Queensland Art Gallery Annual Report 2003-04

14 DISPLAYING THE COLLECTION The Gallery continued to highlight the scope and depth of its Collection through focused displays held throughout the year. 'How We Live' presented powerful images depicting the diversity of human experience by 13 artists from the Asia–Pacific region. Artists included Anne Noble (New Zealand), Shirin Neshat (Iran–United States), Wang Jinsong (China), and Sonabai (India). The Gallery has been actively acquiring contemporary miniature paintings and sculptures from South Asia since 1999, and 'Miniatures' brought together works from Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka. 'Fragments', which focused on works that explore collage and assemblage, complemented the children's exhibition 'Lost and Found' by highlighting two-dimensional works by artists including Robert Klippel, Madonna Staunton and R.B. Kitaj. 'Island Beats' celebrated the rhythm of life in the Pacific Islands as expressed through highly colourful and intricately designed woven material. The exhibition featured woven natural and synthetic fibres shown at the 2003 Pasifika Arts Festival in New Zealand, together with other fibre arts from the Gallery's Collection. The technical and visual diversity of these works traces the pattern of people migrating throughout the Pacific Islands, and tells the story of a dynamic exchange of cultures. A special day of themed programs on 8 May 2004 drew a large contingent of Brisbane's Pacific community to the Gallery to celebrate their art and culture. The work of conceptual artists who lived, worked or exhibited in Brisbane from the mid 1970s to the mid 1990s — such as Robert MacPherson, Peter Tyndall and Scott Redford — was presented in the 'Conceptualism in Brisbane' display. The exhibition explored how meaning in art is formed not only by the artist, but also by the viewer, through the acts of seeing, reading and interpreting. Indigenous art acquisitions were profiled in 'Colour Country', which traced the emergence, over the last three decades, of a variety of innovative artistic styles by Indigenous Australian artists, many working with vibrant colours. The title of the display originated from Arnhem Land artist Ginger Riley Munduwalawala, who described Albert Namatjira as 'painting his colour country'. DOCUMENTING AND MANAGING THE COLLECTION The legal and physical management of the Collection, and the objects in the temporary custody of the Gallery, continued to be an important function of the Gallery. The Gallery made 141 objects from the Collection available to other institutions for exhibition purposes. These included the international loans of Edgar Degas's Trois danseuses á la classe de danse c.1888–90 to the 'Edgar Degas and the Italians in Paris' exhibition at the Palazzo dei Diamanti, Ferrara (September–November 2003); Bhupen Khakhar's Portraits of my mother and my father going to Yatra 1971 to the 'Bhupen Khakhar: A Retrospective' exhibition at the National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai (November 2003); and Peter Paul Rubens's Young woman in a fur wrap (after Titian) c.1629–30 to the Rubenshuis, Antwerp, for the exhibition 'A House of Art: Rubens as Collector' (March–June 2004). A total of 511 objects were received by the Gallery for exhibition purposes, including 139 borrowed for 'Story Place: Indigenous Art of Cape York and the Rainforest'. Through the position of Loan Coordinator/Curatorial Assistant, Government Buildings, a themed exhibition was installed in the foyer of the Executive Building in George Street in Brisbane's Central Business District. A total of 231 objects were on loan to government offices as at 30 June 2004. The Provenance Research Project (initiated in December 2001) continued. The Project aims to confirm the Gallery's good title to works of European origin that may have been confiscated during the period of Nazi rule (1933–45). A stocktake of the Collection which was started in March 2003 was completed, and work commenced on implementing an upgraded Collection Management System. A Collection Management Policy was submitted to the Board of Trustees in June 2004. It clarifies the role and objectives of the Gallery, the responsibilities of the Trustees and staff to the Collection, and the manner in which related activities are carried out. CONSERVING THE COLLECTION The Conservation section continued to undertake preventive conservation, treatment and research relating to the care of works in the Gallery's Collection, and progressed planning for the Queensland Gallery of Modern Art. Strategic planning as well as preventive conservation of new acquisitions was the focus for the Conservation section, with preventive projects prioritised for some works in the Collection: unframed contemporary paintings, bark paintings and installations. Major treatments undertaken included the research and cleaning of harmful residues of animal skin glue — used as a consolidant — from the wax surface of Giambologna's The Flagellation of Christ c.1579. Treatment of Sigmar Polke's Venusian enemy who went from high society to marry a prince; The Jersey Royal 2000 was completed to remove a large band of double-sided tape which was holding the oversized work on paper in a distorted position. M.E. Dockree's On the River Dart, Totnes, Devon 1867 underwent major treatment for 'orange peeling'. The painting has been cleaned, a tear repaired, paint losses inpainted, and varnished. The companion Dockree work The mill stream c.1872 also underwent major restoration. C. Napier Hemy's The home wind 1901 was surface cleaned and major restoration work was also undertaken on Enrico Belli's large painting of Queen Victoria. Gallery conservators continued work on the Old Master Project — a collaboration involving the Queensland Art Gallery, the University of Queensland, the Abbey Museum and the Australian Catholic University. This project aims to conserve a number of historical works of art from diverse Queensland collections, and bring them to the attention of a wider audience.