Development of the Collection
The collection was developed by gift and commission in its early days and subsequently by purchase.
The foundation work in the collection was a 1927 Buckmaster portrait of JR Kefford, which was financed by public subscription. Kefford was the Shire Secretary of the Shire of Nunawading and the first Town Clerk for the City of Box Hill.
In 1952 JS Gawler, on his retirement from Council, donated two paintings by E Phillips Fox to the collection. Phillips Fox, as a student at the National Gallery School had joined Tom Roberts, Fred McCubbin and others on weekend sketching tours from 1885, the same year they established the camp at Box Hill.
The collection developed further in the late 1950s, 1960s and 1970s when Andrew Walls, the Town Clerk at Box Hill, expanded the ‘heritage’ section of the collection.
During the 1980s, 1990s and earlier this decade, the collection expanded further by way of development through purchasing and through the gifting of works to the Art Collection, as part of the Federal Government’s Cultural Gift Program. There are now more than 1,000 works in the collection. Contemporary works in the collection cover a wide range of media interests and philosophies.
The collection includes:
- Over 500 works on paper including drawings, collage and over 300 prints;
- Almost 200 paintings with landscapes as the principle subject matter;
- Over 300 contemporary ceramic works representing a useful holding of key works by major figures. Some 200 of these represent a 25 year long term loan from Ceramics Victoria; and
- A small collection of sculpture, jewellery, glass, woodwork and works in fibre.
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The Future of the Collection
In November 1997, Council approved a policy for the Art Collection. This policy, due for review in 2007, allows for the proper ongoing management and development of the collection.
The mission statement for the collection reads:
“The City of Whitehorse Art Collection will reflect people’s experience of life. The collection will thematically represent the environment encompassing a sense of history, people, place and identity which indicates the dynamic nature of the community.”
Adoption of this policy recognises the benefits of the City having an Art Collection. These include:
- the Art Collection identifies the City’s heritage and honours the area as the genesis of Australian art;
- it assists in building a community identity;
- it integrates works of art into the community so the community is regularly exposed to quality art;
- it reflects the culture and interests of the community;
- it provides an educative function which allows residents to enjoy a range of quality visual art, thereby enriching their lives;
- it provides access to key aspects of the development of fine art and craft in Australia;
- it has an ambassadorial role for the City; and
- it maintains the tradition established by the foresight of early Councillors.
Council has committed itself to a modest continuing development of the collection and in 2006, purchased ceramics with a further two works being donated. These include two ceramic dogs by indigenous artist Brian Firebrace and two paintings, one of which was painted by Arthur Boyd Snr. A complete catalogue of the works in the Art Collection, accompanied by essays by leading Victorian arts writers and curators was published by the City of Whitehorse in 2002. A range of Art Cards featuring key works from the Art Collection, are available for purchase from Service Centres in Whitehorse and from the Whitehorse Art Space.
Part time curatorial staff professionally manage the collection and its display. The City’s Visual Arts Committee, consisting of arts professionals and experts living and working in Whitehorse, plays an important role in selecting works for purchase and developing the exhibition program.
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Access to the Collection
Exhibitions developed from the Art Collection are regularly staged at the Whitehorse Art Space, a new and inspiring museum standard space at the Box Hill Town Hall. Works from the collection are also displayed in the foyers of the Whitehorse Civic Centre, Council Chambers and the Whitehorse Centre as well as being on display in the Waratah Room at the Whitehorse Centre.
Works are on display in the Committee Rooms of the Council Chambers, Nunawading, in meeting rooms at the Box Hill Town Hall and from time to time, works from the collection are on display at the Box Hill Community Arts Centre. Works from the collection are also, occasionally, lent to public galleries for their exhibitions. The National Gallery of Victoria borrowed work from Whitehorse by Tom Roberts for an Australian Impressionism exhibition in 2007.
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Art in Public Places
The Art in Public Places program has developed the range and scope of the City’s public art. The most recent project, a sculpture of the African Butterfly Chiclid was donated by the Commonwealth Games Committee and City of Melbourne. It is sited in the grounds of Aqualink Box Hill. Other major public artworks include Spirit of Whitehorse by Graham Radcliffe and Unity by Stephen Glassborow, both have been prominently sited on Whitehorse Road.
Other relatively recent works include a cast bronze work by Inge King, Dervish, at the entrance to the Civic Centre and three whimsical puzzle pieces called Three Thirds, by Matthew De Moiser and Blair Laing, gracing the garden at the entrance to the Box Hill Branch of the Whitehorse Manningham Library Corporation.
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