Queensland Art Gallery Annual Report 2001-02

PROGRAMS OF ASSISTANCE TRUSTEES CREATIVE ART SCHOLARSHIPS FOR CHILDREN The Trustees Creative Art Schola rships for Children provided recipients with free tuition in areas such as drawing, three-dimensional design, painting and printmaking over four two– day workshops. The scholarships continued to be in demand , wi th over 370 applications received for the 24 scholarships available for chi ldren aged 8 to12 years. THE MELVILLE HAYSOM MEMORIAL ART SCHOLARSHIP Administered by the Queensland Art Gallery, the annual Melville Haysom Memorial Art Scholarship assists young and emerging artists by providing financia l support, access to the Gallery's resources and expertise, and studio space at the Gallery to complete a specific body of work. The scholarship is funded by a grant from Mrs Yvonne Haysom in memory of her husband, artist Melville Haysom. Melville Haysom was a recipient of the Godfrey Rivers Bequest Award , and a Life Member of the Royal Queensland Art Society. In 2002 the scholarship was awarded to Natalya Hughes. Hughes·s work drew on imagery from Japanese wood block prints in the Queensland Art Gallery Collection. The paintings completed duri ng her studio residency at the Gallery were displayed in Bar Merlo at the Gallery as the first of the exciting ·starter Space· exhibitions of young and emerging artists. HOBDAY AND HINGSTON BURSARY The annual Hobday and Hingston Bursary was awarded to Griffith University Queensland College of Art student, Megan Young. The Bursary is awarded annually to the most promising undergraduate from a Queensland tertiary art course. The bursary was instigated by Florence Emily Hobday in memory of her husband , the artist Percy Stanhope Hobday, and of her brother, Arthur James Hingston. Each annual recipient receives $1000 towards his or her continued development as an artist. TRAINEESHIPS During the year the Gallery provided quality trai ning and employment opportunities in a wide range of professional art museum disciplines. In 2001-02 the Gallery employed 15 trainees and apprentices in areas such as curatorial, 34 publications, design, education , financial services and the workshop. Five of these were Indigenous Queenslanders who commenced traineeships as part of the 'Story Place: Indigenous Art of Cape York and the Rainforest' project. The Gallery bui lt a series of measures into this project to enhance trai nees· access to. and experience of, vocational education and tra ining . An Indigenous member of sta ff, Trish Johnson . was appointed to the role of Community Trainee Coordinator. This position was developed to address the culture-specific needs of Indigenous trainees, and to provide support in addition to that provided by the Gallery·s Trainee Coordinator. The Gallery·s central aim for the Indigenous trainees initiative was to equip trainees with a broad spectrum of generalist art museum skills, while simultaneously supporting their acquisition of specialist knowledge in the area of Indigenous art practice and management. This two-pronged approach to training will produce highly employable Indigenous professionals for the art museum sector, provide trainees with a range of ideas for the development of their professional career, and encourage them to undertake higher qualifications following the comp letion of their traineeship. The program was funded by the Department of Employment and Training , and will continue in 2002-03 with a further five traineesh ips. VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES Queensland Art Gallery volunteer programs continued to offer people in the community with opportunities for experience and involvement in Gallery programs. Approximate ly 250 volunteers assist the Gallery·s visitors and staff - presenting interpretive tours of the Collection and visiting exhibitions, staffing the Information Desk, working behind the scenes in the Research Library or with the marketing, curatorial and Friends of the Gallery sections, and conducting visitor surveys for audience research. The volunteers dedicate countless hours to the Gallery and its visitors and through their expertise, enthusiasm and knowledge make an invaluable contribution to the Gallery's achievements.