CITY’S SCHOOL OF ART

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22194, 10 September 1937, Page 12

CITY’S SCHOOL OF ART

INADEQUACY OF OLD BUILDING i MAKESHIFT FURNITURE NEED FOR REPLACEMENT EMPHASISED In a building largely ill-lit, ill" furnished and cramped, the 600 students of the Canterbury College School of Art learn to work with light and colour, with graceful line and precise detail. Never intended for an art school, the building, one of the oldest in the city, is woefully .out of keeping with modern requirements. A representative of “The Press who was taken over the building yesterday by the director (Mr R. Wallwork) was impressed by the efforts which are 'made by the director and staff to mitigate the limitations of space and equipment. But the inspection showed aboVe all the emphatic need of an entirely new building, which has so long been desired by the . college authorities. ' Rooms which were added to the building 25 to 35 years ago are still the “new rooms.” They are, in fact, according to Mr Wallwork, quite good rooms, although lack of space makes it necessary to use them for work to which they are quite unsuited. They cannot be relegated finally to any special purpose. Lavatory and cloakroom accommodation which is in use day and night is cramped and out-of-date; these places, the visitor noticed, hada not very wholesome smell. Their appearance was one of clammy discomfort, even though it was clear that every reasonable effort was being made to keep thenr clean. It was the same everywhere- I —age and lack of space were the trouble, not insufficient care or inability to make the best of the conditions. Planks for Desks In some of the rooms, students were ■een working yesterday at long planks laid on trestles, instead of desks: in jtaers, boxes were in use instead ol orms. The reason for this is not the jbv.ous one—lack of furniture. The school could not take additional desks and forms, because they would have to be mewed from one room to anther, as class week or individual woik (as at easels) is required. - This moveable "furniture” had to be devised by the staff, and the caretaker Iras the duty of carrying planks and boxes from room to room. Although this is in some ways a serviceable makeshift, it is unsatisfactory where steady desks and seats are needed for careful work. Mr Wallwork finds that some of the students are quite pleased with a certain amount of "grime and grubbiness,” and considers that they should act be too much reg.mentcd. None the less, to a layman, the general inside appearance of the school is unduly unkempt and dirty, again wholly because of factors beyond the control of the staff. Walls are smeared and cracked, floors are splintered in places, and makeshift shades of pinned pack-ing-paper dangle from lamps. The stairs are 1 narrow and dark, and would be dangerous if fire broke out: artificial light is needed on them in the afternoon. “A Cheap Compromise” "We have a few good rooms, but not enough of them,” said Mr Wallwork. “So we have to use rooms intended for, and suitable for, one type of study, for other work to which they are not so well adapted. This entails daily transfer of equipment from one room to another. The equipmentdesks, seats, stands, etc. —thus has to have a degree of portability which reduces its spaciousness, its steadiness, and, in many cases, its suitability. "During the many years we have been hoping for a new school, our equipment has in many instances been a cheap compromise, and we are hoping for new equipment as well as a new building. “As for our lack of particular rooms, we require two common-rooms, where none exists at present, staff-rooms, and an adequate cloakroom. We need also better lavatory accommodation, the present accommodation being most inadequate to our numbers.” Classrooms had to be assigned for students eating their lunches in the school, and there should be separate common-rooms for boy and girl students in the junior school. Library Needs “Better library accommodation is pressingly required,” continued Mr Wallwork. “In recent years the value and number of informative publications and reproductions has grown remarkably. We desire to make fuller use of this form of stimulus. Many works of a reference character cannot at present be adequately used. Those books which we make generally avail-*-able have to be housed in a room that serves as a classroom and lecturerpom; this room was used many years ago as a necessary cloakroom, but with increased pressure it has for several years been put to its present uses—library, classroom, and lecture-room. “The building, of course, has to us a sentimenta) and traditional value. Good work has been and still can be produced here; but we many years ago reached the point where planning classes became difficult, and the timetable and the rooms available have caused us to resort to much compromise.” WEDDING CARS DE LUXE. The wedding fleet of the Gold Band Taxis are all plain black streamlined de luxe cars ol the latest design, and undoubtedly the best in the city, and our charges are moderate; so kindly inspect them before going elsewhere at 142 Tuam street, or 'Phone 33-477 and book in your order. Thank you. —3 ELECTRIC MOWERS. The last thing in lawn mowers is the Electric Machine which in power and repairs costs about one-third of the running cost of petrol mowers. No mechanical skill required and so simple that a boy can operate. Works quietly, no petrol to handle, no valves to grind or carburettor. or magneto adjustments. Over 6000 in use in Australia. Call or write.,

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