The The $42 million Gippsland Performing Arts Centre, a landmark project featuring engineered native hardwood timber, was formally opened in early March.
The centre is dominated by 10 engineered “trees” made from Victorian Ash timber, each 8.5 metres high and weighing more than three tonnes, that were manufactured by Australian Sustainable Hardwoods (ASH) at Heyfield in central Gippsland.
The engineered wooden glulam beams and columns act as structural columns in the main foyer, creating a powerful public space. Various other native hardwoods were also used in the project.
GPAC, which is located at Traralgon in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley, was officially opened by the Federal Member for Gippsland Darren Chester, the Minister for Regional Development Mary-Anne Thomas, and Latrobe City May Kellie O’Callaghan.
Vic Ash in the stair hand rails and other native hardwoods feature prominently. Architect Paul Katsieris, whose firm Katsieris-Origami designed the centre in partnership with Jackson Architects, said the timber on the foyer stair treads and risers was initially to be Grey Box.
“However, the builders couldn’t source the size and thickness needed in time. In the end we used White Mahogany,” he said, speaking at the official opening.
“The main front balcony barrier is European White Oak Veneer. Seating row up-stands and aisle barriers are oak veneer panel walls with solid oak cappings and all stained Midnight Black.”
Mr Katsieris, the project’s design director, said that in the 750-seat auditorium, where a vivid red colour dominates, not much timber was used.
“I wanted a powerful design contrast with the foyer, hence the folded plane wall facets and use of the striking red throughout the interior. It’s not lighting by the way – the red is in the paintwork of the elements,” he said.
“However, there are some timber elements in the auditorium including Blackbutt battens on the balcony side walls. Finally, though not visible, the auditorium seating plats in the stalls and balcony are constructed of two layers of staggered structural grade (F27 Grade) plywood sheeting. Very strong!”
The engineered trees became the focal point of the building because the history and culture of the timber industry in Gippsland was a key design theme of the building.
In their research of historic photos of the region, they came across countless images of immense, giant trees and heroic timber structures, most of which have disappeared.
Paul’s fascination for timber resulted in the project concentrating on forestry’s ultimate embodiment – the tree.
A conversation with Mr Chester led the architectural team to ASH at Heyfield, whose new Glulam product, dubbed MAASLAM, is as strong as steel.
It was a perfect fit, as the architects were committed to using as much local product as possible.
Each ‘tree’ took about 16 hours to create and was then sanded, polished, joined together and capped with timber plugs.
The parts were then assembled into the final product by TGA Engineering, based at Bayswater in eastern Melbourne.
Paul said in the early design, the building’s main timber component also had a CLT roof with dramatic skylights.
“But we needed a bigger budget for that. However, Glulam was incredibly cost effective and on a par with steel in terms of cost,” he said.
The beauty of the timber was an added bonus.
“Steel would have needed finer work to make it architectural steel, or we would have had to clad them. We went through a big learning curve, using a massive timber beam to it limits in terms of what it can do,” said Paul.
He added that timber was too often seen as a finish and occasionally a structure; now it was being seen as both – a fitting tribute to end his five years’ work.
The centre includes the auditorium, indoor and outdoor amphitheatre event spaces, a box office, cafe precinct and conference rooms. It will be able to support international and local productions.
