Project in Review: BASScare Morgan Glen Iris
At the core of BASScare lies the belief that its residents deserve to feel supported and live well throughout each stage of life. BASScare Morgan Glen Iris boasts a retirement community for seniors which encourages independence and a holistic approach to wellbeing. Situated in leafy Glen Iris, the building itself spans over 3 levels and emanates a modern Art Deco feel. “A private sanctuary”, “gold-class standard” and “empowering” are just a few of the comments frequently made on the complex.
With a clear brief set out, Bluethumb’s Interior Designer Alexandra worked in partnership with General Manager of Retirement Living Edward Xuereb from BASScare on an exciting project earlier this year. The result of the partnership is nothing short of stunning. We spoke with Edward on his experience of the project and to see the finished outcome for ourselves.
BASScare Morgan Glen Iris is a community-minded, not-for-profit organisation that is putting its people first.
Edward first came across Bluethumb on Facebook and had previously purchased a few art pieces for himself. “I continued to interact with the website and when it came to the project, it was a no brainer as the selection and variety was endless,” he adds. “Plus, I liked the idea of supporting local Australian artists.”
Bluethumb bestselling artist Sally Browne was one of many Australian artists chosen for this large-scale project.
The Brief
The interiors and building of BASScare Morgan Glen Iris offer an elegant finish and thus provided an ideal base to work with for the project. “When it came to a theme, we definitely wanted an injection of colour,” Edward explains. “The art pieces needed to be a talking feature for the residents living at Morgan Glen Iris and used as an unofficial way-finding, directional tool [for] getting around the building.”
Navigating around the BASScare building is now a lot easier with the prompts of various artworks, such as these photographs by Jane Long.
Many of Nadia Culph‘s photographs were selected – this floral piece pairs perfectly with the chosen decor.
The Process
“We first got the brief in April 2020, but due to the pandemic had to place the project on hold until January this year,” Alexandra explains on the process of the project. 95 artworks make up the finished fit-out that now adorns BASScare Morgan Glen Iris, adding it to the list of larger briefs Alexandra has worked on. The order was made in April, and the installation of the artworks was in June, after many of the artworks had been printed and framed, and a special commissioned portrait had also been created for the project.
A commissioned piece Theo Papathomas satisfies the preference of artwork for this space, at the desired size.
“Working with the team at Bluethumb was easy, especially with the assistance from Alex,” Edward tells us. “Whilst we worked through a number of proposals, we got there in the end. It was simply fabulous.”
Accents of green in this print by Wendy Wooden tie in beautifully with the flowers and feature wall in the space.
“With any project there’s always obstacles, [such as] the budget, so trying to achieve the outcome we wanted within an allocated budget wasn’t going to be easy considering the number of pieces we required. However, we got there in the end.”
Bohemian Escape by Wendy Wooden bolsters a warm and vibrant atmosphere within the restaurant.
The Outcome
Following the procurement of the chosen artworks in BASScare Morgan Glen Iris, Edward described the end result as “mind blowing”. “Everyone just loves the art and personally I couldn’t be happier!” Alexandra notes her favourite piece to be a stellar choice of Dinah Wakefield’s work, which sits in the centre of the building, perfectly complementing the elegant interior setting that surrounds the painting.
Yulara by Dinah Wakefield in the mezzanine.
When asked on his best-loved, Edward found there were a handful of contenders to choose from. “A few of my favourites include originals from Dinah Wakefield, the commissioned piece by Theo Papathomas and prints from Liss Kamp of Sir Gang Gang & the Red Tail Cockatoo, [which are] simply stunning.”
Another of Dinah Wakefield‘s incredible abstract pieces graces one of the sitting areas in the building.
This photograph by Stuart Chape works like it was made for this space!
Given the scope of this project, work by an impressive number of artists was chosen for the brief: Michelle Bolitho, Theo Papathomas, Sally Browne, Dinah Wakefield, Steve Tyerman, Amanda Brooks, Wendy Wooden, Karen Standke, Gill Cameron, Hayley Kruger, Liss Kamp, Tania Chanter, George Hall, Anna Bektash, Aidan Weichard, Natasha Junmanee, Todd Simpson, Claire McCall, Kirsty McIntyre, Neha Gupte, Belinda Nadwie, Nadia Culph, Grace Costa, Nick Psomiadis, Wendy Philip, Penny Prangnell, Rachelle Balez, Stuart Chape, Jane Long and a commissioned portrait by Colleen Stapleton.
Every nook and cranny of BASScare Morgan Glen Iris has been flourished; above we see two pieces by Hayley Kruger.
“The experience has been great and there would be no hesitation in working with Bluethumb once again on future projects,” Edward says on the experience. “I would highly recommend Bluethumb to anyone who’s thinking about purchasing any art work being one piece or many like in our case. Having access to a complementary interior designer expert like Alex made the journey so much easier and most of all knowing that we were supporting local Australian artists, which was just icing on the cake.”
Find out more on supporting independent Australian artists with your next project – contact us here with your enquiry to get started.
What a feather in the cap for Bluethumb and for Bluethumb artists. Looks terrific!