Arts school comes full circle

The former Dunedin School of Art has been turned into a suite of art, music and drama rooms for Trinity Catholic College. PHOTOS: GRAHAM WARMAN PHOTOGRAPHY

Misha Peyroux ,17, and Tom Davis, 18, work on their year 13 art portfolios in one of the new art rooms. PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSON

Students sketch on their new ‘‘roof studio’’, from which they had a superb view of the city, in March 1937. PHOTO: EVENING STAR

Natural light floods into one of the music classrooms on the middle floor. PHOTO: GRAHAM WARMAN

The art school under construction in December 1936. PHOTO: EVENING STAR

The two music levels include practice rooms, classrooms and a recording studio.

A historic building on a prominent Dunedin site has come full circle. Kim Dungey reports.

A sympathetic restoration of the former Dunedin School of Art means it is once again a training ground for budding artists.

The 1937 building on the corner of Tennyson St and York Pl is the new arts block for Trinity Catholic College, and will be officially opened next week.

Founded in 1870, the Dunedin School of Art became part of King Edward Technical College in 1921 and operated from the red brick college on the corner of Stuart St and York Pl until this purpose-built school opened nearby.

Together, the former college and art school are listed as a category 1 historic place.

According to a Heritage New Zealand report, the art school’s distinguished students and teachers founded New Zealand modernism, changing the country’s artistic and cultural story. They included Colin McCahon, Doris Lusk, R.N. Field and Gordon Tovey. Prior to the new school opening, Toss Woollaston and Rodney Kennedy had also attended art classes at the college.

The new school, designed by government architect John Mair, was a simple, elegant building framed in wood with a concrete basement and plaster cladding. Inside, there was a tiled entrance and nine large classrooms.

The new stair and lift tower makes the building fully accessible. PHOTO: GRAHAM WARMAN

At the official opening, Dunedin Mayor Rev Edwin Thoms Cox commented on the light and space available and said he hoped the school would produce men who would become as famous as Rubens and Van Dyck.

Taken over by Otago Polytechnic in the 1960s, the former art school was bought for Kavanagh College (now Trinity Catholic College) in late 2010.

Catholic Diocese of Dunedin property manager Craig Paterson said it was a logical purchase given Kavanagh’s main campus was directly across the road and after that, it was a matter of the diocese "biding its time until the finances were right for an upgrade".

In the interim, the renamed Pompallier Arts Block became drama rooms and general teaching spaces.

The 18-month redevelopment was helped by the solid nature of the building, Mr Paterson said.

The art school was erected by the Public Works Department with government funding, and the fact that less than $100,000 of the $4.5million refurbishment budget had to be spent on structural improvements was a reflection of how well it was built.

Project director Matt Mitchell, of McCoy & Wixon Architects, said planning began in early 2018. The initial work focused on a music suite, but this was soon extended to include art and drama spaces.

After looking at various options, it was decided to realise the potential of the under-utilised basement in parallel with the introduction of a new lift and stairs to meet accessibility requirements.

The concrete-enclosed basement had an asbestos-lined boiler and black, soot-laden walls, but its acoustic properties made it ideal for a music recording studio and practice room.

Further music rooms were located on the middle level, with two art rooms and a photography studio on the top floor.

The Late News practice for an upcoming talent show at Trinity Catholic College. The members are (from left) Akein Wickramagedara, Che McGirven, Joseph Kelly and Harry Lodge, all aged 15. PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSON

Existing drama rooms in the single-level wing running down York Pl were also given a cosmetic upgrade. During the polytechnic’s ownership, this wing included a public cafe used for hospitality training.

The project was about maintaining the integrity of the heritage building while making it suitable for modern teaching and complying with seismic, fire and accessibility requirements, Mr Mitchell said.

Removing asbestos was a challenge — the original heating system had asbestos-lagged pipework — and soundproofing the music rooms was another key part of the project.

Wherever possible, original heritage features such as window joinery and trims were maintained and put on show. The builders also removed about a dozen aluminium-framed windows, replacing them with timber, double-hung windows to match the originals.

There was a clear delineation between original and new materials, and this extended to the new stair and lift tower southeast of the heritage building.

While respecting the original building by sitting separately, the tower made reference through its form and materials to the mid-century, off-form concrete of the main school campus across the road.

While the former art school ended in a blank facade, the tower offered views over the city and harbour basin from all three levels.

Trinity Catholic College principal Kate Nicholson said there was a "wonderful synergy" in the former art school being returned to a creative space for the college’s young artists and musicians.

"The history that surrounds our students while they are creating and experimenting is pretty special.

Amazing futures began in this building for some of those New Zealand artists who are now household names — how much more inspiring could that be for a young person beginning their own creative journey."