designs are recognised as works of art in their own right and are part of the Mackay Regional Council Artspace collection.
References
- Daily Mercury Mackay Pioneer to build amenities 17th of November 1949 page 2
- Daily Mercury Mackay new Mackay Town plan approved 25th of April 1952 page.
- Daily Mercury Mackay Dr Langer sacked 24th of June 1952 page 2
- Daily Mercury Mackay tropical housing 17th of July 1943 page 2
- Daily Mercury Mackay Civic survey planning for the future 16th of November 1944 page
- Daily Mercury Mackay New Town plan for Mackay is completed Adaption proposed by City Council 22nd of May 1945 page 2.
- D Van Der Plaat & J MacArthur. 2022.Karl Langer: Modern Architect and migrant in the Australian tropics, Bloomsbury.
- Heritage context study for the Mackay City Council B, Wright, A, Jacob, R, Dalton, 1999.
- Mackay Revisited. K, Kennedy. 2002.
- Butler, G & Associates, 1994, ‘Mackay Region Heritage Pilot Study, Mackay City Council.
