Emblem of a legacy: A tribute to Max Dimmack
*Header image caption: Max Dimmack standing in front of his painting, Dark Conifers.
The passing of Max Dimmack, foundation teacher at the Burwood Teachers’ College (BTC), on Tuesday 29 September this year, reminds us of the legacy the best teachers leave on the lives of their students. Max certainly achieved this, but he also helped to create a great institution.
As a tribute to Max, the Deakin Archives team examined his role from the lens of a small but important achievement – designing the college emblem. It’s also an opportunity to reflect on the important history of the Burwood Teachers’ College.
The beginning
After a period in temporary accommodation in Oxford Hall in Box Hill, the Burwood Teachers’ College was launched in 1954 – albeit in unfinished accommodation – on the site of what is now the Burwood campus of Deakin University. Such adversities and the collegial spirit that came with the founding of an important institution cemented relationships and laid a firm foundation for the future development of the College.
Traditions were initiated: colours and blazer selected, and a rousing war cry and an inspiring College song composed. A motto, Animum Cultum Parabo (loosely ‘I shall lay the foundation of a well-trained mind’) was determined. It was staff member Vic Fitcher who came up with the final wording.
Creating the emblem
The task of creating a College emblem was taken up by art lecturer and foundation teacher, Max Dimmack. Max was also a noted artist and author of highly regarded textbooks on art and education.
His sketches and final design feature an abstracted Tree of Knowledge to the right, and in the upper-left corner is a sun denoting illumination or enlightenment. The design includes the official founding date of the College and the college motto. The colours chosen were tan, light green and lemon. The design is distinctive and effectively represented the college’s ambitions.
Early sketches of the Burwood Teachers’ College emblem.
The Burwood Teachers’ College emblem in development.
Max’s design was discussed and agreed on by the student body, and a production of badges and college blazers featuring the emblem began.
The Burwood Teachers’ College as a coloured enamel jacket-pin.
The Burwood Teachers’ College emblem on the pocket of the student blazer.
An ongoing legacy
Max’s design set a visual language that would crop up regularly throughout the life of the Burwood Teachers College. Inspired by Max’s spirited design, the College commissioned two sculptures by renowned modern Australian sculptor Lenton Parr (1924–2003). The example below in cast metal was a mandala-like abstract version of the emblem. It was mounted on the Southern end of the long grey Besser brick building (also pictured) that housed the staff room, music department, and the library, among other things.
Cast metal mandala-like abstract version of the Burwood Teachers’ College emblem.
Besser brick building.
Max’s legacy to Burwood Teachers’ College went well beyond the creation of this emblem. He maintained contact and met regularly with many of the students he taught, and he regularly attended BTC reunions. At a reunion in 2018, the Foundation Year students donated to the University Art Collection a painting by Max Dimmack, Dark Conifers, which now hangs in Deakin’s Frontage building on the Burwood campus (pictured in the heading image of this article).
Along with his sketches and emblem preserved in archives, Max left a living lasting legacy in the students he taught. The Foundation Year students wrote in an obituary to Max:
‘His vision inspired us to enrich our vocation with new ideas, to take into our school.’
Originally published on Network, the Deakin staff blog.