A cultural revolution was staged in Brisbane in 1994 when a collective of intrepid artists transformed an abandoned and derelict powerhouse into an immersive artistic experience called Tranceplant.
Andy Forbes is a renowned multidisciplinary artist who has developed and created installations for Splendour In The Grass, Falls Festival, Woodford Folk Festival and more.But 27 years ago, Andy was just a local artist with a wild and foreboding vision. "We ran this gallery called Omniscient, and we did this show called 'Franken-Wine', based on Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstein'," Andy explains.
"And the concept was that rather than putting on a play or an art exhibition that had been curated or themed, I had the idea that we would replace set designers with installation artists and then actors with performance artists.
"The audience would walk through these parts of the story of 'Frankenstein'. "We loved the idea that there was this immersive experience the audience had, and also that the freedom of the artists could create different elements of the show without having to specifically illustrate it in a traditional theatre way."
Off the back of that show's success, Andy and the Omniscient collective wanted to expand on the concept and began searching for the ideal venue.
"We started breaking into the Brisbane Powerhouse at night, which was a completely derelict, condemned site right on the edge of the Brisbane River," he says.
"We loved the idea that it was this post-apocalyptic-looking environment; it reminded us of the whole 'Blade Runner', Ridley Scott vibe. It was a massive building, and it was already close to the Valley."
Ben Ely at Tranceplant (1994) - image supplied
The Powerhouse and the land upon which it sits had been reacquired by Brisbane City Council in 1989, meaning Andy had to get creative if he wanted permission to stage a legitimate exhibition.
"I knew if I approached the Brisbane City Council as a theatre company or just as an artist there was no way they would let me use the building," he explains.
"I sort of blagged my way in and presented myself as being a film company because I knew they would take me more seriously if I was a film company or a director.
"I'd done a fair bit of research about the place and knew what was in there and I suggested to them that if people were wearing safety clothing, hard hats and sensible shoes, we could have people on the site.
"They said if we get public liability for it, we can use it. I did, and that meant we could use this colossal building that had all this history and an amazing aesthetic. From there it really snowballed. Our original idea of having a few artists involved with the show turned into literally hundreds of artists."
Over its ten-night season, Tranceplant forever altered the Brisbane arts scene and the Powerhouse itself, proving that we could be more than just a 'big country town'; that a rundown, forgotten relic can be more than what it seems, take on new life and generate a new type of energy.
Before Brisbane Powerhouse was a creative arts hub, it was a bona fide power station supplying electricity to the entire Brisbane tram network.
After the last trams ran in 1969, the powerhouse was decommissioned in 1971 and over the following decades found new purpose as storage for chemicals and military exercises. It also became a popular haunt for junkies, squatters, vandals and vagrants.
By the time Andy and his crew got their hands on it for Tranceplant, the Powerhouse was in a severe state of ruin and decay. "When we used to break in there, it was a mess," Andy recalls.
"The ceilings had glass as well as concrete and the glass was broken, so when it rained the 50-metre below pit would fill with water. There were three chambers that used to hold the turbines that would create the energy-form coal to run trams in Brisbane.
"They ripped these turbines out, essentially using cranes and cutting holes in the concrete. So, you had these three big chambers and another level above with railings. . . we thought it was amazing, and obviously so did a lot of other artists."
After a long refurbishment, the Brisbane Powerhouse as we know it today opened in 2000 and has become a shining beacon of creative energy in its delivery of world-class productions and support of the local arts community.
This year, Brisbane Powerhouse celebrates its 21st birthday with a broad programme of festivities, including a look back at Tranceplant and its significant contribution to Brisbane's artistic and cultural coming-of-age.
"Our biggest legacy in some ways is that we helped the arts community and the wider community of Brisbane, and the Brisbane City Council, see that building as a place that was for creative arts," Andy says.
"Because we showed it was this building that could house all this stuff – all this artwork, all this circus; all these cross-pollinating art forms were happening in that space. It was a beautiful playground of things going on."
'Tranceplant: Igniting The Neolithic Powerhouse' is on at Brisbane Powerhouse 12 May featuring a Q&A with ABC Radio's Rebecca Levingston. Brisbane Powerhouse's 21st Birthday celebrations run 6-15 May.
