{"id":3195,"date":"2020-11-10T11:49:24","date_gmt":"2020-11-10T00:49:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/?p=3195"},"modified":"2024-11-11T14:47:58","modified_gmt":"2024-11-11T03:47:58","slug":"emblem-of-a-legacy-a-tribute-to-max-dimmack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/emblem-of-a-legacy-a-tribute-to-max-dimmack\/","title":{"rendered":"Emblem of a legacy: A tribute to Max Dimmack"},"content":{"rendered":"

*Header image caption: Max Dimmack standing in front of his painting, Dark Conifers<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The passing of Max Dimmack<\/strong>, foundation teacher at the Burwood Teachers\u2019 College (BTC)<\/strong>, on Tuesday 29 September<\/strong> 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.<\/p>\n

As a tribute to Max, the Deakin Archives team<\/strong> examined his role from the lens of a small but important achievement \u2013 designing the college emblem. It\u2019s also an opportunity to reflect on the important history of the Burwood Teachers\u2019 College.<\/p>\n

The beginning<\/h3>\n

After a period in temporary accommodation in Oxford Hall<\/strong> in Box Hill, the Burwood Teachers\u2019 College was launched in 1954<\/strong> \u2013 albeit in unfinished accommodation \u2013 on the site of what is now the Burwood campus<\/strong> 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.<\/p>\n

Traditions were initiated: colours and blazer selected, and a rousing war cry and an inspiring College song<\/a> composed. A motto, Animum Cultum Parabo<\/em> (loosely \u2018I shall lay the foundation of a well-trained mind\u2019) was determined. It was staff member Vic Fitcher who came up with the final wording.<\/p>\n

Creating the emblem<\/h3>\n

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.<\/p>\n

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\u2019s ambitions.<\/p>\n

\"Early<\/a>

Early sketches of the Burwood Teachers\u2019 College emblem.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"The<\/a>

The Burwood Teachers\u2019 College emblem in development.<\/p><\/div>\n

Max\u2019s design was discussed and agreed on by the student body, and a production of badges and college blazers featuring the emblem began.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The Burwood Teachers\u2019 College as a coloured enamel jacket-pin.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"The<\/a>

The Burwood Teachers\u2019 College emblem on the pocket of the student blazer.<\/p><\/div>\n

An ongoing legacy<\/h3>\n

Max\u2019s design set a visual language that would crop up regularly throughout the life of the Burwood Teachers College. Inspired by Max\u2019s spirited design, the College commissioned two sculptures<\/strong> by renowned modern Australian sculptor Lenton Parr (1924\u20132003)<\/strong>. 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<\/strong> (also pictured) that housed the staff room, music department, and the library, among other things.<\/p>\n

\"Cast<\/a>

Cast metal mandala-like abstract version of the Burwood Teachers\u2019 College emblem.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Besser<\/a>

Besser brick building.<\/p><\/div>\n

Max\u2019s legacy to Burwood Teachers\u2019 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<\/strong>. At a reunion in 2018<\/strong>, the Foundation Year students donated to the University Art Collection<\/strong> a painting by Max Dimmack, Dark Conifers<\/em>, which now hangs in Deakin\u2019s Frontage building on the Burwood campus (pictured in the heading image of this article).<\/p>\n

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:<\/p>\n

\u2018His vision inspired us to enrich our vocation with new ideas, to take into our school.\u2019 \u00ad\u00ad<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Originally published on Network, the Deakin staff blog.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

*Header image caption: Max Dimmack standing in front of his painting, Dark Conifers. The passing of Max Dimmack, foundation teacher at the Burwood Teachers\u2019 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. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33472,"featured_media":3202,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,221],"tags":[57,90],"class_list":["post-3195","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general-interest","category-history-deakin","tag-archives","tag-deakin-archives"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/326\/2020\/11\/Blog-Header-Max-Dimmack.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pao1A6-Px","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3195","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33472"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3195"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3195\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3204,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3195\/revisions\/3204"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3202"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3195"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3195"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.deakin.edu.au\/article\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3195"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}