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The National Gallery of Australia (NGA), formerly the Australian National Gallery, is the national
art museum An art museum or art gallery is a building or space for the display of art, usually from the museum's own collection. It might be in public or private ownership and may be accessible to all or have restrictions in place. Although primarily con ...
of Australia as well as one of the largest art museums in Australia, holding more than 166,000 works of art. Located in Canberra in the
Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. I ...
, it was established in 1967 by the
Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government ...
as a national public art museum. it is under the directorship of Nick Mitzevich.


Establishment

Prominent Australian artist
Tom Roberts Thomas William Roberts (8 March 185614 September 1931) was an English-born Australian artist and a key member of the Heidelberg School art movement, also known as Australian impressionism. After studying in Melbourne, he travelled to Europe ...
had lobbied various
Australian prime minister The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister heads the executive branch of the federal government of Australia and is also accountable to federal parliament under the principl ...
s, starting with the first, Edmund Barton. Prime Minister
Andrew Fisher Andrew Fisher (29 August 186222 October 1928) was an Australian politician who served three terms as prime minister of Australia – from 1908 to 1909, from 1910 to 1913, and from 1914 to 1915. He was the leader of the Australian Labor Party ...
accepted the idea in 1910, and the following year Parliament established a bipartisan committee of six political leaders—the ''Historic Memorials Committee''. The Committee decided that the government should collect portraits of Australian
governors-general Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...
, parliamentary leaders and the principal "fathers" of
federation A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-govern ...
to be painted by Australian artists. This led to the establishment of what became known as the ''Commonwealth Art Advisory Board'', which was responsible for art acquisitions until 1973. Nevertheless, the ''Parliamentary Library Committee'' also collected paintings for the Australian collections of the ''Commonwealth Parliamentary Library'', including landscapes, notably the acquisition of Tom Roberts' '' Allegro con brio, Bourke St West'' in 1918. Prior to the opening of the Gallery these paintings were displayed around Parliament House, in Commonwealth offices, including diplomatic missions overseas, and State Galleries. From 1912, the building of a permanent building to house the collection in Canberra was the major priority of the Commonwealth Art Advisory Board. However, this period included two World Wars and a Depression and governments always considered they had more pressing priorities, including building the initial infrastructure of Canberra and Old Parliament House in the 1920s and the rapid expansion of Canberra and the building of government offices,
Lake Burley Griffin Lake Burley Griffin is an artificial lake in the centre of Canberra, the capital of Australia. It was completed in 1963 after the Molonglo River, which ran between the city centre and Parliamentary Triangle, was dammed. It is named after Wal ...
and the
National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...
in the 1950s and early 1960s. In 1965 the Commonwealth Art Advisory Board was finally able to persuade Prime Minister Robert Menzies to take the steps necessary to establish the gallery. On 1 November 1967, Prime Minister Harold Holt formally announced that the Government would construct the building.


Location

The design of the building was complicated by the difficulty in finalising its location, which was affected by the layout of the
Parliamentary Triangle The National Triangle, which is referred to as the Parliamentary Triangle, is the ceremonial precinct of Canberra, containing some of Australia's most significant buildings. The National Triangle is formed by Commonwealth, Kings and Constitutio ...
. The main problem was the final site of the new Parliament House. In Canberra's original Griffin 1912 plan, Parliament House was to be built on Camp Hill, between Capital Hill and the Provisional Parliament House and a ''Capitol'' was to be built on top of Capital Hill. He envisaged the Capitol to be "either a general administration structure for popular receptions and ceremony or for housing archives and commemorating Australian Achievements". In the early 1960s, the
National Capital Development Commission The National Capital Authority (NCA) is a statutory authority of the Australian Government that was established to manage the Commonwealth's interest in the planning and development of Canberra as the capital city of Australia. Timeline of the ...
(NCDC) proposed, in accordance with the 1958 and 1964
Holford Holford is a village and civil parish in West Somerset within the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is located about west of Bridgwater and east of Williton, with a population of 392. The village is on the Quantock Greenway ...
plans for the Parliamentary Triangle, that the site for the new Parliament House be moved to the shore of Lake Burley Griffin, with a vast ''National Place'', to be built on its south side, to be surrounded by a large mass of buildings. The Gallery would be built on Capital Hill, along with other national cultural institutions. In 1968,
Colin Madigan Colin Frederick Madigan AO (22 July 192117 September 2011) was an Australian architect. He is best known for designing the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra. Biography Born in Glen Innes, New South Wales, Madigan studied architecture ...
of Edwards Madigan Torzillo and Partners won the competition for the design, even though no design could be finalised, as the final site was now in doubt. Prime Minister
John Gorton Sir John Grey Gorton (9 September 1911 – 19 May 2002) was an Australian politician who served as the nineteenth Prime Minister of Australia, in office from 1968 to 1971. He led the Liberal Party during that time, having previously been a l ...
stated that, :"The Competition had as its aim not a final design for the building but rather the selection of a vigorous and imaginative architect who would then be commissioned to submit the actual design of the Gallery." Gorton proposed to Parliament in 1968 that it endorse Holford's lakeside site for the new Parliament House, but it refused and sites at Camp Hill and Capital Hill were then investigated. As a result, the Government decided that the Gallery could not be built on Capital Hill. In 1971, the Government selected a site on the eastern side of the proposed ''National Place'', between King Edward Terrace and for the Gallery. Even though it was now unlikely that the lakeside Parliament House would proceed, a raised ''National Place'' (to hide parking stations) surrounded by national institutions and government offices was still planned. Madigan's brief included the Gallery, a building for the High Court of Australia and the precinct around them, linking to the raised ''National Place'' at the centre of the Land Axis of the Parliamentary Triangle, which then led to the National Library on the western side.


Development of the design

Madigan's final design was based on a brief prepared by the
National Capital Development Commission The National Capital Authority (NCA) is a statutory authority of the Australian Government that was established to manage the Commonwealth's interest in the planning and development of Canberra as the capital city of Australia. Timeline of the ...
(NCDC) with input from James Johnson Sweeney and James Mollison. Sweeney was director of the
Guggenheim Museum The Guggenheim Museums are a group of museums in different parts of the world established (or proposed to be established) by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. Museums in this group include: Locations Americas * The Solomon R. Guggenhei ...
between 1952–1960 and director of The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and had been appointed as a consultant to advise on issues concerning the display and storage of art. Mollison said in 1989 that "the size and form of the building had been determined between Colin Madigan and J.J. Sweeney, and the National Capital Development Commission. I was not able to alter the appearance of the interior or exterior in any way...It's a very difficult building in which to make art look more important than the space in which you put the art". The construction of the building commenced in 1973, with the unveiling of a plaque by Prime Minister
Gough Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1977, he was notable for being the ...
. Construction was managed by P.D.C. Constructions under the supervision of the National Capital Development Commission and it was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1982, during the premiership of Whitlam's successor,
Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983, holding office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Fraser was raised on hi ...
. The building cost $82 million. In 1975, the NCDC abandoned the plan for the ''National Place'', leaving the precinct five metres above the natural ground level, without the previously proposed connections to national institutions and next to a vast space only partially taken up by Reconciliation Place, which does not substitute for the grand mass of buildings originally envisaged.


