Caroline Simpson Library
Exploring the Augusto Lorenzini archive
Assistant Research Curator Anna Stewart-Yates reflects on discoveries and questions raised by months spent cataloguing the archive of Augusto Lorenzini, 19th-century decorator of vanished Sydney interiors. The archive is now fully catalogued and can be explored online
Carpet Manufacturers Limited
Carpet Manufacturers Limited operated one of the first Australian factories to design, dye and weave high-quality carpets locally
Diana Luxton Messara: public interior designer
The Diana Luxton Messara archive, generously donated by the designer herself, contains drawings, plans, textile designs, photographs, correspondence, publications, sample boards and personal papers spanning more than five decades.
Fatshaudi commissioned works
We commissioned a range of musicians to create new compositions for Dream Feast in response to sheet music held in the Caroline Simpson Library Collection. One of the musicians, Fatshaudi (Brisbane-based producer Rachael Ryan), shares her experience
On a tour with palms: a botanical foray into the Caroline Simpson Library
A search for palms in the museum collections took this researcher on a journey back to a time when these plants were considered an essential addition to the tasteful home
![Walford, 7 Knox Street, Double Bay, December 1967 [photographer unknown]](https://api.mhnsw.au/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimages.mhnsw.au%2Ffotoweb%2Fembed%2F2026%2F05%2Fb973a68e392143138186b649ed3cb6b5.jpg&w=1920&h=400&fit=inside&format=webp)
Leslie Walford Archive
For nearly 50 years Leslie Walford AM (1927–2012) was one of Sydney’s most successful interior designers, the decorator of choice for the city’s social elite and a leading figure in the Society of Interior Designers of Australia (SIDA).
The mysterious O.S.B.
One item in the Caroline Simpson Library Collection has been capturing our attention recently: a beautifully illustrated catalogue of electric light fittings, identified only by a mysterious insignia on the cover – the initials ‘O.S.B.’
Rustic adornment: design imitating nature
Rustic design style evokes nature by imitating organic forms such as tree branches, flowers and animals, and incorporates natural textures like wood and stone
Creatives selected for inaugural Caroline Simpson Library Creative Residency
Two creatives selected for the inaugural Caroline Simpson Library Creative Residency program