Saturday 7 September 2019, 9.30am – 4.00pm
National Wool Museum, 26 Moorabool St, Geelong VIC 3220
$130 OZQN members/$150 non-members
Many museums, galleries and private collectors collect quilts. At this symposium private and institutional collectors will talk about what they have in their collections, how their collections have been formed, their collection objectives, acquisition policies and approaches to donations. They will also show us items from their collections.
In the context of Art Quilt Australia 2019, on exhibition at the National Wool Museum at this time, the symposium will also consider the vibrant nature of artquilt making in Australia today and what it tells us about our Australian art/craft culture. It will also focus on visions, future directions and opportunities for art quilts.
Speakers include:
- Dr. Annette Gero, quilt collector, curator, author;
- Katie Somerville, National Gallery of Victoria;
- Edwina Jans, Museum of Australian Democracy;
- Ruth Nunn, Australian Quilt and Textile Collection; and
- Padraic Fisher, National Wool Museum.
Bookings closed on 30 August 2019.
Cost: $130 for OZQN members, $150 for non-members (includes lunch and morning and afternoon tea)
See the Travel Information page for details about transport, accommodation and activities for Friday 6 September.
SPEAKERS BIOGRAPHIES
Dr Annette Gero is author and Director of the company, Australian Historic Quilts. Since the 1980s she has put Australian quilting on the map, was the first person to introduce Australian quilting at conferences overseas, and has used her collection extensively to promote the Art of quilting. Gero is an elected member of the Royal Society of Arts (London); a member of the advisory board of the International Quilt Museum, USA; lecturer for ADFAS, and has curated over 33 exhibitions of her quilt collection nationally and internationally, including the Musee de Impression sur Etoffes France; the Museum of Traditional Arts, France; the European Quilt Symposium ; Berlin Museum, the Houston Quilt Festival, USA , as well as exhibiting in England, New Zealand and Australian National galleries. She is author of four books, three on the history of Australian quilts and one on her latest collection, quilts made from military fabrics. This collection was exhibited in New York last year where it was regarded as the second best exhibition in the world and is now regarded as the foremost collection of these woollen quilts internationally.
Katie Somerville is the Senior Curator of Fashion and Textiles at the National Gallery of Victoria. Katie has worked with a range of fashion and textile collections for over 25 years. Katie joined the curatorial department at the National Gallery of Victoria in 1995. She currently manages the research and development of the collection and the ongoing program of publications and exhibitions for the Fashion and Textiles Department. Kate has curated and co-curated numerous exhibitions including, Making the Australian Quilt: 1800-1950 in 2016.
Edwina Jans is an archaeologist, museums and cultural heritage expert who is Head Heritage Communications and Development at MoAD, the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House. A current member of the ACT Heritage Council and the Executive Committee of Australia ICOMOS, Edwina is a prominent member of the Australian heritage and collections sector. Edwina has developed many exhibitions, most recently #UDHRQuiltProject: craftivism, quilts and human rights and drives the collecting and exhibiting of fashion and textiles as political documents at MoAD.
Ruth Nunn has been passionate about quilting and patchwork since the 1990s. She is one of the founders of the Australian Quilt and Textile Collection which formed following a quilting trip to America in 2011.There she visited many quilting museums including the Daughters of the Revolution Museum (DAR) in Washington and the International Quilt Study Centre in Lincoln Nebraska. This stirred a long held concern about collecting quilts in Australia, especially quilts relating to more recent times. Ruth was also one of the masterminds behind the Sovereign Hill Quilting Weekend which ran successfully for 15 years bringing Australia’s finest tutors to Ballarat.
Padraic Fisher joined the National Wool Museum in Geelong as its Director in August 2012. He is a New York native with over 40 years’ experience in arts, culture and heritage across three continents as well as an actor, manager, producer, artist, curator, collector and educator. Padraic is a decorative arts generalist, with an extensive private collection exceeding 2,000 objects. He is Vice-President of the Victorian Branch of the Australian Museums and Galleries Association; and a Paul Harris Fellow, Rotary International.
