5 Minutes With... Jenny Snowdon

What is your current role at ICS and what does that entail?

I am a Senior Built Heritage Specialist at ICS, joining the team from ten years in private architectural heritage practices. My role involves historic research and significance assessments, scoping and writing conservation works schedules, master planning and adaptive reuse of culturally significant sites and managing complex heritage conservation projects through construction. This work requires a combination of technical expertise, project management skills, and a deep understanding of heritage significance and conservation principles as well as current NSW standards and legislation.

How did you get into conservation and what are your specialties?

My interest in heritage probably began in my childhood, growing up in Europe certainly played a big part. Being surrounded by historic buildings wherever you go, being dragged to every castle, heritage house, museum, gallery and everything in between on holidays and weekends may have also contributed. Thank you parentals!

After high school, I started studying colour for interiors, interior decoration, and lastly interior design. I always knew I did not want to be a commercial interior designer or an architect, my aim was to study the Master of Conservation. So here I am, conserving one (or 6) building(s) at a time for future generations to enjoy.

My specialty lies in becoming a subject matter expert in 0 to 100. One day I'll be faced with fitting a lift into a historic building, the next, rebuilding a seawall and in between I may deal with zoo structures, sewer outlets, organs, private schools, researching acoustic reflectors at the Sydney Opera House, or designing curtains at Government House.

Everyone has a part of the job they are passionate about – their first love, what is yours?

Continuous learning and educating others – every day is different and new and requires fresh solutions to problems. Can’t stop, won’t stop. And I get to work on amazing buildings that most people never have a chance to set foot in.

Top 3 projects, what were they and why are they your favourites?

Almost all projects are my favourite, but the following ones are probably a bit different:

1. My personal passion project - physically conserving a late nineteenth-century mud building, because what grown-up doesn’t want to play with mud?

2. Sydney Opera House acoustic reflectors (the Donuts) – In light of the Concert Hall renewal project, I researched their provenance, assessed their significance and advised on the future of the remaining donuts. Quirky, and a very interesting history plus I got to learn all about reverberation in the process.

3. Wollongong harbour walls – the convict-built harbour and stone walls were badly affected by the 2016 king tide and in parts had collapsed or been dragged out to sea. I searched for missing stones, labelled and numbered each one I found and then found their former position on the wall from old documents and photographs. They were all returned to their respective places, except the most badly damaged. Thanks to the head stonemason, I got to learn a lot about sandstone.

Interests outside of work?

Old buildings! I visit house museums and listed properties for fun, and enjoy open days where I wander the gardens and parks. When I’m not analysing the changes or defects to old buildings, I enjoy taking my dog Ralph for a walk, escaping to the country, dancing away to music at a festival, or going to the gym at ungodly hours before the day starts.

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