Category Archives: News

Advocacy | Letter to The Hon Paul Fletcher MP to reverse the decision to cut 10% of staff at the National Gallery of Australia

Advocacy, News

On Monday 6 July, the Executive Committee of the Art Association of Australia New Zealand wrote to The Hon Paul Fletcher MP, Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety, and the Arts outlining their concerns with the proposed decision to cut staff by 10% at the National Gallery of Australia and what the ramifications would be with such a decision on the sector. Dear Minister, The Art Association of Australia and New Zealand (AAANZ), the peak professional body representing art historians, artists, and art curators in Australasia and the Pacific, objects strongly to the decision to cut 10% of staff at the […]

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Joanna Mendelssohn | Staff cuts will hurt the National Gallery of Australia, but it’s not spending less on art. It’s just spending it differently

Advocacy, News

Staff cuts will hurt the National Gallery of Australia, but it’s not spending less on art. It’s just spending it differently Thennicke/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA Joanna Mendelssohn, University of Melbourne On September 10 1965, Sir Robert Menzies commissioned the National Art Gallery Committee of Inquiry to consider the establishment of a national gallery for Australia. The resulting Lindsay Report, published in 1966, is an ambitious document, describing an art gallery to serve the nation through the quality and range of its collections and exhibitions. It emphasised the need to have an all encompassing collection of Australian art. The report recognised, […]

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News | Humanities hit hardest when needed more than ever | Australian Academy of the Humanities

News

Humanities hit hardest when needed more than ever The Australian Academy of the Humanities today expressed deep concern about the Government’s changes to university fee structures, which disproportionally  affect the humanities and call into question the very role of the 21st century university. “This is potentially the greatest hit to Australia’s humanities sector in a century”, said Professor Joy Damousi, President of the Australian Academy of the Humanities. At a time when the Government has announced new policy strategies to combat disinformation and to develop ethical AI, the incentives for students to study the subjects which are the ‘source code’ of […]

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News | Prime Minister, this is your moment to create Australia’s future | NAVA

News

The National Association for the Visual Arts highlights what’s needed and what’s at stake with the Arts and cultural investment statement. Priorities for immediate investment: Introduce a substantial $500m recovery fund accessible to all arts and cultural organisations across all artforms and at all scales Establish an arts and culture working group to advise the National COVID19 Coordination Commission Harmonise income averaging arrangements between the ATO and Centrelink, so that artists can claim JobSeeker; extend JobKeeper for casuals who have been employed at least 3mo; extend JobKeeper to the end of January 2021 Expand income support eligibility to local government […]

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News | NCCA first public gallery to reopen its doors

News

The Northern Centre for Contemporary Art in Darwin was the first public gallery to reopen its doors following the start of Covid-19 restrictions being lifted in the Northern Territory. Audiences could see the exhibition priNT 2020 from 12pm, Friday 15 May.  Curated by Mats Unden, the exhibition showcases local and national printmakers Winsome Jobling, Anna Russell, Anne McMaster and Namminnapu Mayuru-White. Image: Winsome Jobling, ‘Look #1’, 2019, handmade paper, abaca and cotton with pigmented cotton

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Residency | TOP 5 Arts | with the ABC and University of Melbourne

News

ABC is partnering with the University of Melbourne to present TOP 5 Arts, giving a voice to Australia’s next generation of Arts practitioners and researchers. TOP 5 Arts is media residency for graduate early-career practitioners and PhD researchers working in visual arts, performance, design, architecture and screen. The scheme seeks to equip early-career graduate Arts practitioners and PhD Arts scholars with media and communication skills to share their ideas and specialist knowledge widely through expert commentary and analysis. Winners will work alongside some of Australia’s best journalists and broadcasters to train in the craft of radio and TV interviews and […]

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News | AAANZ Conference Postponed to December 2021

AAANZ Conference, News

In light of escalating measures to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus that have led to widespread job losses and economic hardship for many people and has created much uncertainty in planning the 2020 AAANZ conference. AAANZ and the 2020 Conference Organising Committee have made the decision to postpone the conference scheduled to be held in Sydney in December this year. The conference will be delayed 12 months and will be hosted by the University of Sydney, the University of New South Wales and other partners in December 2021. While we expect the crisis to have passed by the […]

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News | NAVA COVID-19 Ceative Industry Letter to Government

Advocacy, News

On Thursday, 26 March, Esther Anatolitis, Exectuive Director, National Association for the Visual Arts organised more than fifty orgs to come together to write to the Prime Minister, key frontbenchers, the Opposition, the state ministers, and the lord mayors, outlining urgent action needed for the industry: Letter to Federal and State Ministers Please see the media release Creative Industry Unites Esther acknowledges the important collaboration between Australia’s self-directed First Nations arts orgs who authored the paragraph on First Peoples impacts and extends thanks to Merindah Donnelly and colleagues. What’s next? Please share if you’re on social media with #DontCancelCreativity Please […]

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News | AAANZ COVID-19 UPDATE

News

With the effects of Covid-19 amplifying daily in Australia, New Zealand and around the world, wide sweeping measures are being implemented to limit its spread. This includes the temporary closure of universities and cultural institutions, the cancelling or postponement of entertainment and sporting events and the restriction of passage across borders both within and between countries. AAANZ extends its concerns and sympathies to all members, colleagues and industry stakeholders as we navigate through profound changes to daily life and the economic upheaval that is being created. Many forthcoming conferences and art events are being reduced in scope, postponed or cancelled. […]

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