Vew from the chair: Speeches of Richard WL Austin

And now, in this Gallery, we have an example from each of the six kilns. The Echizen jar was purchased by the Gallery itself to start the ball rolling, so to speak. The Tokoname jar which followed was the generous gift of James Fairfax, who also donated, as a special bonus, the marvellous screens by Toeki which line one of the Gallery's walls.' Sir Bruce and Lady Watson were equally generous in giving us the Shigaraki jar, and Mitsui and Company the Tamba jar. 2 To these three donors I extend my heartfelt thanks. The remaining jars from Bizen and Seto do not yet have a donor's name attached to them. The Bizen jar is one of the best examples from this kiln in the whole world, and the Seto jar is unique in that it has, on its base, incised characters indicating the year in which it was made-I S82. Both these jars are here on approval, so to speak, and it will be tragic if we have to send them back to Japan. [Subsequendy the Bizen jar was sponsored by Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd and the Seto jar was purchased with funds from the International Exhibitions Program.] These six jars do, indeed, form a masterpiece collection. Just as these kilns have provided inspiration to generations ofJapanese potters in the past, so will they, we are confident, do the same for generations of Australian potters in the future. That is the real purpose of a collection-to inspire others to emulate what it contains. And now, ladies and gendemen, it gives me great pleasure to introduce the Premier, who has, ever since he came to office, been a great supporter of the Gallery in every possible way, and to ask him to address us. I I Speech at the function to acknowledge the Japanese component and assistance to the Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, 16 September 1993 This is the second time that I have had the pleasure of introducing the Premier at a gathering which acknowledges Japanese business contributions to the Gallery. The first occasion was on 11 December, 1989. Then newly elected as Premier, he spoke at a celebration in honour of the first five contributors to the Exhibitions Development Fund-all of which were Japanese companies. Tonight, he joins us to acknowledge Japanese participation in and financial support for the Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art-made possible by the Japanese contributors to the Exhibitions Development Fund (which now number six) and The Japan Foundation. We also acknowledge the support of and extend thanks to the local legal firm Clarke and Kann. I should like to offer my thanks too, and welcome all of you who are here tonight, especially our guests from Japan. The Premier has always been generous in his support for the Gallery. He endorsed both the Exhibitions Development Fund and the Triennial project at their inception. In particular, he assisted in our approaches to potential contributors to the Fund in Japan. Last year, in the Gallery's budget, he made a special allocation of $100 000 towards the Triennial project. The Exhibitions Development Fund has made an enormous contribution to the Gallery's international exhibitions program. But it is important to stress that the Fund 33