Dulux Trade paints have been used to create a vibrant, long-lasting finish at Wellington College Chinese Centre; a dedicated mandarin teaching building at the school in Berkshire.
Dulux Trade Weathershield Ultimate Woodstain and Weathershield Exterior Gloss System (WEGS) were used on the project, with the striking shade of Vermilion red being selected for the gloss to bring the authentic design to life.
Wellington College, which has an international school in Tianjin, near Beijing, is currently embarking on a project to open another campus in Shanghai and the development of a Chinese learning space at its Berkshire school was inspired by this latest international project. When it came to the selection of coatings for the exterior of the three classroom spaces, it was essential that the products offered an impressive finish, in authentic, striking colours, that would maintain their vibrant appearance for years to come.
To complete the exterior and interior decoration of the Chinese Centre, Gerald Burbidge, Works Bursar at Wellington College, called on LSM Decorating Contractors - a Dulux Trade Contract Partner that has been carrying out maintenance on the school’s expansive estate for more than 20 years.
Gerald said: “We have been working with LSM Decorating Contractors for a long time and always use Dulux Trade paints because of their high quality. This wasn’t the first time we have selected the WEGS for exterior redecoration. In fact, by using it in the past, we have been able to extend the time required for decoration from five years to at least seven, or in some cases, even longer. The Chinese Centre is a very impressive and exciting addition to the school building, so we wanted coatings that were an excellent quality and will stay looking bright and current. We knew the Weathershield products could meet those needs.”
As authenticity was a key requirement in this project, the colour scheme had to accurately reflect those commonly found in similar Chinese properties, which, in the first instance, presented a bit of a challenge.
Gerald explained: “We had to have a few goes at selecting the colour as it was essential that the shades matched those used in traditional Chinese architecture. We kept imagery of the Forbidden City in Beijing at hand as a reference point and Les Marshall, owner of LSM Decorating Contractors, was able to suggest a selection of Dulux Trade colour samples, allowing us to find the perfect shades.
“Vermilion red was used on the pergolas and some of the cladding of the main building, along with gold to pick out some of the detail. Weathershield Ultimate woodstain in walnut was also used on the cladding to give the appearance of a traditional Chinese building.”
Les Marshall, owner of LSM Decorating Contractors, said: “The Chinese Centre was an interesting project to be involved with. In the past, when we’ve done work for Wellington College, we’ve turned to the Dulux Trade Heritage collection for authentic period colours to create a design befitting the historic building. In this instance, however, we had a different task altogether and were able to explore the Dulux Trade colour range further to find rich, lively colours that represented the typical shades used in traditional Chinese design.
“For any project at Wellington College, we need to use products which offer significant durability and can withstand high traffic from students and staff. This is particularly relevant for the Chinese Centre as damage or fading to such vibrant colours will be more visible and will have a significant impact on the overall bright and bold appearance of this unusual building. We can always rely on Dulux Trade for the highest standard of finish for all areas of the college, even the slightly more unusual projects.”
