Ellice Nosworthy facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ellice Maud Nosworthy
Born	25 February 1897 Neutral Bay, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Died	7 January 1972 Killara, New South Wales, Australia
Nationality	Australian
Alma mater	The Women's College, University of Sydney
Occupation	Architect

Ellice Maud Nosworthy (born 1897, died 1972) was an amazing Australian architect. She worked for about 50 years! In 1922, she became one of Australia's very first female architects to graduate.

Early Life and Schooling

Ellice was the second of four daughters. Her father, Robert Nosworthy, came from England. Ellice went to Redlands Girls' School in Cremorne, New South Wales.

In 1917, she started studying arts at the University of Sydney. A year later, Professor Leslie Wilkinson arrived. He started Australia's very first architecture course. Ellice was one of the first students to join this new course in 1919. She lived at The Women's College, University of Sydney. While there, she won the Dickinson Cup for tennis in both 1919 and 1921.

Ellice's Career as an Architect

Ellice worked for a company called Waterhouse & Lake from 1922 to 1923. She helped draw plans for houses in Sydney. On June 26, 1923, she became the first woman to be officially registered as an architect in New South Wales.

After traveling and working in Europe in 1924, she started her own practice. She worked from her parents' home in Lindfield. She mostly designed homes for friends and people she knew. From 1956, she worked from her own home, which she designed herself.

Ellice often hired other women architects to work with her. Some of these included Barbara Munro and Louise Hutchinson. She also traveled to North America and Britain several times between 1929 and 1938. During World War II, she worked for the government's Department of the Interior and the Allied Works Council.

Ellice was a member of important groups like the Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA). She also joined the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). Later, she became a Fellow of both groups, which is a high honor. She was also part of the Australian Federation of University Women. In 1964, she went to a big conference in Mexico City with this group.

Many homes designed by Ellice Nosworthy were shown in magazines in the 1940s. Famous photographers like Max Dupain and Harold Cazneaux took pictures of them. These photos showed large, single-story houses. They had simple designs and often wrapped around courtyards. It was important to Ellice that the inside and outside spaces connected well.

Work for The Women's College

From 1941 to 1972, Ellice was the Honorary Architect for The Women's College at the University of Sydney. This meant she gave free advice to help maintain their buildings. She also designed new parts for the college. For example, she designed an air-raid shelter in 1942. She also designed the Mary Reid wing in 1958, which could house 31 students. She often gave her fees for this work back to the college to help with building costs.

Other Projects

In the late 1950s, she worked with Professor Wilkinson on additions to St Andrew's College at the University of Sydney. Besides designing homes, she also designed childcare centers. She created centers for the Sydney Day Nursery and Nursery Schools Association in Erskineville (1945) and Newtown (1955). She also designed one for the Ku-ring-gai Council in Gordon (1950). Her family has given many of her drawings and work papers to the National Library of Australia.

Key Moments in Ellice's Life

• 1917: Started an Arts degree at the University of Sydney.
• 1918: Switched to the new architecture course under Professor Leslie Wilkinson.
• 1923: Became one of the first women registered as an architect in New South Wales.
• 1941–1972: Served as the Honorary Architect for The Women's College at the University of Sydney.
• 1948: Became a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects.
• 1957–1958: Designed the Reid wing of The Women's College.
• 1964: Attended an international conference in Mexico City as a member of the Australian Federation of University Women.
• 1970: Became a Fellow of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects.

Important Buildings and Designs

In the 1930s, Ellice Nosworthy worked with other young Australian architects. These included Robert Cummings and Winsome Hall Andrew. She designed many homes on a peninsula that became famous for its modern architecture.

Ellice designed The Women's College Reid wing. It had common rooms and music rooms. She also added to the Williams Wing and staff housing on campus. In 1960, she and Leslie Wilkinson added a new dining hall to St Andrew's College. It could seat over 300 people and had a large common room below it.

Ellice Nosworthy was one of the important women architects from her time. She made a big difference to Australian architecture. She worked on everything from homes to large buildings. She showed that, as one architect said, "there's nothing in architecture a man can do that a woman can't do."

Selected Projects

• 1922 and 1923: Worked for Waterhouse & Lake.
• 1942: Designed four blocks of community housing for older people in Kuringgai.
• 1945: Designed childcare centers for the Sydney Day Nursery & Nursery Schools Association in Erskineville.
• 1950: Designed a childcare center for the Kuringgai Municipal Council in Gordon.
• 1955: Designed childcare centers for the Sydney Day Nursery & Nursery Schools Association in Newtown.
• 1956: Started her own practice from her home, which she designed herself.
• 1959–1960: Made additions to the Williams Wing of The Women's College.
• 1960: With Professor Leslie Wilkinson, designed a new dining hall and Junior Common Room for St Andrew's College.
• 1960s: Designed 'Arrunga', four blocks of flats for single elderly people in Lindfield, New South Wales. This project is a great example of how design can help local communities.

Ellice's Achievements

Ellice Nosworthy was one of the first eight students to graduate from the Faculty of Architecture. She was also one of its first three women graduates, earning her Bachelor of Architecture degree in 1922.

While at university, she was the treasurer of the Sydney University Women's Undergraduates Association Committee in 1918. She was one of the first two architects to be registered in New South Wales when registration started in June 1923. She was also one of the first women to open her own architecture business.

See also

In Spanish: Ellice Maud Nosworthy para niños