QUEEN VICTORIA MUsEUM AND ART GALLERY

Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery

To the Minister for the Arts 

The Mayor and Aldermen of the Launceston City Council are 

pleased to submit, in accordance with the Local Government 

Act 1993, the Annual Report for the Queen Victoria Museum 

and Art Gallery for the year ended June 2009. 

Frank Dixon 

GENERAL MANAGER 

Launceston City Council 

Contents 

About the Queen Victoria Museum 

and Art Gallery 2 

QVMAG Mission Statement 2 

Location 2 

Admission 2 

Opening Hours 2 

Contact Details 2 

Introduction 3 

Museum Highlights 4 

Activities 4 

Acquisitions 5 

The Collections 6 

Arts 6 

Humanities 6 

Natural Sciences 6 

Physical Sciences 6 

Collection Management 6 

Collection Development 7 

Collection Research 7 

Collection Conservation 8 

Community Support 8 

Outward Loans 9 

Education 10 

Highlights 10 

Playgroup 10 

Museum Learning Centre 10 

Animal Loans 10 

Exhibitions 10 

Information services 11 

Exhibitions 12 

Inveresk 12 

Exhibits 12 

Museum Publications 13 

Publication Highlights 13 

Papers and Articles 13 

Newsletters Edited 14 

Corporate Support and Special Purpose Grants 14 

Grants 14 

Sponsors 14 

Support Groups 14 

Launceston Museum and Art Gallery Foundation 15 

Plomley Foundation 16 

Volunteers 17 

Staff 18 

Appendix 21 

Appendix 1 21 

Appendix 2 21 

Appendix 3 23 

Appendix 4 27 

Appendix 5 28

About the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery 

QVMAG Mission Statement 

Our Mission is to be a leader in the intellectual and creative 

development of Launceston and the State by increasing our 

enjoyment and understanding of our natural and cultural 

heritage. 

Location 

QVMAG is located at the Inveresk Precinct 

2 Invermay Road Launceston 

Admission 

Admission to the QVMAG is free. 

Entry fees are charged for some exhibitions. 

Opening Hours 

Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery @ Inveresk 

Open 10 am – 5 pm daily 

All venues closed Christmas Day and Good Friday 

Contact Details 

PO Box 403, Launceston, Tasmania 7250 

Telephone (03) 6323 3777 

Facsimile (03) 6323 3776 

History Branch 

Telephone (03) 6323 3726 

www.qvmag.tas.gov.au 

2

Introduction 

Last year Inveresk had been the focus of much activity with the 

transfer of major elements, such as the exbibtions The Great 

Dying and Artstart, from Royal Park as well as the opening and 

success of Phenomena Factory. This year effort switched to Royal 

Park and its transformation. The appointment of Peddle Thorp 

Architects initiated a long process of planning, analysis and 

exploration which, in consultation with the Museum staff, led to 

the gradual emergence of the new QVMAG, on paper if not yet 

in the flesh of steel and stone. 

The evacuation of the building began—a monumental task given 

it had been the focal point of the City’s collections for over 120 

years. Structural, safety, heritage and access surveys took place 

leading to the appearance of an enormous number of holes 

and reports, all of which pointed the way forward. Some were 

alarming, revealing the necessity of complete rewiring and roof 

replacement, neither of which had been foreseen, but in the end 

the project adapted and survived. 

Reorganisation continued, the main outcome being the creation 

of three streamlined and larger curatorial areas: History, Natural 

Sciences and Visual Art and Design, now all of approximately the 

same size and large enough to sustain significant coordinated 

programs. Jon Addison and Dr Lisa-ann Gershwin were 

appointed as permanent full-time curators to History and 

Natural Sciences respectively. Advertisements were placed for 

two new curators in the Visual and Decorative Arts, bringing 

that section up to unprecedented capacity. An interim structure, 

approved to support the renovation project, saw Glenda King 

assume responsibility for Visual Arts and Design as well as the 

new Royal Park exhibitions. The Director stepped in as a ‘caretaker’ 

for shared services (IT, Library, Conservation and Photography) as 

well as History and Natural Sciences now led by their new curators. 

While travelling and in-house exhibitions continued to attract 

visitors (with a small but welcome rise in visitation to the 

QVMAG despite the closure of Royal Park), attention turned to 

redevelopment of the 1000 m 2 of the Stone Building at Inveresk, 

the re-hanging of Royal Park and the building of the new and reequipped 

Planetarium. These projects all made strong progress, 

though in most cases their fruits will not be visible until late 2010. 

