Onespace is pleased to host SpatialCo throughout January 2019 as part of an Onsite Project #OO4. The project will act as a platform for community engagement, as well as an opportunity to develop further investigations before an exhibition titled ‘x, y, z’ at the end of the project. SpatialCo is a creative practice operating in two parts – as service provider and as researcher – exploring the application of emerging technologies. Their team is made up of architects, designers, visualisers and technicians who work collaboratively on all projects. In 2018 SpatialCo were commissioned to 3D laser scan Brisbane’s heritage listed Red Hill Skate Arena for the production of accurate measured drawings. Built in the 1920s, the building has been a cinema, sound lounge and skate arena. Following a devastating fire in 2003, the building’s ruinous state provided an ideal space for many well-known Brisbane street artists. The life of the building is now coming full circle as it returns to its former use as a cinema.
The process of laser scanning captures measurable spatial data to create a three-dimensional point cloud, while also recording colour panoramic images. In this exhibition they interrogate the collected data to produce a series of 2D images that explore the qualitative aspects of the skate arena at a point of transition. Their spatial investigations, using 3D laser scanning technology, documents concrete structural elements as well as the seemingly banal dust, peeling paint and discarded objects. The images created for this exhibition demonstrate the capacity of the technology to move beyond the measurable to reveal intangible aspects embedded within the fabric of this iconic Brisbane building.