Art Gallery of New South Wales - History

History

On 24 April 1871, a public meeting was convened to establish an Academy of Art 'for the purpose of promoting the fine arts through lectures, art classes and regular exhibitions.' From 1872 until 1879 the Academy's main activity was the organisation of annual art exhibitions. On 11 November 1880, at its 9th Annual Meeting, the Academy dissolved itself, stating that its aims had been realised in the foundation of a public Gallery. The Gallery at this time was known simply as The Art Gallery of New South Wales. In 1883 its name was changed to The National Art Gallery of New South Wales. The Gallery was incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1899. The Library and Art Gallery Act 1899 provided for the general control and management of the Gallery. The fine arts display at the Sydney International Exhibition of 1879-1880 became the nucleus of a government collection administered by the Royal Art Society of New South Wales. However, most of the collection was destroyed in the Garden Palace Fire of 1882, and the Art Society along with the trustees for the Academy of Art (formed in 1871) spent the next thirteen years debating with the state government, the press and the public, the need for a permanent gallery, its site, and the architect to build it. The Academy of Art trustees preferred a private architect, whereas the government want the assignment to be given to the Colonial Architect, James Barnett, whose building included the Sydney General Post Office on Martin Place.

By the time the site was agreed upon in 1895, James Barnet had retired and the new Colonial Architect, Walter Liberty Vernon (1846–1914), was given the assignment. As a temporary measure, John Horbury Hunt, a private architect, had designed a small brick structure, built in 1885, to temporarily house the collection. This building, which was dwarfed by the new gallery when it opened in 1897, remained to the rear of the new gallery until it was demolished in 1969 to make way for the extensions.

The first two picture galleries were opened in 1897 and a further two in 1899. A watercolour gallery was added in 1901 and in 1902 the Grand Oval Lobby was completed.

In 1958, the gallery was renamed The Art Gallery of New South Wales under a new act of that name.

In 1968, the New South Wales Government decided that the gallery would be extended as a major part of the Captain Cook Bicentenary celebrations. As a result, the "Captain Cook wing" was built and opened to public in November 1970. New gallery space was provided in five storeys behind the original classical façade, increasing the racking space to 1.25 linear kilometres, with a new café, a sculpture courtyard and administrative offices. The extensions were designed by Andrew Andersons of PTW Architects and constructed of grey rough concrete.

More recently, as part of the "Open Museum" project, sculptures have been positioned along the entry road. On 23 October 2003 a new Asian Arts wing was opened. It was designed by Sydney architect Richard Johnson and included alterations to the original Asian gallery, a new temporary exhibition space above the Art Gallery’s entrance foyer, new conservation studios, a café, a restaurant and dedicated function area. In 2003 the gallery also extended its opening hours until 9pm on Wednesday nights.

On 10 June 2007, a 17th-century work by Frans van Mieris, entitled A Cavalier (Self Portrait), was stolen from the gallery. The painting had been donated by John Fairfax and was valued at over $1 million. The theft raised questions about need for increased security at the gallery.

In 2010, the John Kaldor Family Gallery was created by removing onsite storage to offsite.