Work on the collections continued with the installation of 

major runs of new high-load shelving in the ‘Plant Shop’ at 

Inveresk which is being configured to be a major History/ 

Technology store and an ‘access’ collections area. The roll out 

of File Maker Pro 9 (FMP) as the collection database platform 

continued and whole collections were switched to the new 

format. The digitisation of the Fine Art collections represented 

a major advance in this area. Local company Bloo Goo was 

commissioned to develop a new QVMAG website specifically 

designed to give access to the collections via the FMP platform 

as well as making other large digital resources such as oral 

histories, publications and collection guides available. 

A program to value the entire QVMAG collection was begun by 

the noted valuer Simon Storey. Though required by the Auditor 

General, the project will bring the QVMAG into line with other 

major institutions and be of great value to the Museum in terms 

of documentation and collection management. It is expected that 

the collections will be valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars. 

The year marked a strong recovery of the QVMAG as a source 

of valuable information. After a hiatus of over four years, the 

Records of the QVMAG were republished and a perusal of the 

listed scientific publications in this report will attest to a strong 

resurgence in our research output. 

This year started with the dreams of the new QVMAG taking 

solid form and ended with a diversion of most effort to the 

requirements of the new QVMAG in terms of exhibitions, 

collections, research and accessibility. The four-year reform 

program is entering its final year. 

None of this would have been possible without the generous 

and unwavering support of the Launceston City Council and the 

State Government of Tasmania. Above all we have been most 

encouraged by the positive community response to our efforts. 

The Friends of the QVMAG and the Launceston Museum and 

Art Foundation have been stalwart and active supporters, with 

the relaunch of the Art Foundation in June featuring Mr Ron 

Radford of the Australian National Gallery being a highlight of 

the year. The support of the Grote Reber Foundation, the Plomley 

Foundation and the Archer Trust carried us forward too, as did 

(as always), the tireless and imaginative efforts of the QVMAG 

staff. 

Patrick Filmer-Sankey 

Director 

3

Museum Highlights 

Activities 

• After experiencing a drop in visitors in 2007–08, the 

QVMAG gained a 2% increase in 2008–09. This is a pleasing 

result considering the Museum’s Royal Park site has been 

closed to the public for refurbishment and several exhibition 

spaces at the Museum’s Inveresk site have been unusable 

while awaiting further redevelopment. Permanent exhibitions 

to close at Inveresk this year include Pacific Encounters—in 

preparation for temporary Royal Park collection storage, and 

Past Lives, New Beginnings: Migration and Tasmania which 

makes way for the new Planetarium development. 

• The Collections and Information Services Department 

undertook a major consolidation project that saw various 

collection areas amalgamated. The Museum’s History, 

Oral History and Community History units combined into 

History, the sciences—Zoology, Botany and Geology—were 

consolidated under the banner of Natural Sciences while 

Fine Art and Decorative Arts and Design combined to form 

Visual Arts and Design. This was the next stage of the 

reconfiguration program that had commenced in 2007–08. 

These changes allow increased resources and support for 

individual staff members within these teams. Importantly, 

they also create curatorial streams that are required for the 

major redevelopment projects. 

This consolidation also allowed the Museum to considerably 

strengthen its curatorial and research resources. A Curator 

of History, Jon Addison, was appointed and Dr Lisa-ann 

Gershwin joined the Museum as Curator of Natural Sciences. 

Within the Visual Arts and Design team curatorial positions 

were redefined. Yvonne Adkins was appointed as Curator, 

19th Century Australian Art and Bridget Arkless to the 

position of Curator, Australian Art 1900–1980. Recruitment 

commenced for the two remaining curatorial positions in Visual 

Arts and Design; the newly created Curator of Contemporary 

Australian Art and the vacant position of Curator of Australian 

and International Decorative Arts and Design. 

• Following the closure of the Museum’s Royal Park site work 

commenced on the de-installation of all exhibition galleries, 

activity areas and the relocation of collection stores. In 

addition to galleries and collections, many staff are to be 

relocated during the renovations. This task, which it is 

estimated will take 18 months to complete, will leave Royal 

Park mostly vacant for builders and specialists to undertake 

the extensive refurbishment of the Museum’s original 

heritage site. 

• The new financial year saw many members of the Museum’s 

staff come together as the Steering Committee for the 

Museum’s second major project: the Inveresk Gallery Project 

(working title). The group worked to identify the ‘core stories’ 

of northern Tasmania’s social and natural history and formed 

smaller discipline-based working groups to detail those stories. 

