General News
17 August, 2023
Gallery builders bring home top gong
The Central Goldfields Art Gallery’s top-notch craftsmanship has not gone unnoticed — with the construction company responsible for the space’s re-build recognised at a state-wide event. At the 2023 Master Builders Victoria award ceremony held...

The Central Goldfields Art Gallery’s top-notch craftsmanship has not gone unnoticed — with the construction company responsible for the space’s re-build recognised at a state-wide event.
At the 2023 Master Builders Victoria award ceremony held last week in Melbourne, local builder Searle Bros Building Contractors won the title of Excellence in Construction of Commercial Buildings Under $3 million for the $2 million redevelopment of the gallery.
Celebrating the high standard of projects executed by the state’s building industry, the awards validated the work put in by the company according to its construction manager Matt Lowe.
“We’re very ecstatic and happy to have won, it’s a real achievement,” he said.
“I am really proud of all the teams that were involved in the whole process, including our subcontractors, because it is no mean feat, it’s a very old building from the 1860s.
“To be awarded this and for the judges and the panel to come through and acknowledge that the work had been done to a very high level on a small budget, is wonderful.”
Working with a team of about 70, Mr Lowe said the focus from the beginning was to build something the residents of Maryborough were proud of.
“For the town, we felt the pressure of really delivering something special that would become a highlight and would be a draw card for tourism,” he said.
“The main key driver was to deliver something really special for Maryborough that would also attract people.
“Now that we’ve won this award, there’s a lot more exposure for the gallery — members from the Master Builders might want to come down and have a look.”
Part of the gallery’s development involved reshaping the entrance to the space, redesigning the internal area to give it a more contemporary look and making necessary electrical upgrades.
“In this day and age, the construction industry is not the easiest one to be in, it has its challenges but working on the gallery was a very nice process,” Mr Lowe said.
“Because it was a heritage building, they can be hard to deliver on. It’s not like building a new building and we made sure to honour the building throughout the process.
“[All the work we’ve done] is there now to be enjoyed for another 100 years and they tell a story too.”
Since the gallery’s official opening earlier this year, it has already been recognised more than once — with the construction award the second achievement it has recorded.
The gallery’s architects, Nervegna Reed Architecture, submitted their design for the gallery into the 2023 Venice Biennale where it was featured for an international audience, adding to the gallery’s global acclaim.