Appointment of an acting director

The Commonwealth Art Advisory Board recommended that Laurie Thomas, a former director of the
Art Gallery of Western Australia The Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA) is a public art gallery that is part of the Perth Cultural Centre, in Perth. It is located near the Western Australian Museum and State Library of Western Australia and is supported and managed by the ...
and of the
Queensland Art Gallery The Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) is an art museum located in South Bank, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The gallery is part of QAGOMA. It complements the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) building, situated only away. The Queensland Art Galler ...
be appointed director, but the Prime Minister
John Gorton Sir John Grey Gorton (9 September 1911 – 19 May 2002) was an Australian politician who served as the nineteenth Prime Minister of Australia, in office from 1968 to 1971. He led the Liberal Party during that time, having previously been a l ...
took no action on this recommendation, as he apparently favoured the appointment of James Johnson Sweeney, although he was already 70. James Mollison was exhibitions officer in the Prime Minister's Department from 1969 and the Government's failure to appoint a director of the National Gallery of Australia required Mollison to become involved in the development of the design for the building with the architects led by Colin Madigan. In November 1970, the Commonwealth Art Advisory Board recommended that he should be re-designated as assistant director (development). In May 1971, following Gorton's fall from power, the Government endorsed Madigan's sketches for the building. The new Prime Minister,
William McMahon Sir William McMahon (23 February 190831 March 1988) was an Australian politician who served as the 20th Prime Minister of Australia, in office from 1971 to 1972 as leader of the Liberal Party. He was a government minister for over 21 years, ...
announced the appointment of Mollison as acting director of the National Gallery of Australia in October 1971. Tenders for construction were called in November 1972, just before the McMahon government's defeat in the December 1972 election.


Building and garden

The National Gallery building is in the late 20th-century Brutalist style. It is characterised by angular masses and raw concrete surfaces and is surrounded by a series of sculpture gardens planted with Australian native plants and trees. The geometry of the building is based on a triangle, most obviously manifested for visitors in the coffered ceiling grids and tiles of the principal floor. Madigan said of this device that it was "the intention of the architectural concept to implant into the grammar of the design a sense of freedom so that the building could be submitted to change and variety but would always express its true purpose". This geometry flows throughout the building, and is reflected in the triangular stair towers, columns and building elements. The building is principally constructed of reinforced
bush hammer A bush hammer, also known as an axe hammer, is a masonry tool used to texturize stone and concrete. The term is derived from the German word ''bosshammer'', where Old German ''bossen'' meant "to beat". Description and use Bush hammers exist in ...
ed concrete, which was also originally the interior wall surface. More recently, the interior walls have been covered with painted wood, to allow for increased flexibility in the display of artworks. The building has 23,000 m2 of floor space. The design provides space for both the display and storage of works of art and to accommodate the curatorial and support staff of the Gallery. Madigan's design is based on Sweeney's recommendation that there should be a spiral plan, with a succession of galleries to display works of art of differing sizes and to allow flexibility in the way in which they were to be exhibited. There are three levels of galleries. On the principal floor, the galleries are large, and are used to display the Indigenous Australian and International (meaning European and American) collections. The bottom level also contains a series of large galleries, originally intended to house sculpture, but now used to display the Asian art collection. The topmost level contains a series of smaller, more intimate galleries, which are now used to display the Gallery's collection of Australian art. Sweeney had recommended that sources of natural light should not detract from the collections, and so light sources are intended to be indirect. The High Court and National Gallery Precinct were added to the
Australian National Heritage List The Australian National Heritage List or National Heritage List (NHL) is a heritage register, a list of national heritage places deemed to be of outstanding heritage significance to Australia, established in 2003. The list includes natural and ...
in November 2007.


Later extensions

The Gallery has been extended twice, the first of which was the building of new temporary exhibition galleries on the eastern side of the building in 1997, to house large-scale temporary exhibitions, which was designed by
Andrew Andersons Andrew Andersons (born 5 July 1942) is an Australian architect. Buildings he has designed include various extensions to art museums, a number of theatres and concert halls as well as public, commercial and residential buildings. Background ...
of PTW Architects. This extension includes a sculptural garden, designed by Fiona Hall. The 2006 enhancement project and new entrance was complemented by a large Australian Garden designed b
Adrian McGregor
o
McGregor Coxall
Landscape Architecture and Urban Design. There have also been proposals, during the tenure of Director Brian Kennedy, for the construction of a new "front" entrance, facing King Edward Terrace. Madigan made known his concerns about these proposals and their interference with his moral rights as the architect and also expressed concerns about these changes. A former director, Betty Churcher, was particularly critical of Madigan, and told a journalist that "the dead hand of an architect cannot stay clamped on a building forever". When Ron Radford became director, he expanded the brief to include a suite of new galleries to display the collection of indigenous art and a new Australian Garden fronting King Edward Terrace. The Minister for the Arts and Sport, Senator Rod Kemp, announced on 13 December 2006 that the Australian Government would provide $92.9 million for a major building enhancement project at the National Gallery of Australia, including around $20 million for previously approved building refurbishments. The building enhancements were designed to create new arrival and entrance facilities to improve public access to the Gallery's building and significantly increase display space, particularly for the collection of Australian Indigenous art. Stage 1 of the Indigenous galleries and new entrance project was officially opened on 30 September 2010 by
Quentin Bryce Dame Quentin Alice Louise Bryce, (née Strachan; born 23 December 1942) is an Australian academic who served as the 25th governor-general of Australia from 2008 to 2014. She is the first woman to have held the position, and was previously the ...
, Governor-General of Australia. According to well-known architecture critic
Elizabeth Farrelly Dr Elizabeth Margaret Farrelly (born Dunedin, New Zealand), is a Sydney-based author, architecture critic, essayist, columnist and speaker who was born in New Zealand but later became an Australian citizen. She has contributed to current debates ...
, the new extension had three main tasks: "how to dock amicably with the existing architecture; how to provide the resulting whole with a new street "address"; how to create a logical, legible and deferential hanging space for the collection."


