Fusions Gallery, Brunswick St

Brunswick St is one of the oldest streets outside Brisbane's CBD, and as such, has many interesting buildings. This week we are going to look at three of them - none of them particularly famous, but all interesting nonetheless. Brunswick St starts at the intersection of Bowen Bridge Rd and St Paul's Tce at Bowen Hills, the site of the old museum building. It winds up and down for nearly five kilometres along the ridges of Brisbane's hilly terrain through the suburbs of Fortitude Valley and New Farm until it reaches the Brisbane River at New Farm Park, and it includes a pedestrian only section at the Valley Mall. The first building in our trio is the one below, situated at 483 Brunswick St, and it is the former Fortitude Valley Primitive Methodist Church (click to see a larger image).
(Photo: © 2010 the foto fanatic)

Brunswick St is a street of extremes - boarding houses and houses of ill-repute; priests and prostitutes; night clubs, restaurants, movie theatres, new and recycled apartment buildings and derelict residences. After getting married in a civil ceremony at Newstead House, the lovely mrs tff and I had our wedding reception at what was then one of Brisbane's well-known reception venues - Coolden on Brunswick St. The original Coolden has now been demolished and replaced by a residential apartment complex of the same name.

But, returning to the Primitive Methodist Church. It was built in 1876 to a design of prolific Brisbane architect Richard Gailey, and cost £1,100 at that time. The opening service occurred on 24 September 1876, and this church became "the centre of Primitive Methodism" in Brisbane. After the congregation joined the Fortitude Valley Presbyterians to form a Uniting Church in 1977, this building was no longer needed. It was sold to the Queensland Potters Association in 1982, and now it is the home of Fusions Gallery - well worth a look, too. The real estate sign in my picture gives a smile - it advertises some space to let in the building with the bold headline "Hallelujah!!!"

Click here for a Google Map.

tff

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