My first “mind’s eye” image was of a kindly old grandfather watching over the young children while they play and learn in their backyard. The age of the site, the bridge and the old existing buildings represented the grandfather. The children are not just enjoying the site, but learning to appreciate this heritage area, what it represents to Brisbane and to care for it in the future.
A couple of ideas came to mind when first thinking about this project, initially, a children’s learning space, maybe some sort of play equipment that resonates with the site’s history, e.g. in the shape of a ship or bridge or a combination of both. The other idea was more basic and aimed at the public in general, a tunnel of sorts with spaces in the walls and roof, or maybe an arbour, that folks can walk through and read text and look at images from the past.
After a brainstorming session with the other group members, these two ideas took a backseat to many ideas, but the one we settled on was the concept of a worker's cottage, washed from its foundations, carried downriver where it is 'smashed' against the Kangaroo Point Cliffs, near the far south end.
The idea behind this was to remember and experience the flooding of the site, the power of the water, the damage it can do. Along with this experience, the remembrance of how Brisbane was and how the environment still reminds us that we do not control it, but it controls us.
No comments:
Post a Comment