Trevor Jamison, renowned architect who helped designed various buildings on campus, recently passed away. Cliff Hawkins penned this tribute to the man. 

I am saddened that I cannot be here in person, but I am honoured to have the opportunity to reflect on the great contribution Trevor Jamison made to the University of New England and to rural Australia through the adaption of traditional Australian, rural architecture to house the UNE rural sciences.

As Principal of UNE-Armidale in the early nineties, my dream was to build on the special academic strengths the university had, especially in rural disciplines. The Federal Government had recently introduced a competitive scheme for high levels of funding for special  research areas of excellence built on cooperation between universities, CSIRO, and government departments. UNE was very successful in attracting very large amounts of private and government funds for the wool and cotton industries, and for the cattle and later the chicken industries, and many new researchers had to be housed at UNE. I saw an opportunity to house these researchers in buildings that reflected the rural history of Australia, such as a homestead, a wool shed and so on.

We attracted the best of Australian designers for interior fittings.  The biggest challenge was finding the best architect who understood Australian rural architecture.  We found him not far away in Coffs Harbour.  His name was Trevor Jamison.  We took our ideas down the mountain and met with Trevor and Liz. We walked out of the meeting knowing we had the right person to transform an important area of the University campus, and to provide a home for our rural sciences.

The homestead was built with big timbers, rusty galvanized iron sheets, rammed-earth walls, beautiful Australian timber boards, polished concrete, and especially designed and woven woollen carpets, and drapes. The Namatjira family offered twenty of their early paintings for sale to the University, but they had to be hung together in an important public building. They were hung in the homestead.

Even though the building construction was very novel, Trevor ensured his design for the homestead was followed to his satisfaction. John Kiran, the Australian Treasurer at the time and UNE graduate and chicken producer, opened the building after I had left the University. I was delighted when the building was named the CJ Hawkins Homestead. This provided an avenue for people to pass on their compliments over the years for Trevor’s magnificent, functional work of art. .

Trevor designed the main laboratory and staff building based on the architecture of some of the historic wool sheds with an entrance that incorporated a shearing station and a structure suited for a parade of Australia’s top fashion made from Australia’s natural fibres such as fine wool from the northern tablelands. Its official opening featured such a parade with designers, and models, who the University had earlier taken to Japan to showcase Australian fine wool fashion. There is no other university building in the world  housing staff and students that is designed as a wool shed, but Trevor was able to design a highly functional biological sciences wool shed.

There are other buildings in the group based on rural architecture all of which will last as a monument to Trevor Jamison’s architectural genius.  The University of New England and rural Australia owe Trevor a great debt of gratitude. The results of the research that has been carried out in Trevor’s buildings have contributed many billions of dollars to the rural industries.  

May Trevor’s soul rest in peace.

Cliff Hawkins