North Barangaroo Headland Park - The thin blue line

My stint as 'Artist in Residence' in my Studio on the top floor of the Sydney Ports Corporation's Moore's Wharf has given me a front row seat to paint the evolution of the former Wharf 3 at East Darling Harbour Wharves (formerly the Customs Shed) into the North Barangaroo Headland Park.

 MW16 'North Barangaroo Headland Park-
The 'Blue Line' from Moore's Wharf ' 
2011 oil on canvas 31 x 61cm

Enquiries about this painting

I painted this in September 2011 from the western window of my Moore's Wharf studio, which overlooks the construction site that will soon be the North Barangaroo Headland Park.
Apart from the recent Open day in June, Barangaroo would still probably be an unfamiliar location to most people,  unless they live or work locally.

In the background of these 2 paintings, Balmain is the headland on the left, Goat Island is on the right, and in the centre distance is Ballast Point in Birchgrove. Ballast Point, formerly a derelict refuelling depot, was refashioned into a park in 2008 by the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority. I'd been lucky enough to be able to paint a series of paintings at Ballast Point just before its transformation.

Some of the structures which were around the Ballast Point fuel tanks are still in a rusting heap mouldering away behind the White Bay Power Station, and can be seen in a couple of paintings I created on site as Artist in Residence at the White Bay Power Station.

On the concrete of the former wharf, there's a blue line painted in a series of stylized curves and zig-zags , to divide land from sea. A little like the line painted on many Sydney streets for the marathon of the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, which is still visible in the oddest places.

No Olympic athletes here, just the odd local jogger or dog walker.

It's also a weird echo of the seemingly abstract lines of different colours used in its previous incarnation as a wharf, to distinguish pedestrian walkways from truck parking zones.

On the southern side of the line the sign "Headland Park" has been painted on a green background. On the other side of the line "Sydney Harbour" has been painted in the now ubiquitous Barangaroo blue.
Soon after this was painted, excavation began.

According to the Barangaroo Delivery Authority, the coastline is intended to follow the contours of the shore as it was before European settlement.

Liiterally, "cut along the dotted line".

 MW28 'North Barangaroo Headland Park -
The caissons from Moore's Wharf '
2013 oil on canvas 36 x 46cm
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And, as you can see, they did.

This was painted in February 2013.

By this stage, the skin of the concrete surface has been pierced.

The caissons of the north end of the wharf are now exposed and full of water like a lot of tiny swimming pools.

The geometric symmetry of the wharf still remains, but mounds of sand and gravel hint at the new shoreline yet to come.
Soon the straight edge of the wharf will be broken, the caissons removed and the yellowblock sandstone will be carefully positioned around the new shoreline.

Related posts

Out from the storerooms- Paintings in the new galleries of the Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW

Barangaroo paintings in the Frances Keevil Gallery

Millers Point from the top of Harbour Control Tower

Lashed to the Mast - Plein Air painting, Moore's Wharf

Ozymandias

Every ruin is a reminder that all things are destined for oblivion.
I am both artist and historian; painting amidst the detritus of the industrial past, walking under rusty girders in the shadow of toppled giants.

'Under the Hammerhead Crane'

2014 ink pastel charcoal on paper 115 x 80cm

FINALIST : 2014 KOGARAH ART PRIZE

FINALIST : 2014 MOSMAN ART PRIZE
Available 

This is a mixed media painting of the Hammerhead Crane, which unfortunately is now being demolished, despite its iconic heritage status and distinguished history.
By now the "hammerhead" of the crane has been almost completely dismantled.
Instead of painting from the more familiar viewpoint of Mrs Macquarie's Chair opposite, I tackled the daunting bureaucracy of the Navy for permission to paint 'en plein air' on Garden Island itself.
I stood directly underneath the Crane and looked up into the top of the soaring structure, to capture its sheer scale. It is the embodiment of the 18th century concept of the sublime.
This painting has now been chosen as a finalist in both the Kogarah Art Prize and the Mosman Art Prize.

People are absent in many of my paintings, even though I trained as a figure painter and for 2 decades spent several days a week drawing and painting figures from life. I find that leaving out figures or relegating them to the role of "staffage" enhances the sense of the powerlessness of the individual against the inexorable forces of destruction and change. The crane itself is the best homage to the absent and largely forgotten workers who created the industrial landscapes that are now being destroyed.

GIHC13 'The Hammerhead Crane - homage to Piranesi' 

2014 ink gouache on paper 56 x 76cm
Available

Spaces that have a sense of history, place and meaning, find an echo in art history.

