The Sydney Opera House is one of the most famous pieces of architecture in the world, being as much a piece of art as it is a functional building. While the Sydney Opera House is technically designed for musical performances to take place (it’s designed with acoustics in mind), it is a major tourist attraction simply for its unique fusion of ancient and modernist influences.
The Sydney Opera House was built on sacred ground for the local Indigenous Gadigal people. The building has a distinctive sculptural elegance to it has made it one of the most instantly recognisable buildings of the modern era.
It is often cited as an influence for many new architects as well as artists of all stripes. The building is considered far ahead of its time and is said to be one of the things that helped make Australia more culturally significant.
It was first built in order to help build a more enlightened Australian community and has been home to many incredible performances. It has also served as a meeting place for many significant events.
It welcomes over 8 million tourists every year, making it Australia’s #1 tourism destination. It is also one of the busiest centres for performing arts and presents shows 363 days a year. It is seen as one of the greatest achievements of the state of New South Wales and is a testament to modern Australia.
In many ways, the Sydney Opera House showed that Australia was not merely an offbeat British territory, but it’s own country with a unique cultural emergence in the modern age. The decision to locate it on a sacred Aboriginal site cements it also as an acknowledgement of the original Australians who still inhabit and share the country with those who have arrived since.