Jessica Lillico

I remembered once, in Japan, having been to see the Gold Pavilion Temple in Kyoto and being mildly surprised at quite how well it had weathered the passage of time since it was first built in the fourteenth century. I was told it hadn’t weathered well at all, and had in fact been burnt to the ground twice in this century. ‘So it isn’t the original

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I also would like more niche newsletters, especially about art! I like the newsletter format for mixing text and image. My dream would be for visual artists to start writing little sneak-peek-type newsletters that let readers snoop in their studios. (Why would they do this? I don't know.) In general, I would like more newsletters that offer the ple... See more

I met Margot Edwards during 1948 in Matcham Skipper's Studio behind the Russell Street police station, and it was only a short time afterwards that I became her lover and a constant visitor to her in a loft in Ivanhoe. Margot was only eighteen years old and one of the most beautiful girls I had ever seen. She had done an art course at the Royal Mel... See more

Vernacular architecture is not the product of a single visionary, but the collective, learned wisdom of a community. It represents a collaborative effort where knowledge and skills are shared and passed down through generations.

Reframing Problems

Reframe a problem when you get stuck to help you move forward in the process. Avoid the “woe me” framework and keep working at it. Don’t worry about having all the answers just yet.

Building this house was the re-birth of the original organic concept of the immediate post-war beginnings. It involved a return to first principle devising from what was on hand. Earth for walls, negation of concrete slabs, brick and stone paving direct onto the ground, and the employment of non-professional builders. It recaptured those early days... See more

Apart from the work of Ellis Stones and Edna Walling, there was practically no original landscaping in Australia before the late 1950s except for that of Burley Griffin and the pre-First World War Guilfoyle, who was responsible for the Royal Botanic Gardens. There was, however, a growing awareness of Australia's indigenous flora, but the practice i... See more

I treat newsletters as, well, treats — little breaks from my workday.