Pit at Eveleigh Paint Shop, beneath the steel and timber, this inspection pit once echoed with the steady rhythm of tools and voices as workmen toiled to keep Sydney’s railway fleet in motion.

01 Eveleigh Paint ShopEveleigh2016

ISO 1001.6sf/8.021mm

Series · 49 prints

Eveleigh Paint Shop

Photographed 2016
Frames 49
Camera NIKON D7000 · NIKON D810
Location New South Wales, Australia
Status Retained heritage item within Redfern North Eveleigh Precinct Renewal
Years 1887 to 1989
Heritage NSW SHR 01141
Architect George Cowdery
Specs Sawtooth south-light roof · Eight rail roads in brick main wing · Cast iron column construction
01 ABOUT THIS SERIES

Series story

Map · Mapbox · OpenStreetMap

George Cowdery worked on the Britannia Bridge with Robert Stephenson in 1847. John Whitton, Engineer-in-Chief for NSW Railways, brought him to NSW in 1863, where he supervised the colony's first railway tunnels at Picton and Mittagong. The brick main wing of the Paint Shop was completed in 1887, eight rail roads under a sawtooth south-light roof.

The Paint Shop is graded Exceptional Significance in the NSW State Heritage Register, the highest grading in the North Eveleigh precinct. Eight rail roads run through the brick main wing under a sawtooth south-light roof, separated by single rows of cast iron columns. A five-road iron-clad extension was added in 1912; the combined building is large enough to hold thirteen roads of full-length passenger carriages.

The Paint Shop's second life was as a storage shed. NSW's Office of Rail Heritage moved heritage rolling stock inside, including OFS2259, a 1949 air-conditioned daylight express second/economy class car, and examples of the single-deck suburban fleet built before double-deck cars entered service in 1964.

Carriage finishing operations ran for over 100 years before the Paint Shop closed in 1989. It now sits at the centre of the Redfern North Eveleigh Precinct Renewal, rezoned in December 2023. The sub-precinct plans approximately 450 new homes across 16 buildings, with the heritage Paint Shop adaptively reused for cultural and employment uses.

NSW State Heritage Register item 01141, NSW Planning — Paint Shop Sub-Precinct Design Guide (2023) and Sydney Morning Herald (Late Mr. George Cowdery, 1913)

02 TIMELINE

Chronology

1878
1882
1887
1901
1908
1912
1989
1990
1999
03 PRINTS

Prints in this series

Hand-signed limited editions, printed from the original RAW file. Editions run from 100 down to 25 and are not reissued once they sell through.

