Sparkly addition to Newcastle skyline as Art Gallery expansion progresses

Five-year-old Mabel Read swapped the playground for a construction site today as she helped officially name the crane being used to deliver the expanded Newcastle Art Gallery.

Mabel earned the chance to crown the crane “Sparkles” after winning a colouring competition run by City of Newcastle in collaboration with the head contractor on the site, Hansen Yuncken.

Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes and NSW Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley with the winner and runners-up in the Name the Crane competition at the Newcastle Art Gallery construction site.

In her entry, Mabel said that she chose the name "because it is cute and girls can build things too".

While the hammerhead tower crane stands as high as six giraffes stacked on top of each other, Mabel was given a ground-level view of the flag bearing its new name, which now adorns the crane’s counter jib.

Competition runners up George Kimberly, aged four, and three-year-old Luka Tomasevic were also excited to see the crane in action, joining Mabel, Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley and Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes at the Art Gallery site for the special occasion.

Cr Nelmes welcomed the collaboration with contractor Hansen Yuncken to connect some of the youngest members of the community to the city’s landmark project.

"Speaking with our project team and our contractor I was interested to hear just how busy Sparkles will be as the construction progresses," Cr Nelmes told the children.

"Sparkles will move the same weight as around 50 elephants in reinforcing mesh for the concrete floors, beams, columns and walls. 

"It will also lift around 75 hippos worth of structural steel, and 3,000 square metres of roof sheeting, which is as big as around 300,000 ice blocks laid out next to each other."

Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley said it was fantastic to meet the next generation of art lovers and be given a sneak peek at how the project is progressing. 

“It’s always good to see cranes above the city - it means progress and the Newcastle Art Gallery is shaping up beautifully," Minister Catley said.

“This Gallery is an asset to the Hunter and I’m pleased to see it’s connecting with young people even while it's being renovated.”

Newcastle Art Gallery Director Lauretta Morton OAM celebrated the opportunity to spark interest in both the arts and construction amongst Newcastle's youngest students.

"The Gallery has long partnered with schools and pre-schools in the area to foster connections and creativity, and this remains a real priority for our team, even while our programming has moved off-site," Ms Morton said.

Following extensive site preparation works, the ground floor slabs for several of the new Gallery spaces have been poured in recent weeks, with work continuing to expand the footprint of the new facility.

Celebrating the official naming of the crane by five-year-old Mabel Read at the Newcastle Art Gallery site.

The Newcastle Art Gallery expansion project is supported by $5 million from the Australian Government under the Regional Recovery Partnerships and $5 million from the New South Wales Government under the Regional Recovery Package, as well as $12 million from the Newcastle Art Gallery Foundation made possible through the Valerie and John Ryan bequest, Margaret Olley Trust, and community fundraising over many years. A further $1 million is currently being sought through the Foundation's public fundraising campaign.
 
The Regional Recovery Partnerships initiative seeks to broker connections between all levels of government to increase information flow, share technical expertise and strengthen regional development outcomes.

Sparkles the Crane fast facts:

• The hammerhead tower crane was installed at the Newcastle Art Gallery site late last year.
• Early learning providers across the local government area were invited to take part in a name the crane colouring competition.
• The crane measures around 33m high, which is the equivalent of stacking six adult male giraffes, which are on average 5.5m tall, on top of each other.
• Approximately 260 tonnes of reinforcing mesh will be used for the concrete floors, beams, columns and walls of the Art Gallery expansion, which is the equivalent of around 50 average adult African elephants, weighing 5,200kg each.
• Approximately 112 tonnes of structural steel will be needed for the construction of the façade, the roof and the atrium, which equals the same as 75 male adult hippos, each weighing an average of 1,500kg.
• Approximately 3,000m2 of roof sheeting will be used during construction, which equates to around 300,000 Zooper Doopers laid out next to each other.