Biography
Dr Paul Hogben is an Associate Professor of Architecture within the School of Built Environment at UNSW. His expertise lies within the field of architectural history within which he has over 25 years of experience in teaching and research. He convenes a core course within the Bachelor of Architectural Studies devoted to the history of modern architecture in Australia (ARCH1322) and his current research is focused on the post-war architecture...view more
Dr Paul Hogben is an Associate Professor of Architecture within the School of Built Environment at UNSW. His expertise lies within the field of architectural history within which he has over 25 years of experience in teaching and research. He convenes a core course within the Bachelor of Architectural Studies devoted to the history of modern architecture in Australia (ARCH1322) and his current research is focused on the post-war architecture of the Hunter region in New South Wales.
From July 2019 to July 2023 Paul was the President of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand (SAHANZ, www.sahanz.net). The aim of this organisation is to promote standards of excellence in the field of architectural history research with a focus on Australia, New Zealand and the Asia-Pacific region.
My Grants
Internal Faculty Grants
2014 Faculty Research Grant for ‘A study of the Australian buildings designed by Edward E Raht’.
2012 Faculty Research Grant for ‘Landscapes of Leisure and Pleasure in Modern Sydney 1945‐70’ (with Judith O’Callaghan and other members of the BE Urban Typologies Research Cluster).
2009 Research Linkage Grant for ‘Identifying University of New South Wales connections to the Sydney Opera House during the period 1955 to 2009’ (with Ann Quinlan and David Lindaya).
2008 Research Linkage Grant for ‘Australian Architects in America, 1880-1916’ (with Joshua Wrathall).
External Grants and Sponsorships
2013 City of Sydney History Publication Sponsorship (with Judith O’Callaghan)
My Qualifications
PhD (UNSW), MArchSt (UAdel)
My Research Activities
Paul’s research examines various aspects of modern architectural history in Australia, from the late nineteenth-century until the present. Currently, his research is focused on two topics within this subject area:
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Post-war architecture within the Hunter region of New South Wales.
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Early American corporate imperialism as exemplified by the foreign building program of the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States in the 1880s and 1890s.
From 2011 to 2016, and with his colleague Dr Judith O’Callaghan, Paul convened the Urban Typologies Research Cluster within the Faculty of Built Environment at UNSW Sydney. Over this period the cluster produced two edited books and hosted a major conference of architectural historians. The details are:
Hogben, Paul, and O'Callaghan, Judith, eds., Leisure Space: The Transformation of Sydney 1945-1970. Sydney: NewSouth Publishing, 2014. www.newsouthbooks.com.au/books/leisure-space-transformation-Sydney. This book was shortlisted for the 2015 NSW Premier's History Awards in the Community and Regional History category.
O'Callaghan, Judith, Hogben, Paul, and Freestone, Robert, eds., Sydney's Martin Place: A Cultural and Design History. Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 2016.
Hogben, Paul, and O'Callaghan, Judith, eds., Architecture, Institutions and Change: Proceedings of the 32nd Annual Conference of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand. Sydney: SAHANZ, 2015. www.sahanz.net/publications/annual-proceedings/?session=500
My Research Supervision
Areas of supervision
Currently supervising
Paul is engaged in higher degree research supervision in the areas of architectural history and theory. His past HDR students have been:
- Dr Milton Cameron (PhD thesis title: 'Experiments in Modern Living: Scientists and the National Capital Private House', 2010)
- Dr Alanya Knowles (PhD thesis title: 'Celebrity and Architects: The Significance of Celebrity in relation to the Professional Legimitisation of American Architects in the 1970s and 1980s, a case study', 2014)
- Dr Steven Chang (PhD thesis title: 'Retail Architecture in Post-war Taiwan: The Significance of American Influence', 2018)
- Dr Rowan Gower (PhD thesis title: 'Image Building: Examining Australia’s Diplomatic Architecture in the Asian Region, 1960-1980', 2019)
- Dr Catriona Quinn (PhD thesis title: 'Noel Coulson and Decor Associates (1950-1970): The Role of the Client in an Alternative Framework for Understanding Modernity in Australian Interior Design', 2021)
- Dr Mohammad Widyarta (PhD thesis title: 'Edifices as Conduit: Indonesian and Foreign Agencies in the Production of Post-Independence Buildings', 2025)
- Ella Roessler-Holgate (MPhil thesis title: 'Californian Bungalow: Promotion at Play', 2020)
Currently, Paul is joint PhD supervisor for Sharryn Bowman on the topic of the creation of the early buildings of the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
My Engagement
Memberships
Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand (SAHANZ)
National Trust of Australia (NSW)
Museums of History NSW
Twentieth Century Heritage Society of NSW & ACT
My Teaching
While architectural history and theory form the core of his teaching expertise, Paul also teaches in the area of research practice and has been a guest critic in design studio courses over many years. His courses currently include ARCH1322 Architectural History and Theory 3 (focussed on the history of modern architecture in Australia) and ARCH7215 Advanced Themes in Australian Architecture.