Amazing restoration of the feted Hannah Cabinet

The cabinet in the gallery after the Lismore flooding had receded in March 2022. Photo: Brian Henry

By Meredith Hinchliffe

Many readers will remember the Hannah Cabinet that filled the front gallery at Bungendore Wood Works a few years ago, a six-year labour of love for its maker Geoff Hannah.

The Cabinet was returned to Hannah’s home town Lismore where, after major fund raising and with assistance from the maker, it became the centrepiece of the regional gallery.

But on February 28, 2022, after heavy rain, the Lismore river reached its highest on record (14.4 metres) and caused catastrophic damage all over the district.

The cabinet had been placed on the third floor, the highest position. But the water reached it and knocked it over completely.

The cabinet had originally been made in Lismore by Hannah and after major fundraising and with assistance from the maker, it became the centrepiece of the gallery’s collection.

Five days after the flood, International Art Services brought the pieces in climate-controlled trucks to Patinations Furniture Conservation Services in Canberra, where it was held at 2°C for several weeks to stop the mould. Nevertheless, there were marks from mould which spread over the timber pieces. 

Restorer Greg Peters (left) uses a heat lamp and vacuum on the Hannah Cabinet, watched by
Geoff Hannah centre and Wayne Creaser.

Greg Peters from Patinations in Fyshwick explained that it was full of silt, sewage, tan bark, mud and other rubbish. 

The drawers – and there were many – acted as wine barrels, holding the water. The gilding and veneers were peeling off while most of the stone in the door fronts and on the drawer fronts survived.

Fortunately, Hannah had listened to Peters give a talk at Bungendore Wood Works, where he encouraged furniture makers to use animal glue and French polishing, rather than PVC and polyurethane and had followed this advice, so the joints and finishes could all be replaced. Everything was taken apart and rebuilt. The cabinet had been made to break into six parts, and this has made the conservation and restoration a little easier. 

Hannah Cabinet when unveiled in 2009. Photo: Flawless Imaging

Hannah, now living out of Armidale, NSW, is overseeing the process of conservation and recovery. The timber is being re-French polished, and re-gilded. 

Peters expects that less than five per cent will ultimately remain unsaved, but that the average viewer will not notice this. 

“The final piece will reflect the flood,” he tells me. 

When I visited Patinations, the centre top section of the cabinet was undergoing the transformation process. 

Once finished, it will go back to Lismore where the time-consuming French polishing will begin.

“The process of conservation is a mix of traditional 18th and 19th century techniques and state-of-the-art conservation,” Peters says. 

“Vacuuming will suck the moisture out and heat lamps dry the timber. There is considerable staining around all the holes where screws were used, and we are removing all the marks, too.”

It has been a massive and expensive undertaking to return it to its original state. There has been insurance money, but also conservators have made a huge contribution. 

Staff at Patinations have worked on it almost solely since the parts arrived in Canberra in March 2022. While they will be finished soon, Peters anticipates work will not be completed in Lismore until late next year.

First published at Canberra City News, September 16, 2026

Triumphant concert came with a sense of anticipation

Louis Sharpe conducts the NCO. Photo: Peter Hislop

By Len Power

Joining forces with the St Vincent de Paul Society, Canberra/Goulburn, the National Capital Orchestra presented a charity concert to help support people in our region experiencing hardship.

Echoes of Humanity described perfectly the emotive and famous works presented. That they were also a formidable challenge to perform created quite a sense of anticipation before the concert began.

Conducted by Louis Sharpe, the program began with the much-loved Piano Concerto No. 2 by Sergei Rachmaninov.

The piano was played by Lucas Krupinski. This Polish pianist, now living in Britain, made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2018 and has appeared with major orchestras across Asia, Europe and North America. He has also won many competitions. He performed at the Canberra International Music Festival in 2022.

Lucas Krupinski performs with the NCO. Photo: Peter Hislop

Krupinski’s playing was notable for its sensitivity, bringing out the richness in the melodies while stirring heightened emotions.

The orchestra, guided by Sharpe, played confidently and with great clarity. Together, Krupinski and the orchestra gave this work an excellent performance, showing why this work’s fame has endured since its first full performance in 1901. It was thrilling to have the opportunity to experience it live.

After interval, Sharpe and the orchestra returned to play another possibly even more formidable work – Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 (Titan). Premiered in 1889, this deeply personal work is also highly emotional. It required a large orchestra to play, and Sharpe advised the audience that the orchestra on stage was the largest ever for the company.

From its quiet beginning, the orchestra showed great control. Through the various melodies and dramatic passages, they brought out all the shifting emotions of the work with enormous clarity and strength. There was particularly fine work by the French horns and the bassoons, and every part of the orchestra gave Mahler’s work a rousing performance of which they should all feel proud.

This was an exhilarating concert of two highly challenging works. Sharpe, the orchestra and Krupinski made this an event to remember.

First published at Canberra City News, September 13, 2026