The Sydney Royal Easter Show | Design & Installation of the 2016 South-East Qld District Exhibit

One of the most exciting and challenging roles I’ve embraced as a Designer, is the South-East Queensland District Agricultural Exhibit for the Sydney Royal Easter Show. These exhibits are exceedingly high profile, there are 5 in total, all nestled together under the Woolworths Fresh Food Dome, and are the largest of their kind in the Southern Hemisphere. Together they are a significant draw-card to The Sydney Royal Easter Show and must include all agricultural elements that are presented for judging, from wool to homemade preserves. The Exhibits themselves are professionally judged on everything from artistic merit to colour and lighting and a People’s Choice Award is also up for grabs. Competition is hot year in and year out - 1 x Qld Exhibit v’s 4 x NSW Exhibits. The job ahead of me was not for the faint-hearted . . . 200 square metres of exhibit, constructed on a 20 degree slope, within the framework of a non-negotiable list of rules, laying homage to 100+ years of tradition, with a meagre team of 3 volunteers and only 10 days to complete the build or be disqualified!

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Early October, 2016 - It all began with an informal chat with the President and VP of the South-East Queensland District Exhibit (SEQDE) Committee. Unbeknown to me, they had been on the look out for a new Designer for more than 18 months. Stumbling upon their Seek listing, I had immediately raised my hand, keen to assist the Lead Designer on such an exciting project. To cut a long story short, an hour later I had been offered the role of Lead Designer and had humbly accepted. To be completely honest with you reader . . . I had no idea of the magnitude of the job ahead, however I knew that it absolutely set my soul on fire and appeared to be just the right kind of impossible that I love.

Conceptual Design - SketchUp

Late October, 2016 - Design approval was received and with on-site construction at The Sydney Royal to begin in March, there was much to do. The 13 x 3 metre storyboard had to be designed, printed and created. The fruit box that was to be the focal point of our design had to built and automation refined. Seeds, paint samples and construction materials had to be sourced and tested before prefabrication could begin and Christmas was looming which would equal business closures and time delays. Add to this, a family holiday to New York was booked and paid for and would see me overseas for the best part of a month.

5th January, 2017 - I arrived home to the worse possible news. The printer we had engaged in December did not reopen until late January and their newly quoted pricing was way out of our league. Thankfully a new printer was found quickly and had the graphics ready for pick up within a week - thank heavens for small mercies!

Seeding Process - Grapes

February, 2017 - Now came the hard part. Each image had to be hand cut from the core flute panelling, layered onto an MDF background, seeded, sealed and wrapped ready for transportation to Sydney in March. I had just 6 weeks to cut, glue and seed 17 pieces of fruit and more than 45 letters. Most of the seeds required tinting prior to use to ensure a lovely depth and artistic finish for the storyboard and I had absolutely no experience doing any of this. In fact, I had never heard of ‘seeding’ as an art form prior to taking on this role.

Seeding Process - Watermelon

Embracing the challenge and all that it encompassed, not the least being that I lived in an apartment and all prefabrication work was to be completed from home, I set up a cutting mat on my coffee table, accumulated recycled cardboard boxes on my balcony for the intricate tinting process needed to colour the seeds and commissioned the dining table to seal each piece as completed. The rest was a learning curve borne of years spent creating, a passion for colour and an attention to detail that borders on the obsessive. With my wee Winnie beside me for company, I began the arduous, yet exhilarating process of watching the exhibit come to life beneath my finger tips. I spent 10-12 hours a day, arched over each piece of fruit, each letter, ensuring that each new layer of seed, each tint was as close to real as possible. The sheer scale of many of the pieces made them a mission in themselves. For example: the uncut pineapple measured 1200 x 2700 mm alone and required more than a dozen different types of seeds and colours.

Seeding Complete - Pineapple

22nd March 2017 - All pieces were complete, carefully wrapped and loaded into the truck bound for Sydney. We packed our bags and flew out of Brisbane 4 short days later. We met the rest of our team and the competition at dinner that evening and were soon enjoying an easy camaraderie. With only 10 days to complete the build, stage and light the exhibit, the work load would be heavy, the days long and tensions were sure to run high. This moment of light hearted banter was an all important one.

Fruit - Ready to Go!

27 March, 2017 - We arrived at Homebush (home to The Sydney Royal Easter Show) before 6:30am on Monday. After checking my beautiful fruit had made it safely to Sydney on the back of a truck, I quickly strode into the Woolworths Dome to view the blank canvas that was to be our exhibit. I was horrified to find the exhibits were still being erected. They would not be complete until midday. We had already lost 1/2 a day of the build. This was to be the first of many curve balls thrown my way.

