Maintaining our heritage with Victorian paint colours

Houses in areas where there is a heritage overlay are required to maintain their homes in their original style, thus preserving the architectural integrity of the area. Heritage colours are essentially those deemed appropriate to the historic period when the building was erected.

Professor Miles Lewis is professor of architecture at the University of Melbourne. He is well known in Australia for his knowledge of architecture, and also has a worldwide reputation. He is giving a talk, hosted by the Hotham History Project, on Victorian Painting on Wednesday, May 25 at 7.30pm.

Heritage paint colour controls in Victoria, and to a large extent in Australia, are based mainly upon a document prepared 45 years ago by Miles Lewis and his then research assistant Alison Blake (now Bishop Alison Taylor). 

Today those controls are substantially unchanged, but much more research has been undertaken by Lewis and others.

In this presentation Lewis will discuss both aspects – the fundamental principles underlying the original controls, and the further information now available, covering stucco and cement finishes, unpainted surfaces, paint types, natural colours, ready-mixed paints, conventions for external colours on buildings, signwriting, conservation colour controls, the paint colours bulletin, the Munsell colour system, paint layers and microscope analysis, sanded finishes and other topics.

The in-person talk has already sold out, but it will be broadcast on Zoom on Wednesday, May 25 at 7.30pm. It can be accessed by clicking here

Meeting ID: 846 0966 5587
Passcode: 125083 •