2012 Central District Exhibit | Craig Taylor

The Sydney Royal Easter Show has been running since 1823 and is the single largest annual event in Australia. It runs over 14 days and is attended by approximately 1 million people every year. The Easter Show combines innovation in agriculture, history, education and employment. It recognises the finest achievements in agriculture through 12,500 competitions and promotes general awareness of rural industries, issues and lifestyles. The District Exhibit Competition provides an iconic installation that is a highlight of the Easter Show. These are the largest agricultural displays of their type in the world and they are huge, 17m long and 6m high and they must be completely covered with natural produce. They are a fantasy with themes created from grain, wool, fruit and vegetables. Some 10,000 apples, giant cattle pumpkins weighing over 150kg and almost every piece of natural produce you can think of comprise the palette that the designers have to work with. Like any architectural brief, our role in creating this installation is to understand our client's requirements, decide on our approach and how we want to represent our message and then design using the tools available to us. The process is a twelve month process from Easter Show to Easter Show, something we're familiar with as this is our 23rd consecutive display. During the 2011 Royal Easter Show we began talking with farmers, school children and the founders of AYOF2012 about what it means to be a farmer, what the perceptions are of farmers and how AYOF 2012 can promote the role of the farmer. Generally there was a lack of appreciation for the profession of farming. The aim of this display is to start to change those perceptions. We wanted to illustrate that farming is a progressive profession and to demonstrate the importance of farmers and the dramatic productivity gains that have occurred in the industry. The display is a profusion of fresh, vibrant Australian produce, representative of the achievements of the industry. We have employed both traditional methods and modern technology. Detailed seedwork is on the deck, the produce is vertical and the movement is achieved through light. The message of the contribution of 1 FARMER... is so important that the letters are bold and strong and they literally grow out of the centre of the bountiful produce. The important message of 1 FARMER... needed to be conveyed using a method that would catch the viewer and hold them. We have used data projectors to display an animation that works in concert with the facts and figures of this progressive industry, providing discussion points and enlightening the public.