Sculpture garden renewal

A project for the renewal of the
sculpture garden A sculpture garden or sculpture park is an outdoor garden or park which includes the presentation of sculpture, usually several permanently sited works in durable materials in landscaped surroundings. A sculpture garden may be private, owned by ...
was under way as of 2021. As part of the project, in September 2021 the gallery commissioned a huge sculpture by Lindy Lee, high and based on the
ouroboros The ouroboros or uroboros () is an ancient symbol depicting a serpent or dragon eating its own tail. The ouroboros entered Western tradition via ancient Egyptian iconography and the Greek magical tradition. It was adopted as a symbol in Gnost ...
(an ancient symbol depicting a snake eating its own tail), to be placed near its main entrance of the gallery. Scheduled to be finished in 2024, the sculpture is the NGA's most expensive commission to date.


Directorship

In 1976, the newly established ANG Council advertised for a permanent director to fill the position that James Mollison had been acting in since 1971. The new Prime Minister
Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983, holding office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Fraser was raised on hi ...
announced the appointment of Mollison as director in 1977.


James Mollison

James Mollison is notable for establishing the Gallery and building on the collection that had already been assembled of mainly Australian paintings by purchasing icons of modern western art, the best known were the 1974 purchases of '' Blue Poles'' by
Jackson Pollock Paul Jackson Pollock (; January 28, 1912August 11, 1956) was an American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. He was widely noticed for his " drip technique" of pouring or splashing liquid household paint onto a hor ...
($1.3m), and ''Woman V'' by
Willem de Kooning Willem de Kooning (; ; April 24, 1904 – March 19, 1997) was a Dutch-American abstract expressionist artist. He was born in Rotterdam and moved to the United States in 1926, becoming an American citizen in 1962. In 1943, he married painter El ...
($650,000). These purchases were very controversial at the time, but are now generally considered to be visionary acquisitions. He also built up the other collections, often with the help of donations. Starting in 1973 Mollison secured funding from Philip Morris to acquire contemporary Australian photography for the ANG, though Ian North was not appointed Foundation Curator of Photography until 1980. In 1975,
Arthur Boyd Arthur Merric Bloomfield Boyd (24 July 1920 – 24 April 1999) was a leading Australian painter of the middle to late 20th century. Boyd's work ranges from impressionist renderings of Australian landscape to starkly expressionist figuration, ...
presented several thousand of his works to the Gallery. In 1977 Mollison persuaded Sunday Reed to donate Sidney Nolan's remarkable
Ned Kelly Edward Kelly (December 1854 – 11 November 1880) was an Australian bushranger, outlaw, gang leader and convicted police-murderer. One of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing a suit of bulletproof armour during his final shootout wi ...
series to the ANG. Nolan had long disputed Reed's ownership of these paintings, but the donation resolved their dispute. In 1981, Albert Tucker and his wife presented a substantial collection of Tucker's collection to the Gallery. As a result of these and more recent donation, it has the finest collection of Australian art in existence. He also arranged many touring exhibitions, most famously ''The Great Impressionist Exhibition'' of 1984. His successor, Betty Churcher has said that when she took over in 1990, he "was of almost legendary stature ndhad single-handedly built a great and comprehensive collection from the ground up; indeed he had presided over the collection for more than twenty years with great flair, and over the institution for seven years — it was in the truest sense, his Gallery, his professional achievement."


Betty Churcher

Betty Churcher became director in 1990. She had been formerly director of the
Art Gallery of Western Australia The Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA) is a public art gallery that is part of the Perth Cultural Centre, in Perth. It is located near the Western Australian Museum and State Library of Western Australia and is supported and managed by the ...
. While director of the National Gallery, she was dubbed "Betty Blockbuster" because of her love of blockbuster exhibitions. Churcher initiated the building of new galleries on the eastern side of the building, opened in March 1998, to house large-scale temporary exhibitions. It was under her directorship that the name of the Gallery was changed from the Australian National Gallery to its current title. During her period, the Gallery purchased, among many other artworks, '' Golden Summer, Eaglemont'' by
Arthur Streeton Sir Arthur Ernest Streeton (8 April 1867 – 1 September 1943) was an Australian landscape painter and a leading member of the Heidelberg School, also known as Australian Impressionism. Early life Streeton was born in Mt Moriac, Victoria, sou ...
for $3.5 million. This was the last great
Heidelberg School The Heidelberg School was an Australian art movement of the late 19th century. It has latterly been described as Australian impressionism. Melbourne art critic Sidney Dickinson coined the term in an 1891 review of works by Arthur Streeton and ...
painting still in private hands.


Brian Kennedy

Brian Kennedy was appointed director in 1997. He expanded the traveling exhibitions and loans program throughout Australia, arranged for several major shows of Australian art abroad, increased the number of exhibitions at the museum itself and oversaw the development of an extensive multi-media site. On the other hand, he discontinued the emphasis of his predecessor, Churcher, of showing ''blockbuster'' exhibitions. During his directorship, the National Gallery of Australia gained government support for improving the building and significant private donations and corporate sponsorship. Private funding supported his notable acquisitions of
David Hockney David Hockney (born 9 July 1937) is an English painter, draftsman, printmaker, stage designer, and photographer. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considered one of the most influential British artists o ...
's '' A Bigger Grand Canyon'' for $4.6 million in 1999,
Lucian Freud Lucian Michael Freud (; 8 December 1922 – 20 July 2011) was a British painter and draughtsman, specialising in figurative art, and is known as one of the foremost 20th-century English portraitists. He was born in Berlin, the son of Jewis ...
's '' After Cézanne'' for $7.4 million in 2001 and ''Pregnant Woman'' by
Ron Mueck Hans Ronald Mueck ( or /ˈmuːɪk/; born 1958) is an Australian sculptor working in the United Kingdom. Biography Born in 1958 to German parents in Melbourne, Australia, Ron Mueck grew up in the family business of puppetry and doll-making. He ...
for $800,000. He also introduced free admission to the gallery, except to major exhibitions. He campaigned for the construction of a new ''front'' entrance to the Gallery, facing King Edward Terrace, but this did not come to pass during his tenure. Kennedy's cancellation of the
Sensation exhibition ''Sensation'' was an exhibition of the collection of contemporary art owned by Charles Saatchi, including many works by Young British Artists, (YBAs), which first took place 18 September – 28 December 1997 at the Royal Academy of Arts in London ...
(scheduled at the National Gallery of Australia from 2 June 2000 to 13 August 2000) was controversial, as it was seen by many as censorship. This exhibition was created by the
Young British Artists The Young British Artists, or YBAs—also referred to as Brit artists and Britart—is a loose group of visual artists who first began to exhibit together in London in 1988. Many of the YBA artists graduated from the BA Fine Art course at Goldsm ...
of the
Saatchi Gallery The Saatchi Gallery is a London art gallery, gallery for contemporary art and an independent charity opened by Charles Saatchi in 1985. Exhibitions which drew upon the collection of Charles Saatchi, starting with US artists and minimalism, mov ...
. Its most controversial work was
Chris Ofili Christopher Ofili, (born 10 October 1968) is a British Turner Prize-winning painter who is best known for his paintings incorporating elephant dung. He was one of the Young British Artists. Since 2005, Ofili has been living and working in T ...
’s ''
The Holy Virgin Mary ''The Holy Virgin Mary'' is a painting created by Chris Ofili in 1996. It was one of the works included in the ''Sensation'' exhibition in London, Berlin and New York in 1997–2000. The subject of the work, and its execution, caused considera ...
'', a painting which used elephant dung and was accused of being blasphemous. The then Mayor of New York, Rudolph Giuliani campaigned against the exhibition, claiming it was "Catholic-bashing" and an "aggressive vicious, disgusting attack on religion." In November 1999, Kennedy cancelled the exhibition and stated that the events in New York had "obscured discussion of the artistic merit of the works of art." Kennedy was also repeatedly under attack over allegations that the air-conditioning was exposing its staff to cancer. Despite his denials that there was any problem with the air-conditioning, claims that the issue had been 'swept under the carpet' persisted. The air-conditioning was finally renovated in 2003. Kennedy announced that he would not seek extension of his contract in 2002. He has denied that he was under any government pressure to do so.


