The Queensland Art Gallery acknowledges that each Australian state has a particular cultural history. In 1998 it recognised the importance of collecting works by Queensland-born or Queensland-based artists by establishing a specialist curatorial position, Research Curator (Queensland Heritage). In December 2006, the Gallery opened a new Queensland Heritage Gallery, presenting works exploring the early history of the state, dating from the colonial period to the 1930s.
Queensland Heritage encompasses the work of artists in all media, both historical and contemporary, and aims to establish a distinctive regional identity for Queensland. Works by visiting artists who documented the state's early development, such as Conrad Martens in 1851, also feature.
One of the Gallery's aims is to acquire works by artists who represent the cultural endeavours of this state at a national level. A substantial body of work by each artist will be acquired to document their development and maturity. Representation of Queensland artists such as Isaac Walter Jenner, Vida Lahey, L.J. Harvey and his school, Bessie Gibson, Vincent Brown, Vincent Sheldon, Kenneth Macqueen, Jon Molvig, Ian Fairweather and Carl McConnell is a strength of the Gallery's Collection. In more recent years, the Gallery has acquired works by William Robinson, Robert MacPherson, Gwyn Hanssen Pigott, Thanakupi, Gordon Bennett and Tracey Moffatt ― artists whose careers have brought distinction to the visual arts in this state.
The Gallery regularly changes the works on display to ensure visitors have the opportunity to view a wide variety of works from the Collection. The online interactive resource, Design your own tour, includes images and information on some of the art works currently on display. |