The safety nets resemble fan vaulting in a ruined Gothic abbey and the zig-zag tangle of girders and scaffolding recall Piranesi's images of the 'Carceri' or the wreckage of the dying Roman Empire.

The Hammerhead Crane was built during World War II, and symbolized industrial might, the march of progress and confidence in the values of Western civilization.
The mood of past triumphalism is now tempered by the present reality of scuffed textures, rust and tarnished metal.
Even as a victim of the slow death of de-industrialization, it had retained a poignant grandeur as industrial memento mori.
The last gasp of the Industrial Revolution, and of Sydney's Working Harbour.
In the words of Shelley's ruin-poem Ozymandias "Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Except that a future civilization would be extremely lucky to be able to find any trace of our heroic past.

Related posts

Under the Hammer

Hammerhead Crane

Patina - Beautiful Decay

Rust never sleeps : Painting the Hammerhead Crane Part 2

Painting the Icebreaker "Polar Star"

Strike while the iron is hot

Starting a small painting of an anvil,
one of the blacksmith's
basic tools of the trade
" Anvil" 2014 31 x 31cm oil on canvas
Enquiries

At the ATP community heritage days on the 16th and 17th May, I had 2 exhibitions, one in Bay 1 and 2 of the Blacksmith's workshop and the other in the carriage displayed by the volunteers of 3801 limited, as well as painting throughout the blacksmith's demonstrations .
I am still recovering from being seriously injured not long ago, (fractured pelvis) so I had to be extremely careful. I was given a great deal of help by the volunteers and the management of the ATP, who gave me a room to store my paintings and easels, and a trolley to move them. I am truly grateful, as even just walking still causes me a great deal of pain.

" Anvil" 2014
31 x 31cm oil on canvas
Enquiries
This time I kept the paintings fairly small and simple, so as to not put too much pressure on myself, while I'm still recuperating.
However, I have always meant to paint some of the heritage tools anyway. I have previously painted anvils as part of a larger, more complex painting, but it is a beautiful and evocative item in its own right.

Enquiries
I had often painted Chris before in a variety of poses, but you have to be fast!
However, after I watch for a while I notice various stages of the process, and get a feeling for the timing and rhythm.
It's hard to decide on which of the hundreds of potential poses to choose to paint. I leave the arms in an unfinished state, as I can't decide on whether to paint him wielding a hammer or a pair of tongs.
Decisions, decisions.

Starting a painting of the blacksmith Chris.

Enquiries

The blacksmiths of "Wrought Artworks" move quickly.

"Strike while the iron is hot" isn't just an old proverb - it's a way of life.
They must strike quickly, decisively and with force, however their movements must be controlled and accurate as well.
They also must work as a team and have awareness of who and what is around them.

Chris quenching chisels
2011-12 oil on canvas 152 x 122cm
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I exhibited some of my paintings of the Blacksmiths in a corner of their workshop, so that onlookers could compare the paintings with the real thing.

"Blacksmith" 2009 oil on canvas 100 x 75cm
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It gave viewers an opportunity to see parts of the workshop not visible to the public due to safety concerns.

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i displayed some of my smaller paintings and books of photos of paintings of other areas of industrial Sydney on a pair of old dusty workbenches.

Enquiries
The ATP  has largely retained the old industrial ambience of the Eveleigh Railway Workshops.

All Fired up -the Blacksmiths

Eveleigh Railway Workshops"
2012 oil on canvas 91x 122cm
Enquiries
Some more of my paintings of the blacksmiths were exhibited in front of an old signal box.

Enquiries
The visitors on the first day were mostly retired former Eveleigh workers.

Enquiries

However, there was a much larger and more diverse group of people attending on the Saturday.

I hope there will be another heritage day next year.

More Eveleigh paintings

Related posts

Macdonaldtown - A Station without a suburb

All fired Up

Scar Tissue

ATP Open Day - Saturday, 25 Feb 2012
Singing the body electric (sydney-eye.blogspot.com)
The village smithy (sydney-eye.blogspot.com)

En plein air with street cred (sydney-eye.blogspot.com)

Eveleigh Community Heritage Day

The ATP Heritage Community Days run from 10am to 3pm on both Friday 16th and Saturday 17th May 2014.

This is a preview of some of the paintings I will display in the Blacksmith's workshop Bay 1 and 2 

 "ATP" is the acronym for the Australian Technology Park.

Not to be confused with Carriageworks! 

