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Nell Grant in Albury

With some big projects in the offing In his speech Taylor reminded the
Hugh Vivian Taylor sent architect Nell crowd that Miss Grant had been
Grant to Albury to supervise the firm's supervising architect for the Wool
work. Taylor's willingness to employ Exchange and when the Club proposed to
female architects in an age when there go on with this new building “the firm let
were few female graduates in any Miss Grant take that in her stride.” He
profession, marked him as progressive in said that it was unique in the history of
more ways than one. Australia that a woman should have
Elizabeth Nelly Grant, the daughter of supervised a club for men.
a senior engineer with the Melbourne and Nell’s attention to detail and ability to
Metropolitan Board of Works, was in the get on with tradesmen were great assets.
second intake of women to the Her other favourite project was the Rivoli
architecture course at the University of East Hawthorn. Wearing her trade-mark
Melbourne. She interrupted her studies in jodpurs she would clamber on the highest
1926 to visit England and the United scaffoldings, inside and out, to check the
States with her parents. While in California work and confer with the foreman.
she toured Monogram Studios, which may Her last theatre work was the
have accounted for her poor view of films makeover of the St James to the Metro
in general. Bourke Street and some minor
Nell graduated in 1927, did her A smaller project was the re-modelling alterations at the Metro Collins Street
articles with Taylor and had a stint with of the Globe Hotel, also in Dean Street. and Metro Malvern. Some of the
the Vacuum Oil Company on half pay in According to the paper, ‘Rough drawings instructions from MGM for Bourke Street
the Depression. By 1931 she was back embodying many splendid features have she considered to be “just vandalism”.
as Chief Draftsman for Vivian Taylor, been made by Miss Grant’. Nell had a disdain for cinema that
Soilleux and Overend. Two prestige projects followed: Hoyts seemed at odds with so much of her
When she arrived in Albury in 1935 to Albury and the Commercial Club, the work. In her view the only true film artistry
supervise construction of a new Wool latter also on Dean Street. The amount of came from the Walt Disney Studio, a
Exchange in Dean Street, the Border work involved on two simultaneous salute from one toiler at the drawing
Morning Mail described her as one of the projects called for a second architect and board to others.
few qualified women architects in Australia Taylor sent Nancy Garland to join Nell. The When Nell retired she was the longest
and the first to have taken charge of a two women became life-long friends. serving member on the Taylor team. They
construction in Albury. Exactly how they shared responsibilities is had been friends for a long time and in
At the opening ceremony the not clear, but Nell always talked with great later years she worked from home.
Chairman of the Albury Wool Brokers pride about The Commercial Club. She was very interested to read Ross
Brokers Association praised Miss Grant The theatre opened first. The Thorne’s Cinemas of Australia Via USA
for her supervision and “for taking great newspaper account does not record any because it included all of Taylor’s best
pains to see that everything was as the speech by Taylor or give any credit to his work and she had been part of of it. She
brokers, buyers and growers would wish team on the ground. It was a different put an asterisk in the book against Hoyts
it”. Vivian Taylor then said a few words matter at the opening of The Albury but no other theatres, not even
and presented a symbolic golden key to Commercial Club, the retreat for the the Rivoli, which she sometimes referred
the Chairman. business elite of Albury, two months later. to as “my theatre”.
Never forthcoming on matters of
design nor on her own contribution, she
would give the stock answer to my
questions, “It's all about bum’s on seats”.
How do I know so much about Nell
Grant? I married her daughter. ★
- Ian Smith

Source details from plan for entrance to Metro Collins Street. In ‘DRAWN’ (lower right),
the initials E.N.G. show it was drawn by Elizabeth Nelly Grant. The fitted doors are
shown page 12.

CINEMARECORD 2008 21