At the corner of Sturt and Armstrong Streets in Ballarat, Victoria, stands the historic emporium Myer. We have been supervising conservation work to the façades and the project is due for completion by the end of the month.

Myer in Barallat occupies the former Mitchell's Buildings, dating from 1870. We were commissioned to scope, document and adminster the façade works. This has involved the removal of many layers of paint which were causing accelerated deterioration of the 1870s render. Damaged and missing mouldings have also been repaired and replaced, and the previously painted-out windows on the upper floors have been restored. All of which has significantly enhanced the appearance of the building.   [ photos: Fraser Brown ]

Malvern's popular Public Gardens opened in 1890 and have been the site of many events important to the local community. We have just completed a conservation management plan to guide the future management of the site.

Prior to the establishment of the Gardens, the site was a water reserve from the mid 1850s onwards. The Gardens were opened by the Mayor in 1890 and since then have been home to important local events such as the celebrations for the declaration of the City of Malvern in 1911. The current local administrative authority is the City of Stonnington, who commissioned the conservation management plan.

Using local and government resources, we researched the history and development of the Gardens and formulated policies to guide their future management.   [ photos: Michael Galimany, Kate Paterson ]

Michael Galimany, a member of our conservation reports team, has recently completed a guide to the Cowen Gallery — the permanent painting and sculpture gallery at the State Library of Victoria.

Before coming to work at Lovell Chen in 2004, Michael was the curator of this gallery space, which opened at the end of 2003. It contains over 150 framed works and portrait sculptures, presenting a visual history of Victoria drawn from the Library's Pictures Collection. Michael designed the gallery hang and installation, and wrote the exhibition text and labels. Much of this work has been collected in a handsome catalogue, published by Melbourne University Publishing, on behalf of the State Library of Victoria.

Congratulations to Lovell Chen director Peter Lovell, who has been named an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects in recognition of his significant contribution to heritage architecture in the state of Victoria and across Australia.
more about Peter Lovell