Janey Bennett

After eight years' thought defining how to explore the work of architect Mark Mills and his unusually inventive structural designs for homes, Janey Bennett, working with book designer Bill Sosin, has finished THE FANTASTIC SEASHELL OF THE MIND: THE ARCHITECTURE OF MARK MILLS (ORO Editions, 2017). It's a new kind of book, part biography, part philosophy, part photographic essay, all exploration of a man's work through as many filters as possible.

The unusual binding of the book allows the pages to lie flat and the photographs to cross the center-line gutter, and reminds us of Mark Mills's interest in the structure of things.

Born in San Diego, Janey Bennett graduated from UCLA in theatre and broadcast, and has a Master's Degree in Architectural History from Sci-Arc. Her thesis advisor was the gifted British architectural historian, Reyner Banham. She has enjoyed colorful and varied careers, from radio announcer to horse trainer and drama critic. She spent five winters teaching English and literacy to Buddhist nuns in Thailand. Her writings on architecture have been published in the United States and Finland, where she held a Fulbright research fellowship.

Bennett's award-winning novel, THE PALE SURFACE OF THINGS is set on the Greek island of Crete, leading her into the study of classical Greek, Byzantine icon painting, geology, botany, the vernacular architecture and sociology of Greek villages, Minoan culture and art, the science of archaeology, World War II on Crete, and criminal law in Greece.

Her short story, EEVA DREAMS OF FALLING, published by Melusine, an online literary journal, was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. A cellist, freelance editor, and author, Bennett lives in Bellingham, WA.