Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 7 : Debate on New Art Gallery and Cultural Centre, 1970-1976

~ltlill MAIL" ~ , 18APR~ Qld, Ne'1¥ home for State's art A ITEB f3 years "temr.rary" ... of a ••••lied concert all, Quee~ a& last Is on tbe way to rett~ MW &:c:~vernmenta have talked. and · mllld. but there has been llttle action. ..,....l'\d always haa been a' lalllll~ iiock of the /luatraUan art world becauae : ...ned Art Gallery ln the ramshackle um...uns. · h No at last a dut1n haa been c oaen . n\l tb:Job ,:,f buildlng a •'1.5 million galle~ eqec_ted _, begin lQ i.a than two years. . .. TIii new pllery•·•1111 la 1.malll)atlve t ,e\. WIQlln economic IICJll!lbWtlea. Jt.. ·· .a.e 8ta11 a 1allU1 of which 1, bt · · . Rooi _, of the site, · l!SPc11o1;~~ 11.ver. lbd Brtabane'a ·1'11- o,en ,-t am:phltheatre ~41, . · . apu are two' · of tta 1trlliri1 •re:- state Government·aho~d a_dhere P1&n to have. tl1f: conatructlon under- 9'1& and the plleey open tn 1,'18. For tbere 1iaa beeJl ~ much 1!\ll1Y- . . , _____ ..._~ _ _,_.__ THI COUIIII-MAIL WIONISDAY IIPT, It 1971 .. Publicity tip for a full art gallery BY DAVID ROWBOTHAM "PUBLICISE your new art ,allery whe" you get it and people will crowd it," Washington National Gallery curator, Ro11 Watson, ,aid in Brisbone yesterday. Mr. Walson I~ vl~itln~ Au.,lralla from lhe t:nlted States to lecture at the Invitation of lhe Arb Council of Aus tralia, and Australian art ralleries and universitlH. Lasl night he rue a puhlic lecture at Queens– land liniver!lll~·. Today he wlll lecture lo ~tu– dentll of the Unlvl!nlty Fine Arts Deparl01ent Yesterday he Ti,ltl!CI the Queeni1land Art r.al • lery. he WL'i surprised h.v Its valuable cllllectlon. He was told hv the rallnv di– rector , M"r, .James \\°"ien– eke I or plans to build a new aTl ~aller:v complri on thl' Brisbane Rl\·H "s south5ide. "A ,rood rallen t!I a.~ vltal to a city L'i a l;'ood orchestra and theatre" Mr. Walson ~aid. ' "It Is Import.ant for any rallery to s how local, national, and travelUn.. e~hibltions, all three. They make a dty's way of 11(11 interestlnr." Mr . Wal.sfJn I • 38, E d I n b II r r h - born, and Mll. WATSOM Cambrldre educatec1. H11 Is rerarded u one of the w or Id 's ouhtandlnr younrer art cura loni. Re uld Australlans had cre&tt'd a distinctive A u s t r a 11 a n Achool ot pa I n t I n r, which they 1hould be proud ot. Every countr7 should he proud ot lta national aspect& In art.. ' lrislMne, Old, D&play moclil A ~ and &nlhl– tect'a plan • of the ...,.. • '7,III0,000 Queemland An oau., wtn be onsiiS'lli ~ 1 on the J:Ucutlve ='"tic, ·r:-:: • ~~ ~ ., .. Pr;~ .~· ~( . ........... 2.1 APB 1973 ''DDJIGN," se.ld · Mr. Robin e ·tblon, ''is a dia– eue. Once you have it, jou ~v~. to get it out of YO\&, Mr. Gibson, 42, WU dlacuaalns architectUl'e, wblcb ta b1a life. He la the DrinlcpaJ of Ro b e r t OibloD and Part n ecr 11 , arcb1tects, and baa Juat won the new 17. 5 mu J I o ~ Qlleen•l • nd Art Gallery delilD contrac'- He and b1a team of ,even other decHcatecl arcbt&ecta bave won two ~deru!e of the Year Awa1$. a Butnltn1 or the Year Award <for Kenmore-, Presbyterta,n Ob'urch), four Mer t– or I o u II Awarcb <ctLY bulldlnp), six Mertt– orloua U,htm1 Awanu, and a host of major con&rac&a. • BIR, u Mr. Olblon saya. thue thinp don't Juat ...JJpen. They t.&ke work, thought, emotion– al lnvolverr..ent with "the environment. And In b1a own cue - and he Is the desi gn lire of hla firm - he 'worlrl from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. hlly, and Jwt doea cot get to see as much of his wire. 'Twlnk.' daughter Tina, 14, and son, Nick, 12, as he would like. He went to England soon after he won h is Diploma In A rchlterture from Queensland Uni– versity In J 964, ""This gave me an o d world Involvement w ith archltectul'l!, and a very real degree of humllJtv a b o u t the wond r•ul bulldJn~s a ready de– signed," be aa.ld . How does an arch! tect tackle a r11>111Jnus pl't'l– ect like the new Art OaUery? "Well, in my cese. I sat down and beg11 n Writing down - Jn words - evervU:tJnir t ha" ever thou,rht r would like to P.ncount,.~ at• an art gallery," h said "I became em,.,t"""", v In Vo Iv e d with w~~-•~ first - wMrlq 1n,1? 'l' •r· 'vlbrnnrv•, 'errervesence·, 'gaiety.' • "ThL~ hAs hpen rP– nected In t h'! wAter mall or th• cleRlcm. "Then. ot rn.,,.~,, we have n '",._"'~ .....,,., rAp– port al the office. i'A ~t,.onno.. ,..,..11. •.-,n fn f1"1 1 1"Tht fhlt-,tr H f c: "" bTno,tv Jl''''"l 11n..tt c-'"''- m~~~~n11;:;,o•h!'er o "Jt1tt It.\""'"" " nrl'\1"1 ,,...,- .. , u I I V v•r)), r ~ .... ~ ..- n I c n t Io n h •"lrncl!fl. •Ideas n.r11 P0oled.'' Q,