Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 9 : Construction of the cultural centre, 1977-1981

Then !11UCb depended on lhc vivid • • " ord-pi lures of Mr Gi on and a - meagre abilil)' 10 ,•isuali,c ,..hat "as going 10 happen. The Gallery then was takin1 shape. Now the shape is there and ir you want. the imp,asion ia tho lan1111t• of, culllll'C, Fn:nc:11. well c'at .,.anir 111 ..... TIii plMle is full of 11111aificcn1 plltria, walkway,, lounaca when: the public en Iii and browac, tmaca whcrl you caa - Brilbano city u it', - been accn bcfon, prdent, which. will be filled with sculpture, a watcnnall, a weir. • wornai'a clotha and row acrou with a Alld;·la-~ry, .,.,ywhcrl fricad to •itint' 1hip1 and be. ·. • t::::.i, ~ S . .:~:r-~ •=== •~•- "!:~ capCaiD II lll~Und ~ la .,. lady'i ...... "YOII CU cboet the dctaila ia the ........ plaata wll ep1011t from• llaclk "I'- Plltrie'• ltllninilccnccs of --- at-, IMI illlidl and Eady Qieemlud'.~ .~•..-. lilftllili ._ llard U.. tldll (I did. TIii liook dalma that the act 1J111i11i1. .t the lrudbl9 ~ cbaqt,d tho We ..... iiill'tM .... ap11111 of ._,., s.di llililmic. It uya that • 1 ,,_.. 111111& ._. i11to 1111 Art Galllry alw .. cut iM·1111p1. "IIIOlber place ul'liill -- to tbo city, W ,to .. f~-dd t11111aiqen wont "Loill It that," •Y• Robin Gibloo, don ... rlvw ·'° Illa aortluidc of the "Y• 1iiM ._ - Brilbaoa llu _..,ao 1DOIH11 tlll cba-1South ·IMI Wen.' 'l'bi' pll«y provldea a 8ria1ui!1 bad ol flnt Place," ...a. ol platforma from whicll to N01IIII _. to know if the Yiew the' city tl Briabano from pat ~ cllt thi ropo because the ,ftllql pa11111:Alld wbea that fcace la captala'wu not paying him enouah, or fl'lllll ol tlll ~ litD aoa, the al all, or whether be waa just a: dour. wllllle melod will flow ript down to cantaakllou1 Scot. You know how 1111 r!Wr:--1-~- Scolamea can be. Rallla Olbloa ia alao aware or the The 1q111tter who dressed up as a laiatorlc lmportaacc or thc area. woman wu Mr Henry Stuart Ruuc:11. "Thil la where Bri1bane began," ho He would bofrow I drc11 and bonnet uya. "If It wun't for tho river, !hero rrom Teim Petric'• mother and go off -Wn't bo a Brilbanc. 11111-ln-arm with another aquallcr aa · . "Yet do you know ihat the Cultural man and . wlfi to the 1tcamcr. , . Coau. la only the third public bulkliq The llaclk uys: ",When there, they to ba Wilt with a proper rclationahlp would hol11 ill aort or things to the to tlil river? The two otben are the mutbcad in Dlace of the flag, and the CIIROIIII HOIIII aad the old Comma•• Kipper would laugh, too, and enjoy the dant'1 HOUie .(oa the north bank, In run.. Generally the "°3t would be William Street). . I • cleared or all 'aroa' before she Jeri for ''Tba Bluo Moon lbtina rink and Sydney again." . the Cnmarne Theatre uMd to bo 'on 5'1uattcn don't change tbc;r habits, the Ille, but they turned their backi to a1 iri1banc hotel managers 1,ould say the river." al Exhibition time.) Mr Olbaon pointa to the 1tret~h of While he's talking away inceasantly parkland on the IOlllh bank. "There-. ibout the gallery, the main thina on iiied to be a lot of bunya pines there. Robin Gibaon'1 mind is - PEOPLE.- In the early day., 1hip1 aometl• tied And JOU rcalilf he jull can't wait for •P to a tree lhore, but one nijht the the place to open 10 that the complex. OWIIII' or the property, a Scot, cut the can have ill IIIOlt important ingredient 111p11 and the • hip 'dril'ted. - people or all 1hapca and sizes. "Tllcn there wu the aquatter on the We go on a tol/r of the external north bank wbo llled to drcsa in walkway • on varloua levels. '' We've created a whole new acrin or public apaca. It loob 1imp!e but it is tl'Clllllldoualy oomplex. Catch that view ol thc Captain Cook Bridp from here. You've IICYct aeen that boforc. "Yc-.'11 bo walkina alona when you • look dqwn tbrollp a window all!I aco people 1ookJaa 11 palntlnp, or )04!'11 aco INlll!pllll'N ID tho prdea and ,-111· woadlr llow the lllaza can I Ml itown to • tlllm. Or I viow of t'8 inlidc cir the IIIIIICUIII and you'll be enticed in there. . "And think or.walldna alona here at niaht, the YliWI you'll act. The walkways will bi opea to the public 24 houn a day." lt'1 CYidcnt that Robin Gibson didn't sec · hil commiuion to dai1n · the Cultural Centre as an cxcuac to con1truct an edifice, a monument. He's seen it as an opportunity to hrina the people or Queensland and worb of art together in the beat po15iblc way. ·*** "I didn't want to be pretentious with · the ,Art Gallery," he says. "As an arc_hitcct, I.relt I had to provide the beat condition, for what the gallery director and hi, 1taff wunt to do in bringing art to the public. "'~he relationship is like an orches– tra. If you don't play in tune, ii doesn't