The book revealed that Australia's heritage in the most rude and fundamental buildings invited comparisons to the cathedrals of Europe. Robust yet elegant; simple in concept yet complex; humble yet daunting: spatially, these structures were to have a profound effect on architects searching for a genuinely Australian character. Here was Australia's very own Doric architecture. This publication was the first of a series of books investigating Australian vernacular traditions, all completed in collaboration with the photographer Wesley Stacey. The Australian Homestead explored the development of the traditional homestead type from earliest Georgian times to High Victorian architecture and beyond. The book demonstrated the consistency of the vernacular model and how it responded to 'High' style influences. Historic Towns of Australia looked at the development of urban form, the evolution of the girded [sic] town plan with its main street and responses to the environment at large. Other books included Building Norfolk Island, which documented the history and restoration of the Georgian settlement of Kingston, originally built as a penal colony incorporating the most elementary Georgian Palladian architecture. Restoring Old Australian Houses & Buildings, meanwhile, gave guidelines to preservation and restoration of Australian architecture.
