Architecture student Sarah Paige was at university during the holidays when lecturer Karine Dupre approached her with a project that would enhance and invigorate her studies in a way she could never have anticipated.
In early February before a public audience at Southport Library, Sarah outlined her small but significant part in the design of the Opening Ceremony of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games (GC2018) when she joinedAssociate Professor Dupre for the latest edition of 2018 Inside Scoop.
Karine Dupre, Program Director, Architecture, at Griffith University presented an insight into the buildings that will host GC2018 in April, from Carrara Stadium to the Gold Coast Optus Aquatic Centre.
“I discussed the function of architecture in designing structures that deliver a premium experience for athletes and spectators, and the critical role of those spaces in the success of the Games,” Associate Professor Dupre said.
Sarah Paige, who is studying a Master of Architecture, outlined how she teamed up with fellow architecture students, Kirra Keating, Brian Mates and Nikki Findlay, to create the 3D model of Carrara Stadium that is playing an integral functional role in the design of what promises to be a memorable Opening Ceremony to the Games.
Under the supervision of Karine Dupre the student group was charged with the not inconsiderable task of creating a 1:100 scale model of the 40,000-capacity Carrara Stadium that would allow the ceremony designers to picture and plan each step.
“It’s only when you start that you realise just how big a stadium is. We knew we had our work cut out for us,” Sarah says.
Through extended days and long nights of trial and error with an array of building materials in the architecture studio on Griffith’s Gold Coast campus, the team built a 3D model which met the requirements of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation’s Opening Ceremony creatives.
“That was testament to how well we executed the brief. We’re almost professional modelmakers after that,” says Sarah who went to on work on the stadium interior at the Gold Coast offices of the creative agency for a further week.
It was the fifth instalment of 2018 Inside Scoop, which is hosted by City of Gold Coast Libraries and supported by Griffith University, with the aim of giving local residents a unique lowdown and expert insight into the city’s preparations to host the biggest event in Australia this decade.