Building Highlight - Bruce Hall and Wright Hall

Following the allocation of Commonwealth funds to establish an undergraduate residential college at the ANU, work began on Bruce Hall, with a design by Walter Bunning of Bunning & Madden. After much debate, it was decided to locate building at the western end of University Avenue.  

There was also debate about the building’s name. While there was strong support for naming it after Professor Herbert ‘Joe’ Burton, the inaugural Principal of the Canberra University College, the name Bruce Hall was chosen to honour retiring ANU Chancellor Lord Stanley Bruce.  

The original Bruce Hall consisted of five wings and was the first undergraduate student residence in Australia to cater for both genders. Extensions were completed in 1971 and 2004 to increase capacity. 

The buildings were complimented by stunning artworks, including Leonard French’s ‘Seven Days of Creation’ series and Herbert Flugelman’s untitled copper and ceramic mosaic fountain. Furniture for Bruce Hall was designed by renowned Australian designers Fred Ward and Derek Wrigley, who both served as Head of the ANU Design Unit.   

In 2016 the University announced plans to demolish Bruce Hall in order to construct two new higher-density student halls of residence, the new Bruce Hall and Wright Hall. Funding came from a generous bequest by philanthropists and former ANU students, Graeme and Louise Tuckwell. Income generated from rent would be channeled into the university’s Tuckwell Scholarship Program. The new state-of-the-art residences opened in 2019.  

Bruce Hall has its own charter, coat of arms and motto, which translates to 'Happy is the person able to discover the reason for things.' An important emblem for the Hall is Uroboros; the image of a dragon devouring its own tail representing a being containing all life and knowledge. 

The motto and ethos for Wright Hall is ‘Tenacitas, Comitas, Gratia’, interpreted as ‘Get on with it, get on with each other and be grateful’. Wright Hall is named for Louise Tuckwell’s ancestors, with her maiden name Wright being traced back to First Fleet convict Joseph Wright.  

References

Bruce Hall - Daley Road n.d., Australian National University,

Cheng, L 2017, 'Historic Bruce Hall at ANU loses fight against demolition', ArchitectureAU, 7 April,   

Croft, E 2016, 'Everything we know about the new res halls', ANU Observer, 5 July,

Wright Hall n.d., Australian National University,