"3801 steaming, Large Erecting Shop,
Eveleigh Railway Workshops"
 2006 oil on canvas 36 x 28cm
Enquiries

The ATP is on the southern side of  Redfern station, while Carriageworks is on the northern side.
I will also have some paintings of the 3801 and other historic steam locomotives as well as interiors of the Large Erecting Shop exhibited in and around the heritage carriages. 

These carriages will be displayed by the volunteers of the 3801 at the western end, near Channel 7's new building.

'Geoff and the 3801 
outside the Large Erecting Shop'
2006  oil on canvas  38 x 76cm
Enquiries

As well as the trains, I've even immortalized a few of the volunteers!

 'Forging,Wrought Artworks '
2010 oil on canvas 20 x 25cm
Enquiries

I will also be painting the blacksmiths from "Wrought Artworks", who will be giving a couple of forging demonstrations in Bay 2 south on both days. 

"Forge, Wrought Artworks, Eveleigh"
2008  oil on canvas 56 x 76cm
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In the centre of this painting is the legendary 'Davy Press', built in the era when industry operated on a heroic scale.

Richard Butcher,heritage volunteer and an ex- Eveleigh Workshop Blacksmith, will give tours of Bay 1 and 2 (which has the enormous Davy Press). Richard has written the most amazing book about the Eveleigh Railway Workshops and is a genuine living legend!
More details about the Eveleigh Community heritage days

Related posts

Irons in the fire
Watching the forge fires fadePlaying with fire
Macdonaldtown - A Station without a suburb
Strike while the iron is hot
Eveleigh- Industrial Heritage Artist at Work
ATP Open Day - Saturday, 25 Feb 2012
 Eveleigh paintings
The village smithy (sydney-eye.blogspot.com)
Time for Safety 
The slow return from the fire 
The fire within 
En plein air with street cred (sydney-eye.blogspot.com)

Under the Hammer

Before the Navy finally booted me off Garden Island, I made sure that I tackled some large scale drawings
Since 2007, due to real or perceived safety issues, temporary catch platforms have been suspended from the long arm and short arm jibs. They spoil the line, but apparently provide access to allow condition inspections to be performed safely.
At first glance, it looks as though the Hammerhead Crane has 5 legs.
However, one of these "legs" is a lift to give access from the wharf to the slew ring level (seen in the centre at the top of my drawing). As the crane is 61m high, this wasn't an idle luxury.
Unfortunately this lift has been out of operation since 1998.

While drawing this, I met probably the last person to have ever used the lift. He was escorting a group of photographers to the top, and had pressed the lift button when he heard a muffled explosion, and then found his hands were black with graphite.

He said that he was lucky and got off lightly. I think he was right.

'Under the Hammerhead Crane' 2014
ink, pastel, charcoal,graphite on paper 140 x 110cm
WINNER : 2014 DRAWING PRIZE ROYAL EASTER SHOW
Enquiries

My hands were also black with graphite after creating this enormous drawing.
I stood directly underneath and looked up into the top of the soaring structure.
By looking up I sought to capture the Burke and Longinus concept of the "sublime", with its overtones of awe, terror and vertigo, rather than the picturesque aspect of the typical "hammerhead" profile, a view familiar from Mrs Macquarie's Chair opposite.
The girders were silhouetted against the open sky; the safety nets resembling fan vaulting in a ruined Gothic abbey.

While creating this enormous drawing, I also remembered Piranesi's devastating images of Roman ruins, dangerously broken and overgrown amid the wreckage of a dead civilization.

 GIHC7 'Under the Hammerhead Crane'
2014 ink pastel charcoal on paper 76 x 56cm

Enquiries

I am an artist and historian, born into a time and place where only sport and business are valued. Drawing on the ruins of the industrial past , walking under rusty girders in the shadow of toppled giants.

Every ruin is implicitly a reminder that all things are destined for oblivion.

The Hammerhead Crane was built to demonstrate industrial might and the march of progress.

Even as a victim of the slow death of de-industrialization, it retains a poignant grandeur.

This was exhibited in my solo show "Under the Hammer" at the Frances Keevil Gallery from November 18th - December 7th 2014.

Related Posts

Hammerhead Crane

Patina - Beautiful Decay

Rust never sleeps : Painting the Hammerhead Crane Part 2

Painting the Icebreaker "Polar Star"

Related articles

"inheritance"- Post "Hammerhead Crane-Garden Island under threat"

"Inheritance" Post - Navy Fleet Review- an opportunity missed

Another one bites the dust

Starting a large panorama on Sunday 30th March about 10am

"Harbour Control Tower and Barangaroo

from High Street, Millers Point" 

2014 oil on canvas 61 x 183cm

Enquiries about this painting :

janecooperbennett@gmail.com

I have spent most of the past week painting a large panoramic canvas to show the Harbour Control Tower from High Street in Millers Point.

