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Queensland University of Technology

Campuses and Precincts

Gardens Point

Part of Gardens Point campus as seen from South Bank Parklands.

Gardens Point campus is located in Brisbane’s city centre, beside the Brisbane River, Brisbane City Botanic Gardens, Queensland Parliament House, and the recently restored, Heritage Award-winning Old Government House, which has hosted 90,000 visitors in the year since it re-opened. The faculties of Built Environment, Business, Law, Science and Technology are based at Gardens Point campus.

Gardens Cultural Precinct

Gardens Point campus hosts the Gardens Cultural Precinct, comprising the Gardens Theatre and QUT Art Museum, which offer a full theatre and exhibition program.

• The QUT Art Museum houses the university's art collection, which focuses on contemporary Australian art, particularly paintings, prints, and ceramics. About 350,000 people have explored the gallery in the decade since it opened in the year 2000. The building is a 1930s neo-classical revivalist building, and the QUT Art Museum was designed by Peddle Thorpe Architects, Brisbane.

• The Gardens Theatre features professional theatre, children's theatre, and student showcases and also comprises a cafe, bar, and free parking. The Gardens Theatre is a medium-sized venue, formerly known as the Basil Jones Theatre, and was renovated with assistance from the Queensland Government. It was reopened as the Gardens Theatre in 1999 by the then Premier of Queensland, Peter Beattie. It provides space for QUT productions and visiting performers, and is the only theatre complex in Brisbane's central business district.

Science and Engineering Centre

A new Science and Engineering Centre is currently under construction and due for completion later in 2012. It will bring together teaching and research in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. QUT has received both gifts and federal funding to support the project’s $230 million budget.

History

Heritage Boundary on QUT Gardens Point Campus Plan.

QUT Gardens Point Campus has diverse predecessors from which can be dated back to 1849. However, it wasn’t until 1910s that this site was able to become the ground for a “proper” technical college which later developed into a campus. Brisbane Central Technical College is the former name of QUT in which Brisbane’s technical education was predominantly dependent on. Although the college was erected, the features were still passed on to the Queensland Institute of Technology, as it proved its importance in growing the technical education in Queensland. The campus design was to maximize advantages for specific users such as apprenticeship and vocational trainees, and this specific campus planning remained still throughout the years despite the long history until now.

Site

Circulation through QUT Gardens Point Campus.

Gardens Point Campus is located on George Street, Brisbane. The site itself includes a boundary out towards Brisbane River and has a distinct relationship with Brisbane City Botanic Gardens to the Northeast. Important government buildings also exist in this region such as the Queensland Parliament House which sits adjacent to the QUT entrance, together with Old Government House which is more embedded within the campus. The Main Drive runs from George Street and continues in towards the Old Government House, and is part of the heritage registered boundary. This Main Drive becomes an important element to the site as it is the main axis for circulation, as well as linking the campus to the Botanical Garden for uses by the public.

Campus Planning

List of buildings at QUT and their architects and built dates.

QUT Gardens Point Campus has buildings which are both heritage registered, and others that are built more recently. Because of this reason, two groups are stylistically different and this tends to limit the campus to be seen as a unified group. However, this issue is dealt by agreeing and respecting the Mains Drive to act as a key circulation route for both periods.

Buildings A, E, F, G, H, and J were built in 1910s for Brisbane Central Technical College and still exist on campus. Other blocks that were constructed during this time period such as B, C and D blocks were demolished and have since been replaced. Buildings K, R and W were built slightly later between 1920 and 1956 but these were just seen as additions to the existing block J. Furthermore, building U is also heritage registered, and was built around 1935 near Old Government House. Most of these heritage buildings were designed by the Department of Public Works who claimed that the main concept was to address the Mains Drive. Recent buildings have respected this concept and the Mains Drive was able to stay as a primary linkage to important routes all around the campus. For example, building X (Art Museum and Theatre) is positioned at the end of the Mains Drive and slightly sets back into the Botanical garden. This placement works as a successful design as it still highlights the main axis, but also providing a picturesque scene with surrounding natures from the garden.

Another important feature of QUT campus is the harmony which is created by linking man-made structures to natural landscape which is full of views and nature. When original buildings were built, surrounding landscape was mainly full of greenery with a strong relationship with Brisbane River for trading from overseas. In addition, the architects further discovered a way to highlight the landscape by introducing a central courtyard within the buildings. This space is now named “The Yard”, and holds cafes and benches for QUT students and staffs to use. Trees are planted all around the campus to continue highlighting the relationship with nature and thus each transitional street within campus brings out an unusual experience under the tree canopy.

Details-Materiality

New Science and Technology building and its glass facade.

Thomas Pye was the head architect for heritage registered buildings whose aim was to enhance Arts and Craft movement to highlight details such as decorations and materials. The group of buildings that Pye designed all share a similarity of having red brick façade with dark red emphasis with quoins. The same dark red bricks are used around important openings and structural elements. More important buildings such as the administration block would have stone dressings for extra detail.

Refurbishments done to these buildings include steel detailing on the roof and window sills as well as placement of metal louvers.

Modern buildings look completely different from those designed by Thomas Pye. Materials such as glass, concrete and steel are used to create unique qualities. New Science and Technology Precinct is one of the examples where glass walls become part of the design. Surrounding features around the building are reflected onto the glass giving the sense of its presence within the site.

Significant Buildings- Block A

Elevation of Block A.

Block A by Thomas Pye from 1912 is one of the most significant buildings found on campus as it functions as an administration hall directly beside the campus entrance. Its location is easy to spot from the distance as it is the first building to be seen from the Mains Drive. Because of this reason, A block opens out to this Drive and outlooks the Brisbane Botanical Garden. The back of the block becomes a boundary for the exterior courtyard along with other buildings designed by Pye. Building A appears to be symmetrical on the main façade with the entrance to the building in the middle which is then highlighted by stone pediments and columns. Façade treatment stays the same with red brickworks with quoining on the corners of the building. The interiors have been refurbished to meet the need of colleges and universities on site, and this included the addition of another storey for more space.

Block J

Elevation of Block J.

Block J is also by Thomas Pye and began its construction in 1911. This block is designed with considerations of the Brisbane climate and thus appears different in form to other buildings by Pye. J block is known by “the workshop” and is a two storey building with narrow, rectilinear plan. The design also contains veranda on both of the main facades for ventilation and to reduce scattering of noise out to the public environment. In addition, the building faces both inwards and outwards to the courtyard and the river respectively. This is thus the building that acts as a closing boundary for “the yard”. Interior is about opening up of space as large rooms for machines to fit as well as considering the high level of activities that take place in this block. Despite these differences in form and planning to other buildings, it shares a similar exterior treatment of using red bricks, although series of columns become the highlighting element of the façade.