matter how good an individual you arc. You arc not• making fllUSic, you arc making noiae." (Queenaland Art Gallery Director Mr Raoul Mellish later agreed. Ho told me: "Thi1 will undoubtedly be one or the finest galleries in the world, with great flexibility in its diaplay racilitics. "The an:hitccturc itself will be or great intcral to the vi1itur and it hu been especially desi1ned to illducc tho visitor to · Hplorc the variOUI display area,. "The architecture will not take over from display. It will allow the artwork, grent and small, to aivc off all it has to do with no competition from the buildina." Raoul Mellish said he and Robin Gibson had u areat workin1 relation• ship' and he waan't 1urpriscd bccauae they 1rcw up together in the aamc strcot ip Yeronga. Now inside the gallery, the pcrspcc• tive and views keep chan1ing. Huge galleries, smaller, more intimate, areas ror viewing smaller ob~, a print gallery, a lecture theatre. Robin Gibson points downstairs. "Then:'• the watcrrnall. It will .have fountains and rull•1iu trca." We wait through the complex and · Robin Gibson aatura toward • a huge w;ill above an archway. "lan't it a marvellous apace to hang a painting'/" he s,ys. "lr aomeonc would just give u1 a Turner. 'The Fiahting Temcraire' would do." . There arc 14 galleria 'in11dc the buildina. The largcat 11 the temporary exhibitions pllcry, which is the aiu or two other plleries. There arc huge sliding doon at each of the four corners. "This is where the great exhibitions '!'ill be shown, whether they come rrom France. China, Ruuia or Australia," aay1 Robin Gibson. "I call this gallery the jewel box. It is for the jewel, of the art world. "A woman docs not wear all her jewels at one time. If the jewel box is clOICd, we know that aometimc or other it will open up and the jewels will be exhibited for 111. It is important that we should know that the temporary WORKMAN unds the Inlaid floor In the large temporary exhibitions 111llcry ..... . , ''for the jewels of the art world." INSET: Architect Robin Gibson •••• "It's exciting, isn't It?" - exhlbitiona pllery will alwaya r sent q111lity." We walk into the tamporary ex tioaa pllcry. Tho f1oor la c:iovercd inlaid wood, except for a llorder a feet wido which will be -.red travertine imported IIOffe, TIii ch ill material ii not merely _,h Robin Giblmt llUdl faciaa a wall toes on tho tdp of the wood, 1trctchci bit arm toward& the wall. palm ii an Inch or two from wall. "You can't really look at I pain nearer than that. Thil c:liaap r wood to atone ii a s-ydiolo barrier. rr you 1tcp over it, you encroachinJ," While he'• at it, he acta"on ·10 of hi1 ravoritc subjocta. He draws thumb down the corner of the Look at that plasterwork, he aaya. a knirc-cdgc. The workman1hip • levels on this job is marvclloua be,·, everyone has a pride in the proj There ii a big gallery for the n Australian collection. Everywhen: wallt, walll, walla. ·A or hanging apace. Can we fill That's the job for the Quccn1land Galler¥ Foundation. Now· we arc on the watormall I and we loot up at the wide 1pa "Look at it" he say1 "this can b alive artw~rk. · Yo~ can let imuination 10 wild, sculptun:, 11 kites, r,ou name it." Al we •~lk throuah the aallerie, 11>, wouldn't that be a beaut place a ial\Cltry,· notice how intimate rcelina la in the watorcolor pllery. how thOIO workmen walkina on biah walkway add lire to the p imagine what ii will ho like when or people, and if you' look through gallery there and over the weir and the garden outllidc you act an unu view of the river and the Captain Bridge. *** There will be sculpture both in and outside in a , pccial garden anet you will be able to browac 1hr the garden or look dow.n on it r' above. Both the museum and the an 8" I will have carctcrias. You sec, once get their hands on you, they don'1 to let you go. They'll feed you food reed you knowledge. Says Robin Gibson: "Everyon Queensland is going to be fair g1 We want you for the day. The dircc or the Art Gallery, the Museum the State Library (both to. be la1er) will be fighling for a1ten1ion." Then in10 the room housing gallery moniloring equipment. I security men will wa1ch a row of I TV screens and other c4uip!11 Movement sensors arc pluced 1hro oul lhe gallery. If something 111 where and when ii shouldn'I, security men will know. Then lhc,· call up a TV picture of the concerned. Equipment will also monitor ten, · alure and humidity. You don'I I precious paintings and other works in uny old weather, even u cover. Then across the road to construclion on the Performing Centre, the next stage of the comp You'll be able to walk over Melbo1 Sireet, but the bridge isn't lini:, yel. \ There will be shops in the P!lJ-1 ing Aris Centre, and a bistro