Cirrus@Austlit

'This article draws on research I carried out as an honorary fellow of State Library Victoria for my forthcoming book, The unknown story of William Shum, editor of Australian Home Beautiful, 1926–1946 (to be published by The Beagle Press), which tells the story of my grandfather William Arthur Somerset Shum and his influence on the making of modern Australia. For my research I relied almost entirely on the Library’s extensive collections, in particular the diary and letter book of William Shum’s father, Arthur Hall Shum; the holdings of The Australian Home Beautiful, The New Idea and Everylady’s Journal; and William Shum’s brother-in-law William Moore’s publications City Sketches and Studio Sketches. The Library holds the complete collection of Home Beautiful – an important reference source for contemporary scholars that shows how the Australian dream of home ownership that emerged in the interwar period was nurtured and shaped during Shum’s editorship. Shum introduced fresh ideas, and specifically modernism, to his readers and profoundly influenced their homes and gardens.' (Introduction)