ceramic wall mural
Doulas Annand, Stevie Fieldsend
Client: Macquarie Group
Location: 1 Elizabeth St Sydney
2024
Role: Structural design, fixing methodology, and installation.
Overview:
Originally created in 1963 for the P&O building at 55 Hunter Street, Douglas Annand’s Ceramic Wall Mural was one of Australia’s early large-scale corporate art commissions. With its bold blue-glazed ceramic tiles, the work became an iconic example of post-war modernist public art.
As part of the 1 Elizabeth development, the mural was salvaged, restored, and reimagined for a contemporary audience. Artist Stevie Fieldsend was engaged to reinterpret the work, introducing sculptural resin-cast elements that respond to the mural’s original geometry and rhythm. The result is a layered, multi-dimensional artwork that bridges historical preservation with contemporary expression.
Our Involvement:
Douglas Annand’s mural was salvaged during the original building’s demolition and carefully stored by Heritage NSW (led by Cath Snelgrove). A collaborative effort between Transport for NSW, Macquarie Group, Helen Burton, Felicity Fenner, Cath Snelgrove, and the Annand family—led by Juliet Annand—entrusted Event Engineering with the responsibility to remediate and restore eight crates of disassembled tiles, cement, and structural remnants.
The project involved detailed industrial design, bespoke engineering solutions, and the integration of five custom glazing finishes developed through detailed material research, ensuring the work was future-proofed and seamlessly reintegrated into its new home at 1 Elizabeth.
Project Impact:
The revitalised Ceramic Wall Mural stands as a powerful example of public art conservation, adaptation, and reinterpretation. By reintroducing a historically significant work into a modern civic space, the project honours Sydney’s cultural legacy while inviting new conversations around continuity, materiality, and place.
Event Engineering is proud to have contributed to the careful transformation and safe reinstallation of this important piece of Australia’s public art history.
Photography: Brett Boardman
Read more about this artwork:
https://www.1elizabeth.com.au/the-precinct/public-art/douglas-annand-ceramic-wall-mural.html
More work from Event Engineering