On the far left hand side is a view of the Barangaroo construction site, with giant chunks of recently excavated yellowblock sandstone forming a pseudo-naturalistic cove. 

On the far right hand side, the workers cottages of High Street stare down disapprovingly onto their brash new neighbour. 

In the centre of the picture is the last bastion of the Hungry Mile, the mushroom topped column of the Harbour Control Tower.

 Monday 31st March about 1pm

"Harbour Control Tower and Barangaroo

from High Street, Millers Point" 

2014 oil on canvas 61 x 183cm

Enquiries about this painting :

janecooperbennett@gmail.com

The Harbour Tower was also jokingly known as ''the Pill" because it "controlled all the berths" in the harbour. According to the National Trust, it should be conserved and reused as it symbolizes more than 200 years of shipping in Sydney.

However, this is an unlikely fate, as the Barangaroo Delivery Authority then bought the concrete, steel and glass structure from Sydney Ports for $2.6 million. 

Despite its unsurpassed 360 degree harbour views, the Harbour Control Tower quite obviously doesn't fit into their vision for Barangaroo, so its days are numbered.

Tuesday 1st April about 11am

"Harbour Control Tower and Barangaroo

from High Street, Millers Point"

2014 oil on canvas 61 x 183cm

Enquiries about this painting :

janecooperbennett@gmail.com

Sydney Ports once manned it 24/7, but it has not been operational since April 11th 2011, when vessel control services for Sydney Harbour finally moved to Port Botany.

 Wednesday 2nd April about 11am

"Harbour Control Tower and Barangaroo

from High Street, Millers Point"

2014 oil on canvas 61 x 183cm

Enquiries about this painting :

janecooperbennett@gmail.com

The tower opened in 1974 to give Harbour Control the best possible views of the harbour to ensure safe passage for thousands of ships each year. The architectural drawings and plans for its construction used to be hung in the foyer of the amenities level, just in front of the lift, until some light fingered wharfie pinched them.

'Evening Harbour Control Tower

from Moore's Wharf' 2013
oil on canvas 178 x 122cm

This is my huge canvas painted from my Moore's Wharf studio, showing the last time that the gorgeous sandstone escarpment was completely visible.

It has by now totally disappeared under a layer of scaffolding and the retaining wall for the North Barangaroo Headland Park.

The park will slope from its soi disant naturalistic 1788 coastline up to Clyne Reserve and Merriman street. Obviously the Tower will get short shrift. It is an emblem of another era and different values.

It looks as though Precision Demolition will be getting more work!

I last caught their act at Port Kembla, where they lived up to their name, neatly and precisely dropping the Port Kembla Copper Stack onto the grounds of Port Kembla Copper. Previously I had met them during the saga of the sinking of ex-HMAS Adelaide.

I am surprised, and more than a little concerned, that as the demolition of the Harbour Control Tower was virtually a foregone conclusion, that it wasn't demolished before construction of the headland was so far advanced. However neatly they drop it, it would make a bit of a dent in the painstakingly arranged faux natural headland. Unless they are planning to leave the pieces there as a giant water feature or a Brutalist concrete novelty sundial in the centre of the park. 

It would certainly be a conversation piece.

Or perhaps the charming terraces of Merriman Street are also superfluous to their requirements?

There's no accounting for taste.

'The Shipping News - Last  view of interior

of Harbour Control Tower '
 2011 oil on canvas 25 x 51cm

Enquiries about this painting :

janecooperbennett@gmail.com

I had been "Artist in Residence" in the Harbour Control Tower by Sydney Ports Corporation for nearly a decade.

This is the final view of the interior of the top floor. The whiteboard has a list of the very last shipping movements on April the last operational day of the Harbour Control Tower.

The clock has stopped at 10.44am, Tuesday 24th May, and has been left that way.

After the last operational use of the Tower, maintenance staff had to still have access to be able to remove furniture, cables and other equipment. If I arrived early enough, I would be allowed to tag along and do a bit more painting. 

My very last visit was just before its eventual demolition.

Related posts

Paintings of the Harbour Control Tower

Paintings from the Top of the Harbour Control Tower

Painting the Port Kembla Copper Stack

Painting ex-HMAS Adelaide

Another city landmark gets the brush-off 

March 31 2014 Sydney Morning Herald  Nicole Hasham

Beyond the Sea

Millers point paintings

Tie a yellow ribbon

The last of the Hungry Mile

May close without warning