Melbourne, Australia in summer can get hot. Very hot. As the desert centre of Australia heats up during this season, the weather cycle brings occasionally brings a wind that drags those conditions south east, scorching the city as though you are standing in a hair dryer. The past summer in Melbourne has been mostly milder…
In every inch of its existence Venice’s history stands in contrast with commerce. The deep laneways are a wonder to wander with discoveries to be had around every corner. It is a city that grew in an era of non-existent town planning, and is all the more astonishing for it. Between the weathered walls, glass…
Another book? Another book! The last two Cold, Hard Type books are great little tasting plates for the creativity of some of my fellow members of the Typosphere. If you have not read them yet, in the word of Molly Meldrum: Do yourself a favour. The can be found at: https://www.amazon.com/Paradigm-Shifts-Typewritten-Digital-Collapse/dp/1097972631 https://www.amazon.com/Escapements-Typewritten-Tales-Post-Digital-Worlds/dp/1097991105 Well, this time…
I stood by the roadside on a warm autumn morning with a pocket full of cash, and a racing heart. I felt this deal would fall apart at any second, and I wasn’t sure if it was him – or me that was going to break it. A man in a well loved, but battered…
Earlier this year one of Melbourne’s more prestigious auction houses cleared the belongings from Mirka’s studio in Richmond. Calling the auction “The Magical Studio of Mirka Mora” ,they rebuilt much of the studio in their auction house in tribute to the artist – with the help of William, one of her sons. Mirka was…
I clutched my camera firmly to my chest, hunkered down and learned against a wall made 2000 years or so years ago. My nylon poncho flailed around in the wind as a bitterly cold rain lashed my face. The ceiling of this building had been blown away in a storm of a different kind long…
In this jet-lagged episode I visit an exhibition in a gallery in Rome, Italy, where the art of Olivetti’s design, as well as the company’s past and future is examined. In the Filthy Labs segment, I revisit my 2012 blog on 3D printing a typewriter. As usual, my podcast is available on iTunes podcast: Or…
Early in September I had an opportunity to visit a country I have always been quite fascinated by. While its colonial past seems relatively peaceful, Singapore became a major flashpoint during the Second World War that had huge implications for the region, including Australia. It is an island that shares a waterway with the south…
It is easy to feel history when you are walking down a 500 year old cobblestone road in Italy. Our story – the story of billions of people have flowed down such roads every day. A story that is worn into the stones and written on the walls. You can see it and you can…
A little while ago a friend of mine by the name of John Munroe sent me this great little Olivetti 32 ‘Katakana’ typewriter. I’d been keeping an eye out for such a machine for a number of years now, but as you may expect – such typewriters are generally non existent in markets that are…
The Filthy Platen 