Built on the land of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation
The new Collingwood Yards arts precinct, designed by Fieldwork, repurposes the site and buildings of the old Collingwood Technical School in the inner Melbourne suburbs. Established in 1912, the Technical School closed in 2005, and the buildings sat derelict for more than a decade. The vision for Collingwood Yards was driven by Marcus Westbury, inaugural CEO of the charitable social enterprise that owns and manages the precinct, and Daniel Besen, the founding chair of its board. The site was deeded to Collingwood Yards by the state government on the understanding that “it remains a place of cultural production and creativity.”1
Collingwood Yards aims to embed the arts in community, to encourage and support arts participation and to provide affordable and sustainable arts spaces in a part of Melbourne where gentrification means that many artists can no longer afford studio spaces. Key to reimagining the site was the understanding that
