Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 10 : Record of press coverage, March 1982 - May 1984

The Sunday Sun 27 April 1983 Getting the hang of a new gallery There is a certain art in hanging an exhibition of paintings, Fint there is the dilemma of where to hang the Dobell, Drysdale or Nolan. B•------, Then the question of SANDRA how. Finding a way to hang a McLEAN painting from a 6m high wall has been a particular problem• at the Queens– land Art Gallery. The solution - buy a mechanical cherry picker. A masterpiece of modern technology, the cherry picker has made the daunting task of hanging a painting from the Oal– lery w.alls as easy as pluck– Ing a ripe plum from a tree. It has not, however, les– sened the sk1lJ and patience needed to hang an exhibition of paintings. A team of gloved work- Gallery Is riot the same as hanging a still llfe In your lounge room. Each painting has to be ' hung at a certain level and lighting must be adjusted to suit the tones of each work. "It Is very much handle wtth care," said Deborah. "Everyone must wear gloves. Only trained people can handle the paintings. This :sort of thing has to be done In case of damage. men, curators and exhlbl- "It 1s a very slow pro- tlon offlctals have spent cess," she said. the last two weeks hang– Ing an exhibition of Aus– tralian paintings. Permanent It will be the first of three exhibitions of Aus– tralian worlcs to remain on permanent display In the Gallery. "This Is the flrt time we have brought out our per– manent displays," said Deborah EdWll.rdS, Assist– ant Curator (Australian Art). "The aim In sett.IJ ,g up the three permanem d.s– plays Is to provide the public with Insight Into the traditions or Austra– lian art," she said. Considerable planning and care has gone Into hanging the paintings. Plana are drawn up .~ \ :· j 'i ; - .J '. ( , I i ; ' weeks before the palnt– .Jnra are hung. There are "many factors to consider - ·'\he age or the ting, the artist and the " " · DEBORAH EDWARDS with ,ome of Hi. QUHns/and Art Gallery exhibi~s. of a painting. Deciding on which JX\lnttnp to put where are questions to be answered by the curators. "The paintings can be put In chronological order," said Dtborah. "There are also thematic considerations. It depends on what Point you are try– ln g to ma.Ice," she said. Hanging the paintings I becomes a minor military · operation. / Hydraulic An anny or gloved work– men work under the aupervulon of curato~ and exhibition officials. One man stands In the chem'. picker, which 'WOf#I lille a hydraulic lift. ,_'i'wo'men on the cround -~ld.'the paintlnp while Uie --man tn the cherry ptb°ter hanp two strings . ~$ich~ to the back or :ilie palritlng to hooks at UMl'top of the wall. U&nrtnir a Dobell In the ··"· . ... t-' • 11 April 1983 THt Queensland Art qallery•~ gu1:5l ·l·rfor April, expatriate art1Sl Vir– •• · uopaidge, will present a free~.~ f ·· · ~Current Art in New York in ·,te• (Iv nsland Cultural Centre on · w ' April 20, at 7.30 p.m. , , · ~ Brisbane in 1943, Ms Cllp- .::~ 1~p'.( · rge-scale abs_tra~ts are •~t"' in many collections in Aus– ~:;flfa.}ana _America, including the Queensland Art Gallery. . Sb.f bas lived and worked in Ne';¥ Yoric since 1970, and in 1_975 was ~es•• denl irtiif at the Univcn1ly of Cahfor· ·· ·nia, Berktf'ey. \ ,