26 March 2003

The completion of the first new 'city block' in the revitalised precinct of Green Square in Sydney is being celebrated by the developers St Hilliers with the installation, on Thursday 27 March, of a major public sculpture fronting the centre-piece Mondrian residential development, at Powell Street Waterloo.

Geelong-based sculptor, Viktor Cebergs, was commissioned by St Hilliers to create the Mondrian sculpture, which commemorates the long-standing association of light industry with Waterloo.

"From the very beginning of this project, we undertook to incorporate some of the representative elements of the original factory into a piece of public art for the lasting enjoyment of the new community that is growing in this area," says Mr Tim Casey, Group Managing Director of St Hilliers.

Those elements are reflected in sections of the original factory trusses that are now integrated into a feature wall at the main entrance on Powell Street and complemented by the Cebergs sculpture.  This imposing 4 metre by 2 metre artwork was constructed from the original trusses from the previous factory on this site, and incorporates sections of arced mild steel on a concrete plinth.

"My intention in creating this piece was to pay homage to the industrial heritage of the location and to show the steel sections at their best; to transform them from the purely functional to the aesthetic," says artist Viktor Cebergs.

The sculpture has a 'maritime feel' and its selected location on the 'pocket park' at the front of the development was considered most appropriate as the form achieved gives an analogy with a yacht cutting its way across the park's grassed area.

Viktor Cebergs has developed a reputation for creating large public sculptures for government and corporate bodies, including a number that draw strongly on references to memories in local communities. One such project involved sculptures for RSL memorial avenues in Victorian country towns and another a series of large steel murals celebrating the surrounding wetlands.

The Mondrian sculpture was completed in the fabrication workshops of Peninsular Laser at Manly Vale and is the artist's first commission in Sydney.

An historical note:

The style of old truss used in the Mondrian sculpture was called a 'Warren truss'. These trusses were commonly used in late 19th century buildings. By 1915 they were a rare form of construction.

During the 19th century Waterloo was developed mainly by small businesses engaged in light industry, such as tanning and wool scouring. It remained an industrial suburb until the middle of the 20th century.

The sculpture uses elements of a truss, which formed part of the original building, built in 1915 by Luke Muras and Company, a family engineering and blacksmithing firm that was first established in Glebe in the 1880s.

The building was utilised as an engineering works until 1949, when the premises were purchased by Chubb, and the old factory used for manufacturing of metal components. It was demolished in 2001.