Ron Radford

Ron Radford was appointed director in late 2004. He was formerly director of the Art Gallery of South Australia. Radford has lent out the Gallery's old masters collection (European art, prior to the 19th century) for long-term display to state galleries, noting that he "considers the collection of less than 30 paintings, put together by Mollison to give context to the modern collection, as too small to make any impact on the public". He has been quoted as saying that the gallery should concentrate on its strengths – European art of the first half of the 20th century, 20th-century American art, photography, Asian art and the 20th-century drawing collection, and to fill the gaps in the Australian collection. In September 2005, there was considerable publicity about an offer to the gallery of ''Sketch for Deluge II'' by
Wassily Kandinsky Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky (; rus, Василий Васильевич Кандинский, Vasiliy Vasilyevich Kandinskiy, vɐˈsʲilʲɪj vɐˈsʲilʲjɪvʲɪtɕ kɐnʲˈdʲinskʲɪj;  – 13 December 1944) was a Russian painter a ...
for $35 million. The gallery did not subsequently go through with the purchase. Radford has been notable in securing funding and completing the building of the new entrance to the Gallery as well as an extension for Indigenous galleries, public and function areas. In developing the collection he has been notable for a series of acquisitions of indigenous art, in particular the largest collection of watercolours by
Albert Namatjira Albert Namatjira (born Elea Namatjira; 28 July 1902 – 8 August 1959) was an Arrernte painter from the MacDonnell Ranges in Central Australia, widely considered one of the greatest and most influential Australian artists. As a pioneer of cont ...
and the
James Turrell James Turrell (born May 6, 1943) is an American artist known for his work within the Light and Space movement. Much of Turrell's career has been devoted to a still-unfinished work, ''Roden Crater'', a natural cinder cone crater located outsid ...
sculpture and installation ' (2010).


Gerard Vaughan

In October 2014, it was announced that Gerard Vaughan would be the new director of the National Gallery of Australia from 10 November. He was formerly director of the
National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum. The NGV houses an encyclopedic art collection across two ...
from 1999 to 2012. In 2014, the gallery sued antiquities dealer Subhash Kapoor in New York Supreme Court for allegedly hiding evidence that an 11th-century sculpture of Shiva Nataraja known as the Sripuranthan Natarajan Idol, bought by the gallery for A$5.6 million in 2008, had been stolen from an Indian temple in
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...
. The National Gallery voluntarily removed a bronze statue of the Dancing Shiva from display, as the Indian government formally requested the statue's return.


Nick Mitzevich

In April 2018, it was announced that
Nick Mitzevich Nick may refer to: * Nick (given name) * A cricket term for a slight deviation of the ball off the edge of the bat * British slang for being arrested * British slang for a police station * British slang for stealing * Short for nickname P ...
, the third of the NGA directors to be appointed from the Art Gallery of South Australia, would take over at the start of July.


Exhibitions and initiatives


''Women Hold Up Half The Sky''

''Women Hold Up Half The Sky'' was a large exhibition held in March to April 1995, to celebrate International Women's Day. Named after Adelaide artist Ann Newmarch's famous print of the same name included in the exhibition, the exhibition was curated by Roger Butler. It was opened by
Carmen Lawrence Carmen Mary Lawrence (born 2 March 1948) is an Australian academic and former politician who was the Premier of Western Australia from 1990 to 1993, the first woman to become the premier of an Australian state. A member of the Labor Party, sh ...
, and also included a travelling exhibition called ''Sydney by Design''. The exhibition was part of the national commemoration of the UN's
International Women's Year International Women's Year (IWY) was the name given to 1975 by the United Nations. Since that year March 8 has been celebrated as International Women's Day, and the United Nations Decade for Women, from 1976 to 1985, was also established. Histo ...
, and the accompanying book, ''The National Women's Art Book'', was edited by
Joan Kerr Joan Kerr (1938–2004) was an Australian academic and cultural preservationist. Initially her interest was sparked in preserving the architectural heritage of Australia, but over time her interests spread to art history and Australian culture ...
. Comprising around 300 works from the gallery's own collection, the exhibition included the work of
Agnes Goodsir Agnes Noyes Goodsir (18 June 1864 – 11 August 1939) was an Australian portrait painter who lived in Paris in the 1920s and 1930s. Biography Goodsir was born in Portland, Victoria, Australia, one of eleven children born to David James Cook Go ...
,
Bessie Davidson Bessie Ellen Davidson (1879–1965) was an Australian painter known for her impressionist, light-filled landscapes and interiors. Early life and education Bessie Ellen Davidson was born on 22 May 1879 in North Adelaide, South Australia, to a fa ...
,
Clarice Beckett Clarice Marjoribanks Beckett (21 March 1887 – 7 July 1935) was an Australian artist and a key member of the Australian tonalist movement. Known for her subtle, misty landscapes of Melbourne and its suburbs, Beckett developed a personal style ...
, Olive Cotton,
Grace Cossington Smith Grace Cossington Smith (20 April 189220 December 1984) was an Australian artist and pioneer of modernist painting in Australia and was instrumental in introducing Post-Impressionism to her home country. Examples of her work are held by every ...
, Yvonne Audette, Janet Dawson,
Lesley Dumbrell Lesley Dumbrell, born on 14 October 1941 in Melbourne, is an Australian artist known for her precise abstract geometric paintings, and was a pioneer of the Australian Women's Art Movement of the 1970s. She became known as 'one of the leading art ...
, Margaret Worth, Rosalie Gascoigne,
Bea Maddock Beatrice Louise "Bea" Maddock (13 September 1934 – 9 April 2016) was an Australian artist. Biography Born in Hobart, Tasmania, Bea Maddock studied art education at the University of Tasmania, Hobart and taught secondary school in her hom ...
,
Judy Watson Judy Watson (born 1959) is an Australian Waanyi multi-media artist who works in print-making, painting, video and art installation, installation. Her work often examines Indigenous Australian histories, and she has received a number of high pr ...
, Frances Burke,
Margaret Preston Margaret Rose Preston (29 April 1875 – 28 May 1963) was an Australian painter and printmaker who is regarded as one of Australia's leading modernists of the early 20th century. In her quest to foster an Australian "national art", she was al ...
, Olive Ashworth, and other artists of the previous 150 years.


