Queensland Art Gallery Annual Report 2002-03

EXHIBITIONS & AUDIENCES While the scale and success of APT 2002 dominated the Exhibitions and programs for children year, the Queensland Art Gallery continued to provide In 2002-03 the Gallery furthered its reputation for access to other important exhibitions, educational innovation in the presentation of children's exhibitions services and interpretive programs of excellence for and programs. diverse audiences. General exhibitions 'Pentimento: The Master of Frankfurt's Virgin and Child' attracted a diverse audience and media attention during its showing. 'Pentimento' was the first in a new series of exhibitions that bring together several strands of specialist arts research - curatorial, conservation and provenance research - on a single art work in the Gallery's Collection. In this instance, it was the painting Virgin and Child with Saint James the Pilgrim, Saint Catherine and the Donor with Saint Peter c.1496 by the Master of Frankfurt. The exhibition focused on changes made to the painting by the artist before its completion, revealed by conservation technologies such as X-ray and infra-red imaging. It also highlighted the painting's confiscation by the Nazi party in 1939 for Hitler's planned art museum, before the work was subsequently returned to its rightful owner in 1947. These issues were further explored in an 'In focus' booklet, produced in association with the exhibition, and in new resource material added to the Gallery's website. A children's activity also helped young visitors understand some of the symbolism in the painting. 'Pentimento' was awarded a commendation in the Design Institute of Australia Queensland Design Awards for Excellence in the category of set/display design. The work of Australian-born printmaker Martin Lewis, who became a pivotal figure in American printmaking circles during the 1920s and 1930s, was explored in the exhibition 'Martin Lewis: Stepping into the Light'. This exhibition - organised by the Castlemaine Art Gallery and Historical Museum - brought together 47 of Lewis's works from public and private collections in Australia and the United States, including eight works from the Queensland Art Gallery Collection. 16 In addition to 'Kids' APT' (discussed in the APT 2002 section of this report), the Gallery also presented 'Colour' - the first children's exhibition shown in Gallery 4, the largest single exhibition space at the Gallery. As its name suggests, the exhibition used colour to encourage children to engage with contemporary art works from the Collection, including works by international and Australian artists such as Yayoi Kusama, Bridget Riley and Tony Tuckson. In addition, Brisbane artist John Coleman created Colourjumps - a kinetic sculpture installed in the Gallery's Watermall. This work incorporated coloured water jets activated at random intervals, and proved immensely popular with children. The exhibition was positively reviewed for its balance of engaging and educational activities for children, sophisticated exhibition design, and the diversity and quality of contemporary art that was featured. It won an award of merit in the set/display design category of the Design Institute of Australia Queensland Design Awards for Excellence. A total of 116 035 people visited the Gallery during the 'Colour' exhibition, including nearly 25 000 children. The 'Colour' exhibition was an opportunity for the Gallery to continue its research into presenting exhibitions for children. In association with the School of Early Childhood at the Queensland University of Technology, the Gallery conducted visitor research with the aim of evaluating the learning-centred strategies utilised in the exhibition. A full report on the findings of this research is anticipated in late 2003. In development during the reporting year were children's programs to accompany the forthcoming exhibition 'Story Place: Indigenous Art of Cape York and the Rainforest', scheduled to open on 25 July 2003. This program will encompass a dedicated ch ildren's activity area and activity book, children's art work labels, and special workshops and activities involving 'Story Place' artists, as part of the Opening Celebrations weekend. A mascot character, based on flying foxes often featured in Indigenous art and stories from Cape York Peninsula, is also being developed. Exhibitions and programs for young people The Gallery continued to develop and present engaging exhibitions, programs and events for young people aged 13 to 25 years. The Youth Advisory Committee, established in 2001, gave young people a voice in the direction of Gallery programming, while the development of a new section on the Gallery's website, dedicated to news and events for young people, was another important initiative for the Gallery <www.qag.qld.gov.au/youth> . The highlight of the year was 'Prime Two', a multi-arts event held on Saturday 5 April to celebrate National Youth Week 2003. Incorporating emerging and established young artists, designers, performers and musicians, 'Prime Two' built on the success of the inaugural 'Prime' event in 2002. New elements were incorporated into the 2003 event, such as an evening concert by high-profile Brisbane band Resin Dogs, an audiovisual and display lounge inspired by popular culture of the 1980s, and an award-winning collaborative mural by local design collective Rinzen and Sydney-based Maori artist Haro. This collaboration won a Design Institute of Australia Queensland Design Awards for Excellence award of merit in the category of public art collaboration in June. A full-colour printed program guide for the event, which included profiles on all the young artists and performers involved, was produced. As with other major public events, 'Prime Two' was developed and coordinated by a large group of cross-disciplinary Gallery staff, resu lting in a diverse and dynamic program that attracted 4000 visitors. Coinciding with 'Prime Two' were other youth initiatives, including the exhibitions 'Otherworlds: Images of Fantasy and Fiction', 'Minister's Awards for Excellence in Art', and 'Starter Space: Arryn Snowball'. The youth-focused exhibition 'Otherworlds' concluded its tour to seven regional Queensland venues in January 2003, before it was displayed at the Gallery for Brisbane audiences from 4 April to 6 July 2003. A free opening party was held to celebrate this exhibition on 11 April (planned to coincide with National Youth Week), and was attended by more than 1000 young people.