The Longford Academy Summer School 2024
A one-week building conservation summer school at the historic Brickendon & Woolmers Estate, Longford Tasmania
Photo by Alana Jennings
In February this year, I had the amazing opportunity to travel to a world heritage-listed site in Tasmania to learn the theory and practical importance of building conservation techniques. Brickendon and Woolmers Estates hold historic and scientific heritage value for their connection to convict history in Australia and for having some of the oldest surviving structures built by convicts in Tasmania. This was such a great learning environment as I was surrounded by heritage consultants, planners, architects and traditional heritage tradespeople, learning as much as I could from their years of experience.
The programme was jam-packed, each day dedicated to a particular material: traditional roofing, timber joinery, masonry and mortar, traditional paint and collection care. We started the mornings in the classroom learning the theory behind the causes of deterioration and what are appropriate and inappropriate repair methods and techniques.
Then after enjoying a delicious lunch in the beautiful surrounds of the Tasmanian countryside, we would explore the sites to see examples of deterioration and conservation in action. This included anything from observing fungal wood rot in the beams of a roof, salt damp in the masonry walls and how to apply a poultice to draw out soluble salts, looking at lath and plaster ceilings, the use of inappropriate mortars in masonry walls, how to lime wash a wall, and watching how lime mortar and putty is made.
I came away from this experience with great resources, a better understanding of materials and the importance of regular maintenance and conserving with compatible materials in repairs. I look forward to continue developing this knowledge further.
