Laszlo Peter Kollar

He was buried at Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium, Sydney in December 2000.

Kollar’s most notable work was the concept design of the Sydney Opera House competition in 1956, in collaboration with associate and fellow Hungarian Balthazar Korab, who had previously worked as a photographer for Eero Saarinen. They placed fourth in the competition which resulted in the winning design by Jørn Utzon. Kollar’s design was ranked the highest out of all Australian entries and was met with high appraisal by judges for its ‘skilful planning’. However, Kollar continually championed Utzon’s design, even when Utzon omitted himself from the project, recognizing that the Sydney Opera House Utzon had designed was seen as important in a newly liberated design language. The Opera House design Kollar created are some of the highlights in Kollar’s papers, which were deposited at UNSW Archives.

He graduated in 1953 and four years later, in June 1957, Kollar accepted an appointment as a lecturer in Architecture. His ‘Principles of Design’ lectures were said to have had a profound subject matter which focused on the nature of the human condition informed by a deep understanding of great Spiritual Traditions of the world. Over the years Kollar developed a suite of courses that complemented and elaborated on these principles.

Kollar’s first job in Sydney was as a labourer with the British Australian Lead Manufacturers, but in February 1951 he obtained a position of more personal interest to him — that of architectural draftsman.

Peter Kollar was studying an Associate Diploma (Architecture) part-time when the course was transferred from Sydney Technical College to the New South Wales University of Technology in 1951, thus beginning what was to become a long-term association with this university.

In 1949, eight months before completing his degree, Kollar fled Hungary after the communist takeover of his country. He then spent some time in Italy working for the International Refugee Organization, while also travelling to Austria and Germany. He sailed to Australia in September 1950, initially staying at Bonegilla, a migrant reception centre in Victoria, before moving to Villawood migrant reception centre in Sydney in late October 1950.

László Peter Kollar (1926–2000) was an Australian architect and professor at the University of New South Wales, who was known for his Design Principles, which were influenced by the human condition and spiritual traditions.

Born in Budapest, Hungary, in 1926, Peter Kollar completed his secondary schooling in Hungary in 1944. The following year he enrolled in the architecture program at the Technical University of Budapest and studied there for the next four years.