Community Bench

Community Bench, designed for Brisbane Powerhouse 25th Anniversary Exhibition "Place & Community" June 24-29 2025

A bench is a place to rest, to sit & wait for an old friend, or make a new one.  Supposedly people have deeper conversations sitting side by side, not making eye contact.  This was true for my dad & me, when we went on a long drive.  So when I was asked to join this exhibition, what else could I do?

The Brisbane Powerhouse redevelopment was one of dad's major works.  Unfortunately he died just before the exhibition, so this piece sat in front of a video recording of a talk he gave previously.

Like the coffee table I made previously, Tadao Ando’s Komyo-ji temple is the inspiration for this piece; another place for contemplation or congregation, and is made from a similar timber.   The hinoki used here came from a tree that fell in a storm, saved from the chipper at the 11th hour when its owner recognised the scent.  So like the Powerhouse, this bench has been reclaimed, and sits solidly on concrete foundations.  Dad would have liked that, he was a born recycler.