Our research combined with the curatorial document indicates how the wharves, as a site for shipping and commence, were a key element to the transformation of this inner-city Brisbane area. The first transition was from swampy marshland to an early iteration of urban development - though the area was in regular flux between the less than habitable marshland and a growing city. At this time Mary Street and its surrounds was a haven for both the marshlands ecology (frogs, fish, reptiles, and mosquitos alike), and the poorer working class; living and working in low rent and often water-logged buildings. As business, generated through shipping commerce, flourished so did a second iteration of Mary Street emerged. With the street drained and new investment, Mary Street started its journey to becoming a key inner-city area.

The natural ecology, which the botanical gardens continues to nurture, and the shipping and commerce history of this area are intrinsically linked. The area has always drawn the ambitions and savvy entrepreneur of their time – seeking new possibilities and new ways of living, improving and indeed being early adopters of the ideas of ‘life style’. Part of this lifestyle manifest as recreational sailing and rowing clubs that celebrated the lifeblood of Brisbane as it shifted from industrial to leisure.

These observations form the drives of our concept. The visual language for Furling has been developed via multiply threads: the marshland flora & fauna; the shipping & wharf history; and the social and recreational aspects of the river.