Site check measure highlighted an error on the CAD drawings supplied by event organisers. The height of the backing boards was found to be 300 mm shorter than that noted on the working drawings. This error would mean that our seeded fruit would now sit 300mm lower than we had intended, hiding much of the carefully curated detail behind our automated box.

Once the exhibit beds were finally complete, we swung into action. Unfortunately, once installed we discovered that the black seeded backing boards that were to sit behind my vibrantly seeded fruit were found to be mouldy. These boards had been fabricated by an SEQDE volunteer back in February, however due to the excessive humidity we experience in Queensland, the glue had obviously not dried well and had sprouted. When the heavy overhead floodlights were switched on in the Fresh Food Dome late in the afternoon, the wide spread damage that had not been apparent under a standard globe was now evident for all to see. After close inspection, I had to make the agonising call that 10 of the 14 boards were unsalvageable. Additional paint and seed were now urgently required, not to mention the time to re-create these mammoth boards at the eleventh hour.

Day 1 - Build

28 March, 2017 - Bright and early in the morning, I set-to re-creating the 10 x 2400 x 1200 mm backing boards. I couldn’t lose the manpower required on the exhibit bed to build the box so this job was all mine. The heat was suffocating and dried the glue as fast as I brushed it on. We didn’t have enough black seed on hand so I now had to use canola seed (a lovely deep coffee brown colour), saving as much as I could from each sheet. That meant creating a make-shift support from 2 barrels positioned carefully on top of a huge tarp. That way any loose seed could be saved and scooped back up to be used again. It also meant that the 10 newly seeded backing boards did not match the 4 old ones. I did not have enough materials or time to seed another 4 so they would match as planned, so I pulled out Plan B and created a screen for each side of the exhibit out of the beautiful, polished sugar cane that I had been admiring back stage. Thankfully judging finalised early for sugar cane and the grower generously donated it to our cause.

In the midst of this all encompassing chaos, Cyclone Debbie swept along the east-coast of Australia, creating havoc with produce delivery for the Northern NSW and South-East Qld teams and more importantly, caused a great deal of concern and worry for our families back home.

Day 5 - Build

29 March, 2017 - The hardware for the actuator arms designed to lift the box lid couldn’t be found. After losing half a days work I had to make a judgement call to abort the automation or risk not delivering on time and being disqualified. This decision did not make me popular but a change had been made to the actuator arms without consultation with me and even if the hardware could be found, they now posed a risk to health and safety. The bed of the exhibit would likely not hold the weight of the lid when lifted to maximum height and due to the slope of the bed, if they failed they would put the public and SEQDE volunteers at risk. Plan B was pulled out once again and I quickly tweaked the design . . . we would now display an open fruit box instead.

Day 8 - Build

Through all this we overcame. The team stepped up, pulled together and worked like no other. We were first in every morning and last to leave every night. I barely took a break to keep on top of the seeding and preparation required so as not to inhibit the boys working on deck.  Our team of 4 (including me) worked alongside the NSW teams of 30-40 volunteers. Each piece of fruit, each vegetable had to be individually placed. Saw dust laid to prevent slipping, sugar cane supports wired to keep the prize winning grammas and melons in place. Macadamia and peanut husks were laid down to create a soft, decorative bed for the produce and hundreds of sorghum stems formed a small forest of scarlet colour, each stem threaded through individually drilled holes. Vibrant jars of honey, homemade preserves and olive oil needed individual steps to do their beauty justice and a field of wheat, soft woollen fleece, fragrant herbs and an assortment of nuts needed their own custom made crates. The list of minute details on this vast 200 sqm exhibit were endless and each task was meticulously ticked off as the days flew by.

Staging & Styling - Every piece placed by hand

05 April, 2017 - When we finally downed tools at close to 7pm, I can honestly say that there is not a single thing I would change. Not a corner that I cut and prouder of my team, even my little girl who helped out tirelessly behind the scenes, could I be. The SEQ Exhibit Design and Build was more than a role. It was an experience and one that I will cherish forever. I accomplished something that many said I couldn't and as with most projects that I undertake, I learned a lot. Although we didn't win the prize for best exhibit (we received no score lower than 95%), it was a closely fought battle and I am delighted to report that we were an integral part of something so much bigger. South-East Qld District won the shield overall for the first time since this all began 113 years ago!

Day 10 - Complete! It’s all in the Details

For those of you that enjoy these exhibits every year, and those of you who have now added them to your bucket list, I hope you have a better understanding of what goes on behind the scenes and the crazy determination, tireless effort and tenacity of the teams that do such a wonderful job year after year.

Blessings, K xo