Art Gallery of Western Australia

History

The Art Gallery was originally housed in the Jubilee Building with the State Museum and Library. The Jubilee Building, which was intended to be a public library only, was to be opened in honour of Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887, but instead, only the first stone for the foundation was laid. The foundation stone was laid for the Art Gallery in July 1901 by the Duke of Cornwall and York, shortly after the federation of Australia.

Several notable individuals were involved with the development of the Jubilee Building and Art Gallery, including John Winthrop Hackett, James Battye, Ludwig Glauert, George Pitt Morison and George Temple-Poole.

The Art Gallery Administration Building is housed in the former Police Quarters, designed by architect Hillson Beasley, who also designed Government House. It was built during the economic boom created by the 1890s Kalgoorlie gold rush. The Administration Building moved into the Police Quarters in the 1970s during the nickel mining boom.

The Main Gallery Building was built in 1977, and was also spurred by the mining boom. Western Australia was also placing more importance on cultural institutions, and the government was inspired by the upcoming 150th anniversary of federation in 1979. Construction of the Alexander Library began in the same period.

The architect of the main gallery building was Charles Sierakowski from the Public Works Department, who worked with engineer Philip Nadebaum and architectural company, Summerhayes and Associates.It was designed in the Bauhaus method with a Brutalist exterior, which was popular in European design. The slab and shear head column system was an innovative architectural feature in Western Australia at the time.

In 2017 AGWA announced plans to redevelop its rooftop as focus for sculpture, events, restaurants and film, in a project called "AGWA Elevate". This opened in November 2021. The state government pledged $10 million towards this project. In the same year, "Six Seasons", a high-profile project to increase the focus on AGWA's Indigenous art, was initiated, with a new dedicated permanent Indigenous gallery inaugurated alongside "Plain Speak", a special exhibit for the Perth International Arts Festival.

Collections and exhibitions

The Aesthetic Movement inspired aspects of the Art Gallery's collection.

Ongoing exhibitions include Indigenous traditional and contemporary art from the Northern Territory and Western Australia, and Western Australian art from the 1820s to 1960s, alongside topical displays on key themes drawn from the collection.

Desert River Sea: Kimberley Art Then and Now is a major project begun around 2013, exploring Indigenous Australian art with funding support from Rio Tinto to the tune of A$1.8million. In 2019, Desert River Sea: Portraits of the Kimberley was mounted, a culmination of a six-year project between AGWA and Aboriginal artists and six art centres of the Kimberley. There is a separate website dedicated to the project.

Each year, AGWA exhibits work by talented graduating high school artists in its Year 12 Perspectives exhibition. In 2018, there were 55 works exhibited.

Awards

The Lester Prize

The Lester Prize, formerly the Black Swan Prize for Portraiture, is one of Australia's richest portraiture prizes. Forty finalists are exhibited at AGWA during October and November each year.

In 2007 Tina Wilson founded the Black Swan Prize In 2014, included the Black Swan Prize for Heritage, for artworks depicting aspects of the heritage of Perth, and supported by the City of Perth. In 2016 the award moved to AGWA, at which time Wilson stepped down from her role as patron.

In April 2019, the prize was renamed the Lester Prize in recognition of the award's main patron, Richard (Dick) Lester. with a total prize pool of . In 2022, 720 entries were submitted from across the country.

Tom Malone Glass Art Prize

The Tom Malone Glass Art Prize, formerly known as the Tom Malone Prize (TMP), was established in 2003 by then governor of the AGWA Foundation, Elizabeth Malone. From 2018 it was supported by benefactor Sheryl Grimwood. The prize is awarded for contemporary glass art.

The acquisitive prize was worth in 2022, when it celebrated its 20th year. The prize was increased to in 2023, when the shortlisted entries were presented in a new venue, at Linton and Kay Galleries in The Pickle District of West Perth. , the prize is worth

Winners include:

• 2005: Clare Belfrage
• 2011: Clare Belfrage
• 2019: Mark Eliott, Down at the water table
• 2020: Mel Douglas,Tonal Value, 2019
• 2022: Tim Edwards, Ellipse #8
• 2023: Liam Fleming, Transitory Form #8

Gallery

|File:John Longstaff - Breaking the News, 1887.jpg |John Longstaff, Breaking the News, 1887

|File:Down on his luck Frederick McCubbin.jpg |Frederick McCubbin, Down on His Luck, 1889

|File:Heysen Droving.jpg |Hans Heysen, Droving into the Light, 1921

|File:The Foundation of Perth.jpg |George Pitt Morison, The Foundation of Perth 1829, 1929

References

References

1. (2001-08-28). "Register of Heritage Places: Art Gallery & Museum Buildings".
2. Morison, George Pitt. (September 2023). "Illustrated Catalogue of the Art Gallery". Public Library, Museum and Art Gallery of Western Australia.
3. (2005). "The Linton Legacy".
4. (2000-03-24). "Register of Heritage Places: Art Gallery Administration Building".
5. (2006-05-09). "Register of Heritage Places: Art Gallery of Western Australia Complex".
6. [https://web.archive.org/web/20201204225811/https://www.dlgsc.wa.gov.au/department/news/news-article/2020/07/20/art-gallery-rooftop-project-to-feature-giant-aboriginal-artwork Art Gallery rooftop project to feature giant Aboriginal artwork] [[Department of Local Government, Sport & Cultural Industries]] 20 July 2020
7. [https://web.archive.org/web/20221110043634/https://www.adcoconstruct.com.au/news/stunning-agwa-rooftop-opened-by-premier/ Stunning AGWA rooftop opened by Premier] ADCO Constructions 10 December 2021
8. (17 February 2017). "Everyone has a history – Part One: Plain Speak". Art Almanac.
9. "Art Gallery of Western Australia". Museums of the World.
10. (February 2019). "Curator Tour - Desert River Sea".
11. Fairley, Gina. (26 February 2019). "Review: Desert River Sea, Art Gallery of Western Australia".
12. "Desert River Sea: Portraits of the Kimberley – The Exhibition Experience".
13. McDonald, John. (1 March 2019). "Review: Perth Festival exhibitions".
14. (27 May 2019). "Indigenous Artwork - Art Gallery Of WA".
15. (28 August 2018). "Museum of Freedom & Tolerance".
16. (25 May 2022). "Our Story".
17. (10 October 2022). "Black Swan Prize for Portraiture 2018".
18. (7 October 2022). "Historical details for ABN 76 562 139 103".
19. (22 September 2014). "2014 Black Swan Portraiture Prize".
20. Wynne, Emma. (29 September 2022). "In the age of phone selfies, why does the painted portrait still enthral us?".
21. "About 1".
22. (17 July 2024). "2024 Tom Malone Glass Art Prize".
23. "Tom Malone Prize 2022".
24. (16 February 2024). "THE 2023 TOM MALONE GLASS ART PRIZE".
25. (20 December 2024). "Clare Belfrage".
26. (14 March 2019). "Mark Eliott wins the 2019 Tom Malone Prize".
27. (27 March 2020). "Glass artist Mel Douglas awarded the 2020 Tom Malone Prize for her work Tonal Value 2019". The West Australian.
28. "The winner of the twentieth Tom Malone Prize revealed".
29. (22 March 2024). "The 2023 Tom Malone Glass Art Prize: Adelaide artist Liam Fleming wins at Linton and Kay Galleries, West Perth".