| History | Russell and Yelland was formed in 1939 when Charles Alexander Russell and Keith Yelland formed an architectural practice.
Charles Alexander Russell (Alec) (8/3/1903–15/5/1975) was articled to the prominent Adelaide architect F. Kenneth Milne, in 1919, while studying at the South Australian School of Mines and Industries. Russell had many professional partnerships and collaborations. However Russell’s longest and most productive partnership was with Keith Yelland. Russell & Yelland was established c.1939 and still exists (2010). Over the years the partnership collaborated with others, including William Lucas.
Russell’s commissions were varied: the Masonic Temple at Melrose, north of Adelaide (Jacob & Russell, 1928); extensions and additions to the Laura Hotel, also north of Adelaide (1929), alterations and additions to a Kensington Park residence (1929), and renovations and repairs to Lady Galway Convalescent Home at Henley Beach South (1930) (Milne, Evans and Russell); alterations and additions to a residence at College Park (C.A. Russell, 1931); two brick shops on Commercial Road, Port Adelaide (Malin Russell & Co Ltd, 1932); and a new theatre at Gawler (C.A. Russell, 1934). Two projects begun in 1937 – a petrol station at Dulwich and motor showrooms at Broken Hill – signified the growing importance of the motor car.
In 1934 Russell was an Associate of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects (SA); from 1937 to 1939 he was an Associate of the South Australian Institute of Architects and in 1941 he became a Fellow. In 1940 he registered as an architect following the introduction of the Architects’ Act in South Australia and ten years later registered with the Architects Registration Board of Victoria.
Keith Mills Yelland (25/1/1900–1973) was a well-known local architect who established Russell & Yelland, a prominent South Australian architectural firm that has existed for over 70 years. He was articled to local architect Charles W. Rutt from 1917 to 1921 and also studied at the Architectural Department at the South Australian School of Mines and Industries (School of Mines) and the South Australian School of Arts and Crafts. He was awarded several prizes, including Institute of Architects’ award for the best student in the architecture department at the School of Mines for 1919.
From 1924 to 1926 Yelland worked in the Architect-in-Chief’s Department. He then moved to the Commonwealth Department of Works and Housing for four years before returning to the Architect-in-Chief’s Department. At this department he worked under Alfred E. Simpson, Architect-in-Chief from 1920 to 1938. Yelland also undertook private commissions, working from his own residence at 42 Clifton Street, Malvern (1927–32) and then from various other premises.
Yelland was an active member of the local profession. In 1922, shortly after he finished his articles and completed the required academic subjects, he became an Associate of the South Australian Institute of Architects (SAIA). He served as an SAIA Councillor for several years, acting as both Secretary and Vice-President and, from 1950 to 1952, President. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA) in 1948 and in 1953 attended the annual conference of the RAIA in Canberra as the South Australian delegate.
One of Yelland’s earliest works, with Charles Rutt, was a reinforced concrete condensing tower at Mile End (1923). Russell & Yelland balanced residential commissions with commercial work, for instance a seven-roomed residence at Springfield and a factory in Grote Street, Adelaide and alterations to the Green Dragon Hotel, Adelaide (all 1939).
The practice of Russell & Yelland played an important role in the architectural profession during World War Two, designing and documenting Air Raid Precautions, including the conversion of both the Sir Edwin Smith Stand at Adelaide Oval and the Norwood Oval grandstand, and a privately commissioned air raid shelter at Marryatville. In the post-World War Two period the practice undertook a significant number of rural projects, particularly in Broken Hill where they then opened an office.
Russell & Yelland has become one of Adelaide’s leading architectural practices. Its project ‘Housing for the Aged’ at Woodville was praised for its sense of community and its design scheme, which had a clear expression of materials including brick, timber siding, and skillion roofs. The practice undertakes a range of educational, residential, commercial, and industrial commissions. |