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

I Art Gallery Foundation was this icting Hercules and Omphulc. The 10: TED HOLLIOA Y) (;A l.I.ER \' ,turr mcmhcrs Amlrl•w Dudley and I c•hhiC' ~hurt prcp:m• ,c·ulpllir,·i. and paintings to he dis11layed in tlw So111h Bank gall<:r). 1hrn11i:h !he 111:iin cn trnnce, lr.,nwd Ill hro111e-µla1ed d,wirs. aml •ou ,t,·p 1111u an e,pa nsave fo)e r ol' Italian 1111arbl,·. In tllh .,rc1 j .. an inforrna1ion dc'ik, a dna kr(Klll , :and a gallery shop. i\ new k.it 11rc i, .111 nri..:nt~11 ion theatre where \ 1, 11ur, c.1n w:i1 ch an tt udiu~vi, 11:11 prcs• cn l,ll111n 1111nKl11rn1g the hu ildin{I and ils fa ·il il1·, . 'I " the right i, a unique view -· the µa ll ·ry\ wa ter in,ill, ru11ning \>aru llel to I he ri ver Ill cd1u i1, rcla1ions iip lo the ~a llery.Thc ()uccn l:li1abe1h II Silver luhikc fo1111 1ni n i, ,cl in the ri1,cr direct- I) in l'rnn1111' the gn llcry. The ma ll. a ,cries uf ,ix rxxils, has a " ·•l cr ,l i,pla ' wi th submerged 1·ci. and ' " '' f,11111111i11 , stem,. i\ skylig 11 is de– "!lncd 10 dcnecl dire t sunlight , yet to li ll the :area wi th na 111 ral light. The mall ,cparn1es lhe 15 exhibition 11:dl crac,. wi th their relaxed environ– lll<'nl. fr,11 11 the :1drninistr:ation, educa– tion and libr:ary :areas. ••• i\ l111nst 8000 plan ls were used to sor– ten I he reclangular outline of the build– in!!, i\ large onliloor sculpture gnrdcn is integrated with lhe gallery, nnd n cafc• 1craa , on the water mall level, overlooks I he sculpture ga rden and mull, i\ fcalu rc not previously available in the Queensland Art Gallery is a sound i, nd ligbt•prllof exhibition nren. The new ga llery cornes 14 years after Queensland /\ rt Gallery trustees asked the Sla te (iovcrnmenl for improved fa. c ili1i es a nd a si te other than the cramped , out-of-date <\uarlers il then occupied in the museum building on· _ • •<j_n.;gor ..I c.rracc.~_ • . • t ~ ·!< NATURAL light reaches thc s11acc including the watrr mall. which runs the length of the gallery. A skylight ahovc thc mall allows light into the arca, emphasising the gallery's abundant space. -> • • u 'Jltte>l'if~t Que·etr.;1:l'nd ' A'rt Gallery opened on March 29, 1895, after efforts hy the artist Isaac Waller Jenner over 1w11 yea rs. Jenner (1830-1902) wrote to the Stn lC(io1•ernmenl in 1893 urging a , 1:11e interest in a home for nrt. T he followin11 year, Godfrey Rivers, president of the Queenslnnd Art Society a nd art master of lhe Brisbane Techni• ca l College.joined 1he campaign. Rivers persuaded the Mayor, Alder• man Robert Fraser. to provide a room in I he nnw demolished Town lfall building in Queen Street. Rivers painted and fit• tcd 0ut this room nt his own expense, and was reimbursed by the government. I le acted ns honorary curator oft he gnl• lcry from IR95 to 1914. In 1905, the gallery wns re-opened on the third noor of the newly comr,leted Exec utive lluilding in George Street (now the I.nods Administration build– ing) . ••• The ga llery's first full-time curnlor, .l:11ncs Wall. was appointed in 1915,and 11was 1101until 1949 that the first direc• 111r, Robert 'arnpbell, wa appoi111ed. In 1930. the gallery wns moved again, this time 10 the then 40-yen r-old fa hibi• 1iorJ Building concert hall (where Dame Nellie Melba among others had sung) a\ (i rc~ory Terrace. ' Th· Queensland Art Gallery Fund, fo unded by pai nter Vida Lahey and sculptor Daphne Mayo, presented paint• ings at the opening of the new gallery on April R, 19.11, by the Governor, Sir John Coodwi n. T he gallery remained in these prem• i. cs until 1975, when it moved lo tempo– rary premises in the MIM building in Ann Street. while lhc Snu th llnnk com• plcx was built. The ,\nn S1reet gallery closed Inst October. aft er ,laging n major Chinese :art ex hibition. and lhc Queensland Art < i.ilkrv opens its rloors to the public 10- 111~111 111 , i; most gi, ri11us home. Th" di rcclor. Mr Rno1al Mellish, in hi, 111111 h year as ga llcry chief executive, " " '' 1he new hnmc has been designed lo ,crvc full y the visual arts needs of the l)11 cc11, l:111d ptuple in to the 21st Centu• l'h e ~:all ery wi ll eve ntuall y have _a. "., ff ,,I IOJ people , I J more than 11 ,1p,·1is with today. " We now h:tl'c th e capacity," Mr l\1 cll a,h ,aid. "in display exhibitions of anv si , c lh:t l may come 10 llrisbane. In the pa, 1 we 11:w<, hnd 10 111m ex hibitions aw.,y hcca u,c nf onr inadcq11atc fncili• lu,::,,." ,ini.: 1•asL The gnlkry has hccn !milt in ~a n1lhla,11•d IIA PI I E i\ IA YO'S sculpt urc "Thr OI) mpinn, .• i~ :ulmin•d h~ .I 0:111111• I.a S11in:1. :t nwmhc•r of 1h1· ()m•en~luml Arl (;:tlkr~ ,taff. \1' \1:1~·0 11 :1, i11,1mmr 111al in hoo, 1i11g lht• 1•0ll1•1·1ion mn 1111111~ .n ·ars . Mr Mclli, h i, a nwn proud of his new g:i II cry. h111 .,1rc"c" I he plans to provide ..,l'n 1cl', lnr ;1rc:1, nuhitlc the capital. He ,cc, 1h e f:1ci li1ie1 as be ing for all ()11 cc n,l.1111I, and i111 cnd, 10 ,cc that 1h~rc ,, ,·i1i •<111111111· ron1 ac1 with the \ 1, 11 ,tl .irt, . " \ l1n its kn~ 1hy 111111rndic life, the I'·' lien llOII' h.&s a h11111e of which nil , ,111,·,·11,l., ndcr, r.111he pr11ud," he sn id. ( ·( I , l ,J