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Meet the mother of Australian Modernism, Marion Hall Best

By Amy Collins-Walker • Leave a Comment

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I came across the innovative Australian interior designer Marion Hall Best recently when perusing the line-up for A Modernist Season, the design program kicking off in Sydney this July. With a highly  successful career that spanned the 1940’s to the 1970’s, Marion had a very original aesthetic that was defined by the use of vibrant colour, and I was struck by just how pioneering her work was.

Marion designed this room for Peter Sculthorpe in 1971

“Best had a love of colour and an uncanny ability to use it to transform a room. Sydney Living Museums holds the largest collection of textiles, furnishings, ephemera and imagery relating to Best’s work, which will be on display in this exhibition showcasing her career,” says the exhibition curator Michael Lech.

A woman before her time: Marion with her Modernist furniture imports, many of which have become design classics

While Marion designed mostly private commissions, her work featured in exhibitions, magazines and newspapers at the time as well as at her two retail stores – one was in Woollahra and the other in Sydney’s CBD. While Marion’s work was described as electrifying, vital and avant-garde for the time, those superlatives could easily be applied today, such was her trailblazing work.  “Gentle, soft colours are not restful, but dreary, sapping the energy and the mind. By contrast, bright, clear colours challenge the mind,” said Marion.

Marion designed this room for Mary Quant in 1967

A design visionary, Marion was inspired by the Modernist movement and colour theory of artists of the interwar years, and she is credited with introducing international Modernism to the Australian market. She was the first to import textiles by Marimekko, Jim Thompson Thai silks and Indian cottons, French wallpapers from Nobilis and Follot, furniture by Knoll, Herman Miller and Cassina plus lighting from Flos and Iittala.

Marion’s Woollahra studio

“Best’s ability to transform space through colour has rarely been matched. Her work, once seen, was seldom forgotten,” says Michael.

Marion wearing Marimekko fabric in 1968

Marion Hall Best: Interiors opens on Saturday 5 August 2017 at the Museum of Sydney.

For more.

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July 5, 2017

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Please don't show my boys this room or they'll wan Please don't show my boys this room or they'll want one like it!

How gorgeous is this Brisbane kids' bedroom?! 

@brittwhitestudio worked closely with the boys (aged 7 and 9) to understand their needs with a bespoke bunk bed solution crafted by BRC Cabinets, featuring ample storage as well as an under-stair hidey-hole, a useful reading nook for books and a built-in charger for electronics. Local craftsmen Emmett’s Ropes designed and hand-tied the ropework on the top bunk and the supporting pillar beneath.

Head over to the blog via link in bio to see and read more!

#bunkroom #bunkbed #bunkbedsforkids #bunkbeds #bespokebunkbeds #custommadebunkbeds #sharedbedroom #sharedbedroomforkids #boysroominspo #boysroomdecor #junglebedroom #kidsroomstyle #kidsroomstyling #childrensrooms #theinteriorsaddict #interiorsblog #interiorsaccount #interiorsaddict #jenbishop #heartyourhome #brittwhitestudio #highriseliving #apartmentlifestyle #penthouses #apartmentlivingwithkids #newsteadbrisbane 

Pix by @joebrosnan.photo
Comment your fave: 1, 2 or 3? Just 3 of the kitch Comment your fave: 1, 2 or 3?

Just 3 of the kitchens in the @duluxaus Colour Awards 2023 shortlist which will give you some serious inspiration!

Loads more gorgeous residential rooms to see on the blog this morning via link in bio.

Projects by @studio__bright @kaiko_design and Georgie Shepherd Interior Design. Pix by @arorygardiner @fiona_susanto and @christophermorrisphoto 

#duluxcolour #duluxpaint #duluxaus #duluxcolourawards #duluxcolourawards2023 #moodykitchen #allwhitekitchen #designerkitchen #sagekitchen #boldkitchen #colourfulkitchen #colouredkitchen #theinteriorsaddict #interiorsaddict #jenbishop #heartyourhome #interiorsblog #interiorsaccount
We're a bit obsessed with Cara Standen's balcony m We're a bit obsessed with Cara Standen's balcony makeover using @kmartaus stone tiles!

Nineties townhouse in Lennox Head or villa in Greece? You decide! All up it cost $2000 including all materials and she did the work herself.

Read all about it via link in bio now.

Love your work @twin_palms_lennox

#kmartaustralia #kmartdiy #kmarthack #kmarthome #modernmediterranean #balconymakeover #balconyideas #diybalcony #budgetdiy #interiorsaddict #theinteriorsaddict #jenbishop #heartyourhome
Wallpaper in every single room! What do you recko Wallpaper in every single room!