National Indigenous Art Triennial

The NGA held the inaugural National Indigenous Art Triennial (NIAT), ''Culture Warriors'', from 13 October 2007 to 10 February 2008. The guest curator was
Brenda L Croft Brenda L Croft (born 1964) is an Aboriginal Australian artist, curator, writer, and educator working across contemporary Indigenous and mainstream arts and cultural sectors. Croft was a founding member of the Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Cooperat ...
, Senior Curator, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art. The exhibition was the largest survey show of Indigenous art at the NGA in over 15 years, and featured works by selected artists created during the previous three years. A free exhibition, it featured artists from every state and territory. The 2nd National Indigenous Art Triennial, ''unDISCLOSED'', ran from May to July 2012 and featured 20 Indigenous artists, including Vernon Ah Kee, Julie Gough,
Alick Tipoti Alick Tipoti (born 1975), whose traditional name is Zugub, is a Torres Strait Islander artist, linguist, and activist of the Kala Lagaw Ya people, from Badu Island, in the Zenadh Kes (Torres Strait). His work includes painting, installations, ...
, Christian Thompson, Lena Yarinkura, Michael Cook and Nyapanyapa Yunupingu. The theme alludes to "the spoken and the unspoken, the known and the unknown, what can be revealed and what cannot". The exhibition afterwards toured the country, shown at Cairns Regional Gallery, the Anne & Gordon Samstag Museum of Art in
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
and the Western Plains Cultural Centre in Dubbo, NSW. The 3rd National Indigenous Art Triennial, ''Defying Empire'', was held from 26 May to 10 September 2017, curated by Tina Baum, NGA Curator of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art. The title references the 50th anniversary of the
1967 referendum The 1967 Australian referendum occurred on 27 May 1967 under the Holt Government. It contained three topics asked about in two questions, regarding the passage of two bills to alter the Australian Constitution. The first question (''Constitution ...
, that recognised Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australians for the first time. The 4th Triennial ''Ceremony'', takes place from 26 March to 31 July 2022. It explores the idea of ceremony, and is curated by
Hetti Perkins Hetti Kemerre Perkins (born 1965) is an art curator and writer. She is the eldest daughter of Australian Aboriginal activist Charles Perkins and German Eileen Munchenberg, a granddaughter of Hetty Perkins, sister to film director Rachel Perkins ...
.


Balnaves Contemporary Series

In 2018 the Balnaves Contemporary Intervention Series was launched, delivered in partnership with the Balnaves Foundation. The platform, later renamed to Balnaves Contemporary Series, commissions artists to create new work. Artists commissioned by this project include Jess Johnson and
Simon Ward Simon Anthony Fox Ward (16 October 194120 July 2012) was a British stage and film actor. He was known chiefly for his performance as Winston Churchill in the 1972 film ''Young Winston''. He played many other screen roles, including those of Sir ...
(2018); Sarah Contos (2018); Patricia Piccinini (''
Skywhales ''Skywhales'' is a 1983 British animated drama short film by Derek Hayes and Phil Austin that depicts a fictional society of alien creatures dwelling in the atmosphere of a gas giant. The film is noted for the completeness of its depiction of a f ...
'', 2020-21);
Judy Watson Judy Watson (born 1959) is an Australian Waanyi multi-media artist who works in print-making, painting, video and art installation, installation. Her work often examines Indigenous Australian histories, and she has received a number of high pr ...
and Helen Johnson; and Daniel Crooks (2022).


''Know My Name''

''Know My Name'' is "an initiative of the National Gallery of Australia to celebrate the significant contributions of Australian women artists". Launched in 2019, after it was discovered that only 25 per cent of the gallery's collection was made by women, it features exhibitions, events, commissions, creative collaborations, publications and partnerships that highlight the talent and work of women artists. As part of the program, the NGA also instigated a new set of principles to ensure gender parity in the organisation, programming and collections. The exhibition ''Know My Name: Australian Women Artists 1900 to Now: Part One'', held from 14 Nov 2020 to 9 May 2021, featured art made by women, drawn from the NGA's own collection as well as other institutions around Australia. Featured artists included Margaret Olley,
Yvonne Koolmatrie Yvonne Koolmatrie (born 1944) is an Australian artist and weaver of the Ngarrindjeri people, working in South Australia. Early life Koolmatrie was born in Wudinna, Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. Her father was a Kokatha man, Joseph Roberts, ...
,
Tracey Moffatt Tracey Moffatt (born 12 November 1960) is an Indigenous Australian artist who primarily uses photography and video. In 2017 she represented Australia at the 57th Venice Biennale with her solo exhibition, "My Horizon". Her works are held in th ...
,
Emily Kame Kngwarreye Emily Kame Kngwarreye (or Emily Kam Ngwarray) (1910 – 3 September 1996) was an Aboriginal Australian artist from the Utopia community in the Northern Territory. She is one of the most prominent and successful artists in the history of Austr ...
,
Mabel Juli __NOTOC__ Mabel Juli (born 1931) is a contemporary artist from the East Kimberley in Western Australia. Early life Juli was born in 1931 or 1932 at Five Mile, near Moola Boola Station. Her traditional name is Wiringoon and her traditional co ...
, Rosemary Laing,
Grace Cossington Smith Grace Cossington Smith (20 April 189220 December 1984) was an Australian artist and pioneer of modernist painting in Australia and was instrumental in introducing Post-Impressionism to her home country. Examples of her work are held by every ...
, Thea Proctor, Betty Muffler,
Stella Bowen Esther Gwendolyn "Stella" Bowen (1893–1947) was an Australian artist and writer. Early career Bowen was born in North Adelaide, an inner suburb of Adelaide, South Australia, and educated at Tormore House School. As a young girl, Bowen enjoy ...
, Dora Chapman, Fiona Foley, Brenda L. Croft, and many others. A book entitled ''Know My Name'' was published to accompany the exhibition. A four-day conference was held to coincide with the exhibition's opening. ''Know My Name: Australian Women Artists 1900 to Now: Part Two'' was opened on 12 June 2021 and finishes on 26 June 2022. The two exhibitions do not purport to be a complete account, but rather "
ook Ook, OoK or OOK may refer to: * Ook Chung (born 1963), Korean-Canadian writer from Quebec * On-off keying, in radio technology * Toksook Bay Airport (IATA code OOK), in Alaska * Ook!, an esoteric programming language based on Brainfuck * Ook, th ...
at moments in which women created new forms of art and cultural commentary such as
feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
... ighlightingcreative and intellectual relationships between artists across time".