Pit at Eveleigh Paint Shop, beneath the steel and timber, this inspection pit once echoed with the steady rhythm of tools and voices as workmen toiled to keep Sydney’s railway fleet in motion.
Pit
Centurion at Eveleigh Paint Shop, green leather seat backs line both sides of a narrow central aisle.
Centurion
Interurban Passenger Seating at Eveleigh Paint Shop, two pairs of reversible seats face each other inside carriage 3102.
Interurban Passenger Seating
Guards Compartment at Eveleigh Paint Shop, a drafting chair sits on the gritty floor of the guard's compartment inside car C7485.
Guards Compartment
Air Conditioned Car at Eveleigh Paint Shop, blue tartan upholstery lines both sides of the aisle in tight rows.
Air Conditioned Car
3102 Drivers Controls at Eveleigh Paint Shop, inside the cab of carriage 3102, dust coats every surface.
3102 Drivers Controls
Phillip Shirley at Eveleigh Paint Shop, a blue and white railway carriage sits on bare concrete inside the Eveleigh Paint Shop.
Phillip Shirley
Red Rattler at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the last single-deck suburban car built in June 1960, only four years before the first double-deckers entered service.
Red Rattler
Single Deck Interurban Car at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the deep-cushioned seats of this Interurban carriage speak to a time when long-distance rail travel prioritized comfort.
Single Deck Interurban Car
Passenger Car Compartment at Eveleigh Paint Shop, two leather bench seats face each other inside a narrow eight-passenger compartment.
Passenger Car Compartment
4052 Interior at Eveleigh Paint Shop, dust lingers on the seats of Driving Control Trailer Car D4052, its silence a stark contrast to the decades of movement it once knew.
4052 Interior
4052 Drivers Controls at Eveleigh Paint Shop, inside the cab of D4052, pale green paint covers every surface.
4052 Drivers Controls
Genuine Leather Seats at Eveleigh Paint Shop, green leather seats line the interior of a decommissioned railway carriage.
Genuine Leather Seats
4052 Exterior at Eveleigh Paint Shop, a riveted steel carriage sits square on the tracks inside the Eveleigh Paint Shop.
4052 Exterior
Suburban Car Workshop Facing East at Eveleigh Paint Shop, light spills through the sawtooth roof, filtering through layers of steel and glass to cast long shadows across the dust-laden floor.
Suburban Car Workshop Facing East
Sputnik at Eveleigh Paint Shop, green leather bench seats line both sides of carriage 4790, their cast-iron armrests decorated with pressed circular motifs.
Sputnik
4052 Double Deck Seats at Eveleigh Paint Shop, inside Car 4052, time has settled into every surface.
4052 Double Deck Seats
Roof Covering at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the cracked surface of a railway carriage roof fills the foreground.
Roof Covering
4052 Interior Close at Eveleigh Paint Shop, two rows of moulded metal seats line the aisle of Car 4052, their green paint dulled under a thick film of dust and mottled with age spots.
4052 Interior Close
Bogies at Eveleigh Paint Shop, heavy coil springs and hydraulic dampers sit exposed at ground level, the bogie assembly of a stainless steel U-boat carriage filling the right of frame.
Bogies
3102 Main Passenger Car at Eveleigh Paint Shop, green vinyl seats run in two rows down the centre aisle of Car 3102.
3102 Main Passenger Car
Generating Sets at Eveleigh Paint Shop, a diesel generating set sits bolted to chequerplate flooring inside the narrow engine compartment of a power van.
Generating Sets
3102 Drivers Cabin End at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the end seat compartment of Car 3102, a transitional space where passengers once gathered before settling into their seats.
3102 Drivers Cabin End
3102 Seats at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the seating arrangement in Car 3102 reflects the practicality of Sydney’s early electric trains.
3102 Seats
Eveleigh Paint Shop Forecourt at Eveleigh Paint Shop, decommissioned CityRail carriages sit on parallel tracks beneath the Eveleigh Paint Shop's sawtooth roof.
Eveleigh Paint Shop Forecourt
3708 W Car at Eveleigh Paint Shop, car 3708, part of the Sputnik set built in 1955, now stands fully restored within the Eveleigh Paint Shop.
3708 W Car
Storage Cage at Eveleigh Paint Shop, a space built for function over comfort, this storage area is lined with mesh cages, once used to secure equipment and supplies.
Storage Cage
Locomotive Hauled Passenger Car at Eveleigh Paint Shop, a narrow corridor runs the length of the carriage.
Locomotive Hauled Passenger Car
Tounge Groove at Eveleigh Paint Shop, two carriages sit side by side on parallel tracks inside the Eveleigh Paint Shop.
Tounge Groove
Power Van at Eveleigh Paint Shop, stainless steel roof ribs run the length of a PHA-class power van, its corrugated surface thick with grey dust.
Power Van
Forecourt at Eveleigh Paint Shop, to the left, the stainless-steel body of Interurban trailer TF6013 reflects the muted industrial light, its corrugated panels and riveted seams built for durability.
Forecourt
Suburban Car Workshop East at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the suburban car workshop, an extension added to the Eveleigh Paint Shop, once echoed with the sounds of rail workers overhauling Sydney’s electric train fleet.
Suburban Car Workshop East
Batteries at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the underside of a stainless steel interurban carriage fills the frame.
Batteries
Mezzanine at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the amenities mezzanine stands as a reminder of the workforce that once filled this space.
Mezzanine
Workshop at Eveleigh Paint Shop, rails run flush with the concrete floor, cutting a straight line through the centre of the workshop toward a bright roller door at the far end.
Workshop
Roller Door at Eveleigh Paint Shop, a corrugated roller door fills the frame inside the Eveleigh Paint Shop.
Roller Door
Regenerative Braking System at Eveleigh Paint Shop, a heavy steel enclosure sits open, its wing-bolt latches unfastened.
Regenerative Braking System
Side Door at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the Centurion, carriage 4279, underwent significant modifications during its long service life.
Side Door
Suburban Car Workshop at Eveleigh Paint Shop, facing west toward Carriageworks, this view captures the interior of the suburban car workshop, an extension added to the Eveleigh Paint Shop for the overhaul of Sydney’s electric train fleet.
Suburban Car Workshop
Name Plate at Eveleigh Paint Shop, stamped into the steel, the nameplate on Car 3102 marks its origins, one of the first 50 steel motor cars procured from England.
Name Plate
3102 Interior at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the layout of this space reflects the evolution of Sydney’s early electric train design.
3102 Interior
Parcel Van 3903 at Eveleigh Paint Shop, inside the carriage, timber-panelled walls curve up to a barrel-vaulted ceiling coated in grey grime.
Parcel Van 3903
Parcel Van 3903 Exterior at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the riveted steel panels of this parcel van bear the marks of time, their once-uniform surface textured by decades of service.
Parcel Van 3903 Exterior
Interurban Motor Car CF5015 at Eveleigh Paint Shop, stainless steel panelling runs the full length of the carriage, dulled with grime and covered in aerosol.
Interurban Motor Car CF5015
Car 4554 at Eveleigh Paint Shop, every seat has been stripped out.
Car 4554
Washroom at Eveleigh Paint Shop, inside OFS2259, a 1949 air-conditioned daylight express second/economy class car.
Washroom
PHA Class at Eveleigh Paint Shop, a view down the length of a Power Van, part of the PHA class, built for the standard gauge joint stock service between Sydney and Melbourne.
PHA Class
Power Car at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the driver’s cab of a single-deck interurban power car, built for the demanding routes to Katoomba and Gosford.
Power Car
NSW State Emblem at Eveleigh Paint Shop, the New South Wales coat of arms sits centre on a riveted steel panel.
NSW State Emblem
04 ABOUT THE PRINTS

How they’re made

Made to order by Brett in Sydney, from the original RAW file. Each print is hand-signed and numbered before it ships.

Paper

Ilford Galerie cotton rag, 310 gsm. Acrylic on metallic gloss, 260 gsm.

Editions

Open in XS and S. Limited in M (100), L (50), XL (25). From $100.

Print tiers →

Lead time

Unframed: 5 to 10 business days. Framed and acrylic: 10 to 20.

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