Publications

POETRY

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Love and Death in Castlemaine by Katherine E Seppings (Mark Time Books 2016)

Sue King-Smith, editor of the collection, describes the book as ‘heartfelt and intimate, dealing with the big themes – love, death and place.’

‘These poems are embedded in place, culture, history and the natural environment of Castlemaine (and surrounds). Katherine’s poems span many decades and are about community and the cyclic nature of relationships and life. They are a distilling of Relational Geography – mapping the way in which people relate and connect in a particular place.’

The chapbook is available for purchase from https://katherineseppings.com/purchase/

When Embers Dance by Katherine E Seppings (MPU 2015)

‘Poetry that compels – that challenges, and demands to be read.’ Peter Hay

When Embers Dance is ‘an empathetic and hard hitting rendering of life in contemporary Australia,’ writes Sue King-Smith.
Poems of debilitating drought, bush fires, animal exploitation and family violence are interspersed with ‘hope and quiet joy—a bar in Seville… the birth of faith in a spring garden and poetic musings over a blank page.’
‘The constant note sounded in Katherine E. Seppings’ poems is one of compassion,’ says Ross Donlon. ‘She is able to express her feelings in precise, unsentimental language and through arresting imagery.’

Purchase Here
See more of Katherine E Seppings’ poetry here

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BUSHFIRE

Strathewen, Victoria

‘They said the fire came so fast on Black Saturday there was nothing they could do. They said there was no warning; that there was no time.’ Katherine E Seppings

‘I grew up in East Doncaster in the 1960s, and knew Warrandyte, and its Bushfires, well. I remember darkened, smoky skies and ash landing in our back yard, like snow. I remember watching fires in the Dandenongs too, which we could view from the kitchen window. My first experience of Bushfire was in 1963. I was four years old …’ Katherine E Seppings

‘There are many important lessons to be learned in what you say, and so powerfully written.’ Michael Gunter

My VBRC Submission can be found online at: http://www.royalcommission.vic.gov.au/Submissions/SubmissionDocuments/SUBM-002-021-0144_R.pdf

‘As Australians, who live, work, study and travel in rural/bush and urban fringe environments, knowledge on how to protect ourselves, our families, and communities in homes, workplaces, schools and cars is essential. We all need to learn how to prevent another tragedy like Black Saturday, like Canberra, like Ash Wednesday. Bushfire will continue to burn with increasing velocity and frequency due to climate change. It is imperative that we reconsider habitation amongst dense vegetation. That we ensure mandatory bushfire education in schools and through Community Fireguards. That we design buildings able to withstand firestorms. That we rally together like we can after a disaster, to help one another, prevent disaster. To rebuild communities so that they will be safe, not just rebuilt. Because every year in SE Australia, from September to April, bushfire can destroy many, many lives and millions of dollars worth of property and infrastructure. In a rural environment we must be prepared and be practised. Because Bushfire can come to any of us, at any time.’ Katherine E Seppings

The Owner Builder (May 2010) – Bushfire Building Regulations article

For more information on bushfire safety and preparedness read :

The Complete Bushfire Safety Book (Random House 2000) by Joan Webster and illustrated by Katherine E Seppings. First Published in 1986 as The Complete Australian Bushfire Book (Nelson), conceived by Katherine E Seppings on Ash Wednesday 1983.

The Complete Bushfire Safety Book covers every aspect of protecting your family, your home, yourself and your animals from bushfire – from designing a house and garden which will not burn easily, to deciding whether to evacuate or not and how to make sure your home survives when fire is threatening. This is a comprehensive and unparalleled guide which has the potential to save lives right across Australia.

This book could save your life!

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TRAVEL

Katherine Seppings is the photographer of the Goldfields and Spa Country.

Back Roads Australia: Eyewitness Travel Guide

The DK Eyewitness Back Roads Australia driving holiday guide will take you via scenic routes to discover charming Australian towns, local restaurants and intimate places to stay. Unearth the real soul of Australia relying on all the practical information you could need, from road conditions and length of drive to parking information and opening hours. Twenty-two themed drives, each lasting one to seven days, reveal breathtaking views, hidden gems and authentic local experiences that can only be discovered by road.

Each tour is bursting with insider knowledge and loaded with ideas for varied activities from diving and snorkelling, to hiking, surfing, wine tours, cycling trips and river-rafting. Meanwhile, the most friendly, best-value hotels, guesthouses and restaurants specialising in fresh local produce have been selected by expert authors. Full-colour throughout, with a pull-out map of the entire country for easy navigation between tours, discover the unexpected on your driving holiday with DK Eyewitness Back Roads Australia.