Other exhibitions

*''The Great Impressionist Exhibition'' (1984) *'' Ken Tyler: Printer Extraordinary'' (1985) *''
Angry Penguins ''Angry Penguins'' was an art and literary journal founded in 1940 by surrealist poet Max Harris, at the age of 18. Originally based in Adelaide, the journal moved to Melbourne in 1942 once Harris joined the Heide Circle, a group of avant-garde ...
and Realist Painting in Melbourne in the 1940s'' (1988) *''Under a Southern Sun'' (1988–89) *''Australian Decorative Arts, 1788–1900'' (1988–89) *''Word as Image: 20th Century International Prints and Illustrated Books'' (1989) *'' Rubens and the Italian Renaissance'' (1992) *''The Age of Angkor: Treasures from the National Museum of
Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...
'' (1992) *'' Surrealism: Revolution by Night'' (1993) *''1968'' (1995) *''
Turner Turner may refer to: People and fictional characters *Turner (surname), a common surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Turner (given name), a list of people with the given name *One who uses a lathe for turni ...
'' (1996) *'' Rembrandt: A Genius and his Impact'' (1997–98) *''New Worlds from Old: 19th Century Australian and American Landscapes'' (1998) *''An Impressionist Legacy:
Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, , ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. During ...
to Moore, The Millennium Gift of Sara Lee Corporation'' (1999) *''
Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, , ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. During ...
& Japan'' (2001) *'' William Robinson: A Retrospective'' (2001–02) *'' Rodin: A Magnificent Obsession, Sculpture and Drawings'' (2001–02) *''
Margaret Preston Margaret Rose Preston (29 April 1875 – 28 May 1963) was an Australian painter and printmaker who is regarded as one of Australia's leading modernists of the early 20th century. In her quest to foster an Australian "national art", she was al ...
, Australian Printmaker'' (2004–05) *''No Ordinary Place: The Art of David Malangi'' (2004) *''The
Edwardians The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...
: Secrets and Desires'' (2004) *''
Bill Viola Bill Viola ( , ; born 1951) is an American contemporary video artist whose artistic expression depends upon electronic, sound, and image technology in new media. His works focus on the ideas behind fundamental human experiences such as birth, d ...
: The Passions'' (2005) *'' James Gleeson: Beyond the Screen of Sight'' (2005) *'' Constable: Impressions of Land, Sea and Sky'' (2005) *''
Imants Tillers Imants Tillers (born 1950), is an Australian artist, curator and writer. He lives and works in Cooma, New South Wales. Early life and education Imants Tillers was born in Sydney in 1950, the child of Latvian immigrants. In 1973 he graduated fro ...
: Inventing Postmodern Appropriation'' (2006) *''
George W. Lambert George Washington Thomas Lambert (13 September 1873 – 29 May 1930) was an Australian artist, known principally for portrait painting and as a war artist during the First World War. Early life Lambert was born in St Petersburg, Russia, ...
Retrospective: Heroes & Icons'' (2007) *''
Turner Turner may refer to: People and fictional characters *Turner (surname), a common surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Turner (given name), a list of people with the given name *One who uses a lathe for turni ...
to
Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, , ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. During ...
: The Triumph of Landscape'' (2008) *''
Degas Edgar Degas (, ; born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas, ; 19 July 183427 September 1917) was a French Impressionist artist famous for his pastel drawings and oil paintings. Degas also produced bronze sculptures, prints and drawings. Degas is espec ...
: Master of French Art'' (2009) *'' McCubbin: Last Impressions 1907–1917'' (2009) *''Masterpieces from Paris'' (2010), on loan from Musée d'Orsay. *'' Ballets Russes: The Art of Costume'' (2011) *''
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...
: 15th & 16th Century Italian Paintings from the
Accademia Carrara The Accademia Carrara, (), officially Accademia Carrara di Belle Arti di Bergamo, is an art gallery and an academy of fine arts in Bergamo, in Lombardy in northern Italy. The art gallery was established in about 1780 by , a Bergamasco col ...
, Bergamo'' (2011–2012) *''
Toulouse-Lautrec Comte Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec-Monfa (24 November 1864 – 9 September 1901) was a French painter, printmaker, draughtsman, caricaturist and illustrator whose immersion in the colourful and theatrical life of Paris in the l ...
- Paris & the Moulin Rouge'' (2012–2013) *''
Jeffrey Smart Frank Jeffrey Edson Smart (26 July 1921 – 20 June 2013) was an expatriate Australian painter known for his precisionist depictions of urban landscapes that are "full of private jokes and playful allusions". Smart was born and educated i ...
'' (2021-2022)


Collection

The collection of the National Gallery of Australia held more than 166,000 works of art as of 2012. and includes: * Australian art ** Australian Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often groupe ...
art (mostly recent, but in traditional forms) ** Art in the European Tradition (from European settlement to the present day) *
Western art The art of Europe, or Western art, encompasses the history of visual art in Europe. European prehistoric art started as mobile Upper Paleolithic rock and cave painting and petroglyph art and was characteristic of the period between the Paleo ...
(from Medieval to Modern, mostly Modern) * Eastern art (from South and East Asia, mostly traditional) * Modern Art (international) * Pacific Arts (from Melanesia and Polynesia mostly traditional) * Photography (International & Australian) *
Crafts A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale prod ...
(dishes to dresses, international) *
Sculpture garden A sculpture garden or sculpture park is an outdoor garden or park which includes the presentation of sculpture, usually several permanently sited works in durable materials in landscaped surroundings. A sculpture garden may be private, owned by ...
( Auguste Rodin to Modern)


Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art

This collection is dominated by the '' Aboriginal Memorial'' of 200 painted tree trunks commemorating all the indigenous people who had died between 1788 and 1988 defending their land against invaders. Each tree trunk is a ''dupun'' or log coffin, which is used to mark the safe tradition of the soul of the deceased from this world to the next. Artists from
Ramingining Ramingining is an Aboriginal Australian community of mainly Yolngu people in the Northern Territory, Australia, east of Darwin. It is on the edge of the Arafura Swamp in Arnhem Land. Wulkabimirri is a tiny outstation (homeland) nearby, and Mur ...
painted it to mark the Australian Bicentenary and it was accepted for display by the
Biennale of Sydney The Biennale of Sydney is an international festival of contemporary art, held every two years in Sydney, Australia. It is a large and well-attended contemporary visual arts event in the country. Alongside the Venice and São Paulo biennales and ...
in 1988. Mollison agreed to purchase it for permanent display before its completion.


Australian art (non-Indigenous)

This includes works by: * John Glover – ''Mount Wellington and Hobart Town from Kangaroo Point'' *
Frederick McCubbin Frederick McCubbin (25 February 1855 – 20 December 1917) was an Australian artist, art teacher and prominent member of the Heidelberg School art movement, also known as Australian impressionism. Born and raised in Melbourne, Victoria, McCubb ...
– ''Afterglow'', ''Bush Idyll (on long term loan from private collection)'' *
Tom Roberts Thomas William Roberts (8 March 185614 September 1931) was an English-born Australian artist and a key member of the Heidelberg School art movement, also known as Australian impressionism. After studying in Melbourne, he travelled to Europe ...
– ''Going Home, Storm Clouds'', ''
In a corner on the Macintyre ''In a corner on the Macintyre (Thunderbolt in an encounter with police at Paradise Creek)'' is a 1895 painting by the Australian artist Tom Roberts. The painting is thought to depict the bushranger Captain Thunderbolt in a shootout with po ...
'', ''An Australian Native'', ''The Sculptor's Studio'' *
Arthur Streeton Sir Arthur Ernest Streeton (8 April 1867 – 1 September 1943) was an Australian landscape painter and a leading member of the Heidelberg School, also known as Australian Impressionism. Early life Streeton was born in Mt Moriac, Victoria, sou ...
– ''From McMahons Point – Fare 1 Penny'', ''The Selector's Hut'', ''Golden Summer'','' Spirit of the Drought'' *
Charles Conder Charles Edward Conder (24 October 1868 – 9 February 1909) was an English-born painter, lithographer and designer. He emigrated to Australia and was a key figure in the Heidelberg School, arguably the beginning of a distinctively Australi ...
– ''The Yarra, Heidelberg'', ''Bronte Beach'', ''Under a Southern Sun'' *
Margaret Preston Margaret Rose Preston (29 April 1875 – 28 May 1963) was an Australian painter and printmaker who is regarded as one of Australia's leading modernists of the early 20th century. In her quest to foster an Australian "national art", she was al ...
– ''Flying over the Shoalhaven River'', ''Flapper'' *
Grace Cossington Smith Grace Cossington Smith (20 April 189220 December 1984) was an Australian artist and pioneer of modernist painting in Australia and was instrumental in introducing Post-Impressionism to her home country. Examples of her work are held by every ...
– ''Interior in Yellow'' *
Lloyd Rees Lloyd Frederic Rees (17 March 18952 December 1988) was an Australian landscape painter who twice won the Wynne Prize for his landscape paintings. Most of Rees's works are preoccupied with depicting the effects of light and emphasis is placed o ...
– A'' South Coast Road'' *
William Dobell Sir William Dobell (24 September 189913 May 1970) was an Australian portrait and landscape artist of the 20th century. Dobell won the Archibald Prize, Australia's premier award for portrait artists on three occasions. The Dobell Prize is named ...
– ''The Red Lady'' * Albert Tucker – ''Pick up'', ''Images of modern evil'' (collection), ''Victory Girls'' * Russell Drysdale – '' The Drover's Wife'', ''The Rabbiter and his Family'' * Sidney Nolan – ''Ned Kelly'', ''The Slip'', ''The Burning Tree'', ''Constable Fitzpatrick and Kate Kelly'', ''Stringybark Creek'', ''The Chase'', ''Kelly Crossing the Bridge'' (and many other Ned Kelly paintings), ''Kiata'', ''Head of a Soldier'' *
Arthur Boyd Arthur Merric Bloomfield Boyd (24 July 1920 – 24 April 1999) was a leading Australian painter of the middle to late 20th century. Boyd's work ranges from impressionist renderings of Australian landscape to starkly expressionist figuration, ...
– ''The Mining Town'', ''Boat Builders, Eden'' *
Joy Hester Joy St Clair Hester (21 August 1920 – 4 December 1960) was an Australian artist. She was a member of the Angry Penguins movement and the Heide Circle who played an integral role in the development of Australian Modernism. Hester is best known ...
– ''Nude in Hat'', ''Mother and Child'' *
John Perceval John de Burgh Perceval AO (1 February 1923 – 15 October 2000) was a well-known Australian artist. Perceval was the last surviving member of a group known as the Angry Penguins who redefined Australian art in the 1940s. Other members include ...
– ''Boy with Cat'' *
Ron Mueck Hans Ronald Mueck ( or /ˈmuːɪk/; born 1958) is an Australian sculptor working in the United Kingdom. Biography Born in 1958 to German parents in Melbourne, Australia, Ron Mueck grew up in the family business of puppetry and doll-making. He ...
– ''Pregnant Woman'' * Patricia Piccinini – '' The Skywhale''


