In 223 pages, including photographs, this is a memoir rather than a self-directed autobiography, of the first thirty years in the life of one who would be become a little-known architect, a profession followed until his eventual retirement years. It is the story, with personal thoughts and observations, of a rather ordinary life often found to be lived, in retrospect, within the company of sometimes extraordinary people: a life circumstance, if examined closely, which might be said to be true of most people. The world has changed enormously since those thirty years passed and in the brave new world of this fresh millennium, many are preoccupied with self-images which often exceed their reality. In recalling those years in the present context, they do appear a simpler and almost innocent time. This memoir at its core, seeks to recapture the zeitgeist, the spirit, of those times and recount the anecdotes attaching to both the ordinary and the extraordinary people who traversed the author’s life in those years.
Born and raised in south-east Queensland’s city of Brisbane, little more than a large country town in those years, the author grew up in a close family setting, attended the Brisbane State High School, followed by a scholarship to Queensland University where he eventually gained his Bachelor of Architecture and married at a young age. Following the failure of that marriage after some years, he later moved to London in pursuit of a young woman and the dream of a theatre career. Neither aim was ever realised but in the process, he fell in love with London and remained there for the following three years-plus, working for Chamberlain Powell and Bon as an architect employed on the Barbican Arts Centre; somewhere along the way, discovering a talent and love for the art of fine printmaking. London became truly home during these years and provided an ever-continuing parade of fascinating characters and quietly-rich times until, with a great sadness, it was left to return home just prior to the author’s thirtieth birthday.
