Queensland Art Gallery Annual Report 1997-98

The Gallery staged an extensive program of exhibitions of Queensland-based, national and international art. Of the twenty-seven exhibitions presented during the year, sixteen were initiated by the Gallery, including thirteen Collection-based exhibitions, four of which travelled to regional Queensland. Six exhibitions toured to the Gallery from interstate, including a very popular collection of Russell Drysdale'sworks, a survey of William Dobell's paintings, and prints by Durer and other German Renaissance printmakers. There were also four international exhibitions, including 'Prints and Drawings of the Weimar Republic: Germany 1918-1933', 'Tony Cragg An Installation', 'The Golden Age of Dutch Art: Seventeenth Century Paintings from the Rijksmuseum and Australian Collections', and 'The Photographs of Dorothea Lange'. Planning has continued throughout the year for the 1999 Asia– Pacific Triennial, which will be open from 9 September 1999 to 26 January 2000. Among its various roles, the Triennial assists in developing a network of contacts, and serving as a window onto Asia and Queensland. This ensures that the Gallery can continue to provide access to works from a diversity of cultures, and further develop its reputation as a dynamic art museum of international standing. The Gallery also acknowledged the importance of contemporary Asian art with the first appointment for the Gallery and, indeed, for any gallery in Australia, of an assistant curator of contemporary Asian art. One of the most significant acquisitions this year was the group of watercolour paintings by Conrad Martens, of Canning Downs Station 1854. The acquisition of these heritage works was supported by a special allocation from the Queensland Government and an exceptionally generous response to a dedicated Queensland Art Gallery Foundation Appeal. Italian collector and publisher Francesco Conz generously provided a major donation of works associated with the Fluxus movement. This donation was celebrated with an important international exhibition entitled 'Francesco Conz and the lntermedia Avant-Garde', officially opened by Francesco Conz, and accompanied by a publication. Other notable publication initiatives during this year were Brought to Light Australian Art 1850-1965; the Queensland Art Gallery Collection (due to be launched in November), and the development of a new publication series, 'Queensland Art Gallery In Focus'. Brought to Light is a groundbreaking publication which includes essays by Gallery staff and commissioned experts, and the 'In Focus' booklets will accompany exhibitions from the Collection, document individual works and artists in the Collection, or record aspects of the Gallery's history and practice. The Gallery has continued its focus on the region. Two travelling exhibition officers were appointed for projects in the coming year, and four exhibitions were toured in regional Queensland to areas as diverse as Winton, Gladstone, Cairns, Logan, Rockhampton, Bundaberg, Noosa, Hervey Bay and Toowoomba. The Gallery contributed to the opening of the new Outback Regional Gallery at the Waltzing Matilda Centre in Winton with the exhibition 'Images of Australia 1890-1995 from the Queensland Art Gallery Collection'. The Director, the Deputy Director, other members of the Executive Management Team and staff from across the Gallery programs travelled throughout regional Queensland to open exhibitions, present lectures, conduct education programs, and assist with informal and formal consultancies. The Gallery's commitment to youth training and employment was evidenced in the appointment of trainees, interns and apprentices, and the development of new training initiatives for young graduates. The Queensland Art Gallery Foundation has extended its role with the development of two major initiatives: the launch in October of Spectrum, the new program for young supporters of the Gallery, and a major fundraising Appeal to support the acquisition of a rare suite of Conrad Martens watercolours. 10 MARTENS, Conrad England/Australia 1801-1878 Forest, Cunningham's Gap 1856 Watercolour on paper 30.5 x 42cm Purchased 1998 with funds raised through The Conrad Martens Queensland Art Gallery Foundation Appeal and with a special allocation from the Queensland Goverment. Celebrating the Queensland Art Gallery's Centenary 1895-1995