Western art

The focus of the Gallery's international collection is primarily on late 19th-century and 20th-century art although not all artworks are on display. There is a strong collection of modern works. It includes works by: *
Paul Cézanne Paul Cézanne ( , , ; ; 19 January 1839 – 22 October 1906) was a French artist and Post-Impressionist painter whose work laid the foundations of the transition from the 19th-century conception of artistic endeavour to a new and radically d ...
''L'Après-midi à Naples'' (Afternoon in Naples) *
Claude Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, , ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. Durin ...
– '' Haystacks, Midday'' and ''
Water Lilies ''Water Lilies'' (or ''Nymphéas'', ) is a series of approximately 250 oil paintings by French Impressionist Claude Monet (1840–1926). The paintings depict his flower garden at his home in Giverny, and were the main focus of his artisti ...
'' * Fernand Léger – ''Trapeze Artists'' *
Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
- A complete set of the '' Vollard Suite'' *
Jackson Pollock Paul Jackson Pollock (; January 28, 1912August 11, 1956) was an American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. He was widely noticed for his " drip technique" of pouring or splashing liquid household paint onto a hor ...
– '' Blue Poles'', ''Totem Lesson 2'' *
Willem de Kooning Willem de Kooning (; ; April 24, 1904 – March 19, 1997) was a Dutch-American abstract expressionist artist. He was born in Rotterdam and moved to the United States in 1926, becoming an American citizen in 1962. In 1943, he married painter El ...
– ''Woman V'' *
Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the Art movement, visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore th ...
– ''Elvis'', ''Electric Chair'' *
Mark Rothko Mark Rothko (), born Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz (russian: Ма́ркус Я́ковлевич Ротко́вич, link=no, lv, Markuss Rotkovičs, link=no; name not Anglicized until 1940; September 25, 1903 – February 25, 1970), was a Lat ...
– ''Multiform'', ''Black, Brown on Maroon'' or ''Deep Red and Black'' * Roy Lichtenstein – ''Kitchen Stove'' *
David Hockney David Hockney (born 9 July 1937) is an English painter, draftsman, printmaker, stage designer, and photographer. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considered one of the most influential British artists o ...
– '' A Bigger Grand Canyon'' *
Lucian Freud Lucian Michael Freud (; 8 December 1922 – 20 July 2011) was a British painter and draughtsman, specialising in figurative art, and is known as one of the foremost 20th-century English portraitists. He was born in Berlin, the son of Jewis ...
– '' After Cézanne'' *
Henri Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a drawing, draughtsman, printmaking, printmaker, and sculptur ...
- ''Oceania, the Sea'', ''Oceania, the Sky'' * Constantin Brâncuși - '' Bird in Space'' *
Albert Gleizes Albert Gleizes (; 8 December 1881 – 23 June 1953) was a French artist, theoretician, philosopher, a self-proclaimed founder of Cubism and an influence on the School of Paris. Albert Gleizes and Jean Metzinger wrote the first major treatise on ...
- ''
Woman with Black Glove ''Woman with Black Glove'' (French: ''Femme au gant noir'', or ''Femme Assise'') is a painting by the French artist, theorist and writer Albert Gleizes. Painted in 1920, after returning to Paris in the wake of World War I, the paintings highly a ...
'' (''Femme au gant noir'') The Gallery has a small collection of European
Old Master In art history, "Old Master" (or "old master")Old Masters De ...
paintings, which are on long-term loan to the
National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum. The NGV houses an encyclopedic art collection across two ...
and the Art Gallery of New South Wales.


Eastern art

This includes: * Tang Standing Horse figure, a Tang dynasty tomb figure.


Sculpture garden

The sculpture garden includes works by: * Bert Flugelman – ''Cones'' * Antony Gormley - ''
Angel of the North The ''Angel of the North'' is a contemporary sculpture by Antony Gormley, located in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England. Completed in 1998, it is believed to be the largest sculpture of an angel in the world and is viewed by an estimated 33 m ...
(life-size maquette)'' *
Fujiko Nakaya is a Japanese artist, a member of Experiments in Art and Technology, and a promoter, supporter, and practitioner of Japanese video art. She is best known for her fog sculptures. Early life and education Nakaya was born in Sapporo in 1933, whe ...
– ''Fog sculpture'', this only operates between noon and 2pm. It has been seen as a work of Gas sculpture. * Henry Moore – ''Hill Arches'' *
Mark di Suvero Marco Polo di Suvero (born September 18, 1933, in Shanghai, China), better known as Mark di Suvero, is an abstract expressionist sculptor and 2010 National Medal of Arts recipient. Biography Early life and education Marco Polo di Suvero was bor ...
– ''Ik Ook'' * Auguste Rodin – ''
The Burghers of Calais ''The Burghers of Calais'' (french: Les Bourgeois de Calais) is a sculpture by Auguste Rodin in twelve original castings and numerous copies. It commemorates an event during the Hundred Years' War, when Calais, a French port on the English Cha ...
'' (1 of 12 sets) *
Aristide Maillol Aristide Joseph Bonaventure Maillol (; December 8, 1861 – September 27, 1944) was a French Sculpture, sculptor, Painting, painter, and printmaking, printmaker.Le Normand-Romain, Antoinette . "Maillol, Aristide". ''Grove Art Online. Oxford ...
– ''La Montagne (The Mountain)'' *
Clement Meadmore Clement Meadmore (9 February 1929 – 19 April 2005) was an Australian-American sculptor known for massive outdoor steel sculptures. Biography Born Clement Lyon Meadmore in Melbourne, Australia in 1929, Clement Meadmore studied aeronautical ...
– ''Virginia'' * Barnett Newman – ''Broken Obelisk''


See also

*
Art of Australia Australian art is any art made in or about Australia, or by Australians overseas, from prehistoric times to the present. This includes Aboriginal, Colonial, Landscape, Atelier, early-twentieth-century painters, print makers, photographers, an ...
* Art Gallery of New South Wales, the major art gallery in Sydney * Art Gallery of South Australia *
List of sculpture parks This is a list of sculpture parks by country. Africa Morocco *Anima Garden, from Marrakech just off the Ourika road South Africa *Sculpture Garden of the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, Cape Town *Nirox Sculpture Garden, 1 hour dri ...
* National Gallery of Australia Research Library *
National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum. The NGV houses an encyclopedic art collection across two ...
, the major art gallery in Melbourne and Australia's oldest and largest public art gallery * National Portrait Gallery, also in Canberra


References


Further reading

* - Includes link to PDF of the article "Art museums in Australia: a personal retrospect" (originally published in ''Journal of Art Historiography'', No 4, June 2011).


External links

*
A virtual walk through National Gallery of Australia - 2015

Kenneth Tyler Printmaking Collection Online at the National Gallery of Australia
*
National Gallery of Australia on Artabase

National Gallery of Australia
within Google Arts & Culture * {{DEFAULTSORT:National Gallery Of Australia Commonwealth Government agencies of Australia Art museums and galleries in Australia Museums in Canberra Brutalist architecture in Australia National museums of Australia Sculpture gardens, trails and parks in Australia 1982 establishments in Australia Buildings and structures completed in 1982 Art museums established in 1982