Paperback, 264 pages; $35.00
Dorling Kindersley, UK (2011)

The Great Ocean Road region – the southwest coastline of Victoria – is simply extraordinary. This book unlocks the sights, activities and background context for visitors and locals – using maps, pictures and words. It is for everyone who is interested in exploring and learning about the region from Geelong to Portland.

This book features maps and information on over 50 sustainable activities including beach and surf guides, walking track notes, national parks and reserves and over 50 cities, towns and villages with more than 60 heritage sites.

* fascinating background context including environmental issues, Aboriginal and European heritage, geology, ecosystems, flora and fauna.

Katherine Seppings contributed photographs to this book.

Paperback Pages: 416; $49.95
http://www.bestshot.com.au/; admin@bestshot.com.au

The Traveller’s Guide to the Goldfields (2006) is a detailed guide to the Central Victorian Goldfields natural and historic heritage. The book was commissioned by the Goldfields Tourism Committee, the Heritage Council of Victoria, Parks Victoria and BestShot! Publications. The book’s overall editor, Richard Everist, co-founder of BestShot!, was for many years the global publisher for Lonely Planet.

Katherine Seppings contributed more than 300 of the photographs in this book and wrote the ‘Small Towns and Villages’ section.

‘I love to travel and have done extensively through Australia, Asia, Europe and the Americas. One of the best parts of working on this book was being able to tell people about the wonders of this region, which I live in and know so well. As a traveller, when I arrive somewhere, I want to know what makes a place special, what is worth stopping for to see and explore, and what the history is …‘

The Traveller’s Guide to the Goldfields is an important guidebook for Victorian regional tourism, covering the richest and greatest goldrushes the world has ever seen. The Central Victorian countryside is littered with signs, secrets and stories, which often illuminate a wider story about Australia and the world. No other region in Australia has such a strong historical presence and no other region has played such an important role in Australia’s development.

Comprehensive background information is provided by many passionate experts, including Professor Weston Bate, David Bannear, Robyn Annear, Clive Willman, Brien Nelson, Dr Ian Clark, Fred Cahir, Andrew Reeves, Dr Keir Reeves, Ray Tonkin, Rick Wilkinson, and Joe Kinsela.

The Guidebook creates one of the world’s greatest travel experiences, covering all the major towns and 50 of the most interesting small towns, villages and their surrounds in the Goldfields. It includes detailed maps, over 600 photographs, and comprehensive coverage of national and state parks. There are many stories -– from the Aboriginal highway that crosses central Victoria, to the birth of Australian unionism… The goldrushes left a ghostly but beautiful landscape. The Box-Ironbark forests are littered with aboriginal relics, abandoned mines, mullock heaps and ruins. There are ghost towns that are frozen in time, but there are also thriving regional centres with uniquely beautiful – and wildly ostentatious – 19^th century architecture.

$39.95
http://www.bestshot.com.au/; admin@bestshot.com.au

Bendigo, Castlemaine, Daylesford, Macedon: The Spirit of Place.

The Heart of Victoria unlocks the secrets of an extraordinary region. Covering many of the world’s richest goldfields, the heart of Victoria is home to dramatic landscapes and a unique treasure trove of 19th century architecture.

Katherine Seppings contributed most of the photographs in this book.

Paperback Pages: 192; $34.95
http://www.bestshot.com.au/; admin@bestshot.com.au

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POSTCARDS

BestShot! produced postcards and cards of Central Victoria. (2005)

Photography by Katherine Seppings

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CARDS

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SHORT STORIES

Little Blue Heart by Katherine E Seppings

‘The sea is full of memories, calling me to sit and stare in tireless awe, across this endlessness, to the place of my own conception. The sea is full of exchange, distant lands caressed by the same blue water. The sea is full of meetings. Blue sky, blue ocean, meet like lovers.’

Seppings_Katherine_Little Blue Heart_PW2010

Castlemaine – A Reflection by Katherine E Seppings (2004)

Highly Commended (The Kenny Awards)

‘It is Autumn in Castlemaine. Early April. The leaves are turning and falling; the light is glowing amber, gold, yellow. The sky is a paler blue. Brilliant pink and vermilion mackerel painted sunsets promise rain, again and again.

