Robin Boyd’s engagement with Japanese architecture in the 1960s left a trail of correspondence, both personal and professional. Collected here, the letters reveal Boyd’s enthusiasm for Japanese modernism and the genuine relationships he developed with several key practitioners. The State Library of Victoria holds the records of Boyd’s professional practice in its Grounds, Romberg & Boyd Archive - this collection includes dozens of letters, both incoming and outgoing, recording Boyd’s work on Kenzo Tange (1962), New Directions in Japanese Architecture (1968), and the Australian Pavilion at Expo 70 in Osaka. Other letters presented here come from the Walsh Street Archive and RMIT Design Archives, mostly documenting more personal matters. Highlights of the collection include correspondence with Kenzo Tange, the letter of invitation to write New Directions, and a memo laying out the itinerary for Boyd’s first trip to Japan in 1961.

The categories here group letters related to each of Boyd’s two books on Japan, with other correspondence compiled under Personal+.