Robbie Rowlands's - The Offering

The Offering is a contemporary art installation in a century old church and community hall in Dandenong
earmarked for demolition, created by Robbie Rowlands in a single story weatherboard church and community hall. The Church was officially opened in August 1904. In this same month – 105 years later – Rowlands’ arts intervention took place. The artwork is produced using only the materials contained within its walls to create a visually powerful site specific installation. It reveals the history of the site through exposed layers and sculptural forms that peel and bend the inner surfaces of the building.

The Offering is open for two weeks prior to the site being demolished, to enable construction of the George Street Bridge. The Offering provides the community the opportunity to experience for the final time a church and community hall that has housed local meetings and prayer for some 105 years.

The Offering builds a bridge between removing structures from the landscape and building them back up again. It provides an opportunity for the community to witness change in their community, and to share their own personal memories of times in important and historic spaces. This project is a marriage between the practice of an artist who seeks rare opportunities to work with pre-demolition sites, and organisations who recognise that within the context of urban renewal, there is an obligation to honour, reflect, discuss and record the things that are being lost in the process of change.

Rowlands work is made all the more poignant as the timber floors had already been removed in anticipation of the demolition, leaving only the supporting stumps and bare earth. “The bare earth presented an ideal opportunity for this work and the community to consider the raw landscape. With the buildings removed we are invited to consider if the land alone can retain a kind of memory or is it just defined by the structures we build,”

Rowland also made the comment about his photographing the piece he has constructed as saying “the church is celebrated through his images”. Rowland’s was and is celebrating the church’s “good innings” in terms of its life span as a church. Not only this but his aim was also the encourage the inner child we all have within us the be enchanted by the this (the offering’s) space. He likened it to exploring a hunted house or exploring something new like an abounded house.

“I am hoping my work allows the community a chance to reflect on their own connection to the land and to be part of its transition.” - Robbie Rowlands, artist.

The question was asked of Robbie “Do you call this art??”, his reply was most interesting. Whilst calm and controlled he gave a witty and most artistic answer to the question. He said “art is constantly moving,” and that what he’s done is like pottery, except “I’ve moved from the pottery wheel to a house or in this case church”.What I pulled from this exhibition in particular was that art is a perception not so much an understanding, I find that Robbie is an artist with a vision, and he is willing to push past that “tall popie syndrome” and push is art to the next level witch is out side the realms of most people’s understanding and hopefully will find its way into there perception.



Some other pics I took
In remeberance of the Offering





and my fovorite the baptism bath