The interest in modernism, Brutalism and, more vaguely, concrete architecture spans a wide range of demographics. The practicing architect might be looking for design inspiration, the enthusiast might enjoy immersing themselves in architectural history or it might just be the melancholic call of forms that seem to belong to a recent if foreign time.

Maps for Sydney and Melbourne mark out a number of important buildings, from the more to the less well known. For any local with an interest in design and the history of the built environment, they provide an excellent guide for learning about the city.

Related: Making mid-century modern go green in London

Take Sydney’s Sirius Building, for example. It’s been at the centre of a long-running controversy, making it one of the more partisan and iconic pieces of architecture in the guide. Fewer Sydneysiders, however, might know much about Buhrich House II by émigré architects Hugh and Eva Buhrich. These maps are a celebration of concrete and Brutalism but, even if you take more of a Perottet line on this period of architectural history, they are surely a stimulating resource.

The Melbourne map features buildings from the 1970s such as the Royal Women’s Hosptial Carpark by Mockridge Stahl and Mitchell and Melbourne Teachers’ College Library (Building 138), now the Eastern Precinct Resource Centre, by Egglestone, MacDonald and Secomb.

Further afield, Blue Crow has maps for cities around the world. In our region, Tokyo and Seoul concrete guides might be a tempting way into those cities for the traveller and local alike.

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