What do you reckon? You'd think it would be overkill but it isn't because so many of the designs are subtle yet still impactful.

Head over to the blog to see how @grafico_walls transformed this blank canvas Melbourne townhouse with their products, which you've probably seen on The Block over the years. And read how Damian Corney has grown this Melbourne business with wife Adele and a growing team. There's also a look inside the very cool Motley Hotel which has used a whopping 4km of their wallpaper throughout!

You can also watch a video tour with Bec Douros as the house featured on Open Homes Australia over the weekend.

Via link in bio now.

#wallpapergoals #wallpaperdesign #australianwallart #australianwallpaper #wallmurals #wallpapermural #wallpapermurals #wallpapereddoor #digitalwallpaper #digitallyprintedwallpaper #customwallpaper #wallpaperaesthetic #wallpapertrends #wallpaperaustralia #grafico #graficowallcoverings #melbournebusiness #melbournesmallbusiness #openhomesaustralia #theblock #becdouros
Kids and fluffy chickens. Does it get any cuter?! Kids and fluffy chickens. Does it get any cuter?! 

Braved the rain second morning in a row to feed the animals at @edenfarmescape because life's too short to worry about a bit of mud and drizzle!

Feeling relaxed 🥰
Did you see this cracking little transformation on Did you see this cracking little transformation on @sellinghousesaus last night?

We have all the finer details on the blog today via link in bio. Particularly love the kitchen refresh using the existing blue cupboards which really weren't doing anything for me before 😂

#sellinghouses #sellinghousesaustralia #beforeandafterkitchen #beforeandafterrenovation #beforeandafterlivingroom #renoshow #realreno #interiorsblog #interiorsaccount #interiorsaddict #theinteriorsaddict #jenbishop #heartyourhome #bluekitchen #budgetkitchenmakeover #budgetdiy #budgetmakeover
How's this for a compact back yard TRANSFORMATION? How's this for a compact back yard TRANSFORMATION?!

Our friends at @mintdesignau have done it again!

Homeowner Briony Marsh says: It’s totally changed our home lifestyle now we can sit outside on the lounge in the sun or shade, be in the pool, spa, sauna or cooking pizzas and hanging out with friends. It sounds cliched but it really feels like we are on holiday at home!”

Head over to the blog to see the finer details, including a sauna and a seriously good looking copper pizza oven. There's a lot packed into this space!

#backyards #smallpools #smallpool #homesauna #pizzaovens #outdoorpizzaoven #landscapedesigner #mintdesign #holidayathome #resortstylehomes #landscapeartist #backyard #exteriorinspiration #exteriormakeover #exteriordesigns #pergoladesign #interiorsaddict #theinteriorsaddict #jenbishop #heartyourhome
Swipe for before & afters of today's real reno. L Swipe for before & afters of today's real reno.

Located inside a 1912 sandstone villa in Adelaide’s Kensington, this bathroom makeover combines classic and contemporary elements that complement the home’s original, period features. 

Designed by the home’s owner @designby_Tahirih, who is a property stylist too, the renovation came sooner than expected after water ingress made the makeover of their only bathroom an urgent necessity!

The whole project cost an impressive $20k, project managed herself.

Read all about it via link in bio now.

#realrenovations #realhomes #realreno #heartyourhome #renoaddict #freestandingbath #classicbathroom #classiccontemporary #classiccontemporaryinteriors #theinteriorsaddict  #interiorsaddict #jenbishop #homestaging #laundrymakeover #bathroomrenovations #bathroomremodels
Maybe it's an antidote to the grey weather but we Maybe it's an antidote to the grey weather but we find some of the most colourful interiors from my motherland, the UK!

This beautiful lilac kitchen is found in a renovated apartment by @llidesign in a grand mansion block in London's Bloomsbury. You can tour the rest of it on the blog now, via link in bio.

#londonapartment #bloomsbury
#bloomsburylondon #luxuryapartment #westendlondon #lilackitchen #colourfulkitchen #londonhome #londonhomes #londoninteriordesigner #londoninteriors #interiorsaddict #theinteriorsdaddict #jenbishop #heartyourhome #kitchenshelf #kitchenshelves #kitchenshelfie #openshelves #openshelvingkitchen
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Amy Collins-Walker

About Amy Collins-Walker

Amy is our regular feature writer, an experienced journalist and interior stylist living in Perth, Western Australia. Find out more about her styling work at http://www.amycollinswalker.com/

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