The Dairy Precinct, Paramatta Park

As part of a multidisciplinary team, GML provided a range of services for The Dairy Precinct including archaeological excavation, archival recording, heritage interpretation planning and content for a new visitor experience.

The Dairy Precinct’s fragile heritage fabric required minimal, reversible intervention. This sensitivity necessitated an innovative design approach to allow the space to ‘speak for itself’.

The displays integrate the architecture with objects provenanced from the cottages, as well as touchscreens, projections, in-floor glass panels and soundscapes. Content was sourced from primary evidence enabling the past to be multi-vocal and speak with immediacy. The precinct’s heritage values, within its broader landscape setting of Parramatta Park, guided the team throughout the project.

GML also prepared an innovative archival recording of the Dairy Precinct before, during and after conservation and interpretation upgrades to the place. The aim was to document key structures, features and fabric to record works at each stage of the project.

The result is an archival recording that is both functional and beautiful, capturing photographs that not only fulfil the consent condition, but that will be useful to place managers and researchers into the future.