Royal Australian Institute of Architects. South Australian Chapter

Brief description

Royal Australian Institute of Architects. South Australian Chapter

Full description

Architects formed the South Australian Institute of Architects (SAIA) in 1886 as a professional body representing architects which also helped to redefine architecture as a profession. The SAIA worked on behalf of architects with regard to architectural education, codes of ethics, regulations, conditions of contract and architectural competition regulations. In 1904 Walter Bagot designed the seal of the SAIA. A federation of all state institutes of architects in Australia was established and the Royal Australian Institute of Architects was incorporated in 1930. However the SAIA continued to call itself by its original name rather than become a chapter of the RAIA. In 1940 the Architects Board of South Australia was established in order to register architects under the newly passed Architects Act 1939. In 1962 the SAIA voted to surrender its identity and became the RAIA (SA Chapter). Also in the 1960s the RAIA (SA Chapter) operated a Small Homes Service which provided architect designed house plans for a nominal fee to the general public. The chapter was also a strong advocate for the Planning and Development Act of 1967. Since the federation of the institutes in 1930, many South Australians have served as national President of the RAIA: Philip Claridge, Guy St John Makin, Louis Laybourne Smith, Jack Cheesman, Wilfred Haslam, James Irwin, Jack McConnell, Gavin Walkley, Robert Hall, Robert Cheesman, and David Parken. In August 2008, the Royal Australian Institute of Architects changed its name to the Australian Institute of Architects.