The newly established Dobell Exhibition Grant (DEG) will allow the development of new, curated exhibitions of visual arts in NSW regional galleries.
With a generous gift from the Sir William Dobell Art Foundation, Museums & Galleries of NSW (M&G NSW) will offer $40,000 in funding to one NSW regional gallery per annum. The program is expected to run for up to 6 years. Funding will be targeted towards the development and delivery of curated exhibitions that significantly support artists, extend public appreciation and engagement with the visual arts and expand curatorial skills and creativity.
In addition to the support provided by the Sir William Dobell Art Foundation, M&G NSW will offer successful applicants the opportunity to develop a national tour of their funded exhibition.
As Karen Wann, Chairman of the Sir William Dobell Art Foundation explains, there is incredible value in the partnership: “The fundamental tenet of the Foundation is to expand engagement with the visual arts in NSW. M&G NSW’s intention to support exhibitions that speak to a broad audience across the state and creatively engage artists and the community, speaks to our core purpose. We look forward to seeing the wonderful exhibitions that will result from this gift.”
Michael Rolfe, CEO M&G NSW is anticipating the delivery of cutting-edge exhibitions at a regional level: “A gift such as this will stimulate creative risk-taking and allow freedom for the very best of contemporary exhibition practice to flourish.”
This is not the first time M&G NSW and the Foundation have connected. The twentieth anniversary of the Dobell Drawing Prize at the Art Gallery of NSW was celebrated in 2013 with a touring exhibition managed by M&G NSW. ‘Contemporary Australian Drawing: 20 Years of the Dobell Prize for Drawing’ toured the previous prize winning works and others acquired into the AGNSW collection to regional galleries in NSW and the ACT. A special book was published detailing the history of the Prize as well as its 700 plus participating artists.
Now, because of the vision of the Sir William Dobell Art Foundation, M&G NSW is able to deliver much needed support for exhibition development and delivery at a regional level.
Top image: Sir William Dobell painting H Rubenstein at Dobell House, Wangi Wangi
Bottom image: Max Dupain, William Dobell, 1942, gelatin silver photograph, 30.1 x 30.3 cm
Collection: National Portrait Gallery, Canberra. Gift of Richard King, 2008