The weather is perfect, gentle, warm, still days, day after day… the summer cyclic threats of wildfire abated. But – no decent rain for weeks. Just a few drops. Pitter-patter, stop. Dust hangs orange on the horizon, late afternoon; smoke drifts in from burning off, somewhere… Most likely some other place that already had rain. We seem to miss out on rain, here, in Castlemaine.’

Judge’s Comment:
‘I love the feeling for the land in this one – it alludes to a greater story of what’s happening in this country.’

Vive Y Deja Vivir by Katherine E Seppings (2005)

Third Prize (The Kenny Awards)

‘‘Vive y deja vivir’, is painted on the front of a Nicaraguan bus. It means Live and Let Live. On the walls of homes in the township of Ocotal, one can still see a painted star and the words VIVE SANDINISTAS. Ocotal is poor, the colour of mud brick, the colour of the land. The land is poor yet loved by its people. ‘ Katherine E Seppings

Judge’s Comment:
‘An accomplished piece of travel writing. Beautiful, strong language and telling details.’

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LIFE STORIES

Nothing to Cry About by Joan Atherton Hooper

Edited and Published by Katherine Seppings (2015)
Book cover and book design by Katherine Seppings.

Nothing to Cry About, an unflinching memoir, begins with author, Joan Atherton Hooper, discovering a photo of the young man who, in 1939, murdered her father. Joan’s story, from age two in an orphanage, swings between fantasies of Hollywood and restraints from the Vatican. It is a test of everything she believes in.
Growing up in Colac as a Ward of the State, to deserted wife in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, to mother of heroin addicts, Joan has an astonishing sense of humour and an iron-clad will to ‘rise above her station’ and turn her life into a success.

Women of the Hills by Gloria Fryman

Photography by Katherine Seppings

Twenty Australian women talk about their choice of lifestyle in the Dandenong Ranges, outside Melbourne.

(1985) Dove Communications, Blackburn, Vic.

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HISTORY/DESIGN/INTERIORS

FIREPLACES for a beautiful home

by Katherine Seppings

Fire has been feared and revered since the beginning of time. Containing and controlling this essential element, within the confines of a hearth, reveals a story that goes beyond our fundamental need for warmth and security. The multitude of fireplace styles and designs through the ages reflect the various fashions and developments in technology, alongside depleting natural resources and changing social attitudes.

The fireplace, being the centre of the home, has always been regarded with affection. Becoming intimate with homes, their hearths and stoves, is the key to successful renovation and restoration. Fireplaces for a Beautiful Home will inspire you to recreate the traditional style and feel of your home through an understanding of what was intended by the great architects and designers of all periods.

The book deals with what to consider in style, dimensions, colour and materials when determining the most suitable fireplaces for your home. Chapters on renovation and restoration help you to realize the potenial of your home, giving pactical advice on technological and safety issues as well as the restoration and maintenance of hearths, surrounds, mantels and grates.

The finishing touches of decorating details and accessories will help you achieve the correct feel to your period home while enabling you to create your own personal style throughout. In addition, Fireplaces for a Beautiful Home includes a directory of studios and suppliers worldwide.

Katherine Seppings began writing on period details and architectural history at an early age and exhibited and sold her own paintings of historic buildings. In 1980, Katherine became a member of the National Trust Photographic Committee, Melbourne, Australia.

Fireplaces for a beautiful home

4 editions –
First published by Merehurst, London (1989)
Barron’s, New York (1990)
Premier Books, London (1993)
Grange Books, Kent (1997)

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MUSIC VIDEOS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwxXIPEW8aA

The Beautiful South’s Song For Whoever reached No Two in the UK charts in 1989. Katherine Seppings assisted in the art direction of the music video and made the blancmange. The video received the Diamond Videoclip Award ‘Best New Group Video’ (European Music Video Awards) for Art Direction.

During 1989–95, Katherine was involved with art direction, stage management and photography of music videos for Tattooist International and Eye-Eye Productions, London. In 1995, she provided photography of the Union Dance Company video promo for the British Arts Council.

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AUDIO VISUALS

Katherine Seppings was the script writer, photographer, graphic artist and illustrator for a number of educational audio visual documentaries including The Poor Old Pig and All About Chicken in the Food and Society series. Environment Audio Visuals, Castlemaine, Vic (1986), later known as Video Education Australasia.

Seppings_Katherine_Environment Audio Visuals_Food and Society_Poor Old Pig_1985

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