The Nicholas Building

From the outside, the Nicholas Building looks like just another heritage office block. But step inside, ride the lift to any floor, and you will find yourself in Melbourne's most concentrated creative ecosystem. For decades, this nineteen twenty-six Commercial Palazzo building has been home to independent fashion designers, artists, jewellers, print studios, and every kind of creative misfit you can imagine. The corridors smell like paint and possibility.

The building was designed by architect Harry Norris and completed in nineteen twenty-six. It is named after the Nicholas family, and here is where the money story gets interesting. The family fortune came from Aspro, the headache tablet. During World War One, the German-made aspirin became unavailable in Australia, so the Nicholas family created their own version and made an absolute fortune. That aspirin money built this building.

The street-level arcade is the only remaining example of a leadlight-roofed and fan-lighted arcade in Melbourne. Before a modernisation in twenty twelve, the Nicholas Building was home to the last manually operated lift in Melbourne. A person sat inside and pulled a lever to take you up and down. The building has attracted remarkable tenants over the years. Vali Myers, the legendary dancer and artist who lived in a cave on the Amalfi Coast for decades, had a studio on the seventh floor from nineteen ninety-five until her death in two thousand and three. And the novel Shantaram, written by fugitive Gregory David Roberts, was reportedly written within these walls. It is a building where the walls have absorbed more creative energy than most galleries ever will.