Gippsland Art Gallery

Gippsland Art Gallery

External front façade of the Port of Sale building
Established	1965
Location	70 Foster Street,Sale, Victoria
Coordinates	38.1117°S 147.0635°E/-38.1117; 147.0635
Type	Art gallery
Director	Simon Gregg
Website	http:// gippslandartgallery

TheGippsland Art Gallery,formerlySale Regional Art Centre,is aVictorianRegional Public Gallery based inSale,220 km (140 mi) east ofMelbourne.The gallery is operated by theShire of Wellington,and has a focus on the natural environment and artists based inGippsland.

History

The gallery was opened on 25 September 1965 byRupert Hamer,as the Sale Regional Art Centre. It was built above the Sale Library at 82 Macalister Street, Sale. Construction of the gallery was funded by astate governmentgrant of £20,000, with the Sale City Council contributing a further £10,000.An intensive program of temporary exhibitions was organised, complete with educational materials, and the institution soon became an important resource centre for schools, arts and crafts groups and the public, covering the whole area of Central and East Gippsland.

In 1989 the gallery was relocated afterblue asbestoswas found in the ceiling.It occupied several temporary locations before settling at 288 Raymond Street for some time.

In 1995 the gallery relocated to its current location at 70 Foster Street and changed its name to the Gippsland Art Gallery.

Between 2015 and 2017 the building underwent a major redevelopment to improve facilities and increase exhibition space. The new fit-out was designed by FJMT Architects, Melbourne, and opened to the public on 6 January 2018.

In 2018, theExxonMobil AustraliaCollection of Australian Art, a significant collection of artworks spanning the breadth of the twentieth century, was donated to the gallery.

In 2020 the Gippsland Art Gallery Foundation was launched, a charitable fund to support acquisitions of major artworks and projects into the future.

Past exhibitions

The gallery has presented a number of significant exhibitions throughout its history. Important exhibitions include 'FromFrederick McCubbinto Charles McCubbin' (2008), which explored the creative legacy of the McCubbin Family; 'Lost Highways' (2009), the first major survey exhibition of work by Melbourne artistTony Lloyd;and 'Disappearers' (2009), which explored the absent figure in the work of eight contemporary Australian photographers. The Gallery has also presented major exhibitions of work byWilliam Delafield Cook,Robbie Rowlands,Kylie Stillman,Sam Jinks,Charles McCubbin,Annemieke Mein,Jane Burton, andBill Henson.In 2011 the Gallery presented the first ever comprehensive survey of work by Russian-born Swiss artistNicholas Chevalier(1828–1902). The exhibition coincided with the release of a major publication by Curator Simon Gregg, which includes a detailed catalogue raisonne of Chevalier's Australian works. The exhibition later toured toGeelong Art Gallery.

In 2021 the Gallery hosted the prestigiousArchibald Prizefor portraiture.

Governance and description

The gallery is operated by theShire of Wellington.Its director since 2018 isSimon Gregg.

It is located at the Port of Sale, 70 Foster Street, Sale.It exhibits art of all media, styles and periods, but has a focus on the natural environment and artists based in Gippsland.

The gallery has six exhibition spaces over 800 m²(8,600 sq ft), including a space dedicated to Sale-based textile artistAnnemieke Mein,which rotates displays twice times annually.

Permanent collection

Gippsland Art Gallery is home to a permanent collection of over 3,000 items, consisting of paintings, works on paper, ceramics, sculpture, textiles, woodwork and metalwork. The collection has a focus on the natural environment, and specifically Gippsland artists and Gippsland themes. The collection includes works byPieter Bruegel the Elder,Jan Hendrik Scheltema,Portia Geach,Fred Williams,Peter Booth,Rodney Forbes, Victor Majzner, Rosemary Laing,Tony Lloyd,Polixeni Papapetrou,Annemieke Mein,Charles Rolando,Bill Henson,Ann Greenwood,Andrew Browne,andSam Leach.

It is also home to the Esso Australia Collection of Australian Art, a significant collection of 20th century artworks.

John Leslie Art Prize

The gallery hosts the biennial John Leslie Art Prize forlandscape painting,which is presented every even year. The award is named after John LeslieOBE(1919—2016), former Patron of the gallery.

As of 2022the main prize is a $20,000 acquisitive award, and there is also a $1,000 non-acquisitive prize for the "Best Gippsland Work".

Past winners have included:

• David Keeling(2000),
• Vera Möller (2002)
• Mark McCarthy (2004)
• Brigid Cole-Adams (2006)
• Andrew Mezei (2008)
• Jason Cordero (2010)
• Tony Lloyd(2012)
• Shannon Smiley (2014)
• Amelda Read-Forsythe withUnder the Storm(2016)
• Vanessa Kelly withWyatt Brothers Chicory Kiln, Corinella Gippsland(2018),
• Sarah Tomasetti withKailash from the Air(2020)
• Greg Wood withV34 Reimagining(2022).
• Peter Gardiner withElephant,2024

Publications

To mark its 50th birthday, in 2015 the Gallery publishedHindsight: Gippsland Art Gallery History & Collections, 1965–2015.Written and compiled by Simon Gregg, the 446-page book chronicles the history of the Gallery, collection highlights, and a complete collection catalogue.

Past directors

Past directors are:

• Gwen Webb OAM (1976–1990)
• Giacomina Pradolin (1990–1991)
• Anthony Dahlitz (1992)
• Judy Miles (1993–1994)
• Michael Young (1994–2005)
• Anton Vardy (2005–2017)