The project brief followed by the IGP working groups was 

an ambitious one, with all the component exhibitions to be 

rich in QVMAG collections and to promote cross-discipline 

linkages. Preparations for IGP remained in a particularly 

strong position as the year concluded and all staff involved 

remained focussed on the task of rejuvenating over 1450 m 2 

of the Museum’s Stone Building at Inveresk. This new galley 

development will allow the public to see many of the Museum’s 

iconic collection items on display together. Some of these items 

have not been exhibited for many years, and some not at all. 

• The third major project for the Museum this year was the 

move of the Launceston Planetarium from Royal Park to its 

new location at Inveresk. As part of this project, and with 

the assistance of the Grote Reber Foundation, the Museum 

acquired a Zeiss ZKP3 planetarium projector to replace the 

aging ZKP1. This new projector will provide visitors with a 

much more engaging experience of the night sky. Early in the 

year planetarium staff assembled a new digital all-sky system 

called Mirrordome, which will be used to show fulldome 

video in the new planetarium. A fulldome video show entitled 

Dawn of the Space Age, produced by the company Mirage3D, 

and which has been popular in planetariums all around the 

world was purchased and this, along with in-house shows 

already in production, will allow the Museum to provide shows 

specifically designed for a range of different groups. 

• Possibly the most ambitious and demanding public event 

hosted within the QVMAG@Inveresk this year involved the 

filming of two episodes of the very popular ABC television 

program The Collectors. Museum visitors were invited to take 

part as the live audience and were able to experience the 

impressive amount of production work that goes into live 

television. The main focus of the shows was the Museum, 

its collections and the heritage of the Inveresk site, but 

also included were segments on local, northern Tasmanian 

collectors. The shows were filmed in late August and 

screened in October 2008. 

4

• The QVMAG has worked in very close association with 

the biennial Ten Days on the Island since 2001. This year 

the Museum hosted the sound installation Sirens by Ray 

Lee. Sirens found its perfect home in the future temporary 

exhibition gallery in the large Stone Building, one of 

Inveresk’s raw and undeveloped spaces. The area was totally 

blacked-out to create a purely sonic environment. 

Acquisitions 

• This was another year with significant additions to the 

collections. In particular it is important to pay tribute to 

the support obtained from the Launceston Museum and 

Art Gallery Foundation and the Friends of the Queen 

Victoria Museum and Art Gallery who acquired a number 

of significant items for the collection. Their continued 

commitment to this institution is invaluable. The support 

of Mr John Hawkins and Mr John Millwood who both 

contributed to the acquisition of an 1830s blackwood sofa is 

also gratefully acknowledged. 

An interesting possible connection to Samuel Horton, 

who settled Somercotes near Ross, Tasmania in 1823, and 

whose portrait is in the Museum’s collection, may be found 

through this fine Tasmanian blackwood double-ended sofa 

dated c. 1830–35. With its restrained curvilinear backboard 

surmounted by a compact Prince of Wales feather, the sofa 

has an elegance and simplicity of design. There is very good 

evidence that this sofa is the matching pair to one already 

held by the Museum, received through a generous bequest 

of Toni and Peter Bessant of Launceston. Both sofas are 

made of blackwood and have identical carved motifs. Their 

construction and measurements, down to screw holes, 

match at numerous points. Matching sofas from this period 

are exceptionally rare and limited in Australia to about four 

pairs that are predominantly in cedar. It is thought that there 

are no known pairs of blackwood sofas. The exact history of the 

sofa is unclear at this point and further research is required to 

reveal the histories of both sofas. 

• Notable works which entered the collection during this year 

included: 

Tom Roberts, Ulverstone Beach c. 1928–30, an oil on canvas 

on composition board, is a highly significant acquisition 

for the Museum as it is the first Tasmanian landscape by 

Tom Roberts to enter the collection. Roberts, ‘the father of 

Australian landscape painting’ had a binding connection 

to northern Tasmania through marriage. His first wife Lillie 

Williamson was born in Launceston and his second wife Jean 

Boyes lived at ‘Lochmaben’ near Longford. Consequently 

he was a frequent visitor to Tasmania where he spent time 

painting in the landscape. Small in scale, this charming image 

is a fine example of Robert’s late landscape painting. This 

was purchased in 2008 by the Launceston Museum & Art 

Gallery Foundation. 

Well-known Launceston artist, Robyn McKinnon’s 

Mr Glover’s Antipodean Garden, 2007 an acrylic on canvas, 

is a large landscape painting featuring a big, expansive 

view of very small native flowers and plants. The artist has 

transposed the detail of the Tasmanian bushland, particularly 

its wildflowers, onto canvas in an impressionistic rather than 

scientific manner. This work was purchased by the Friends of 

the Museum through the Launceston Museum & Art Gallery 

Foundation, 2008 

5

The Collections 

The Museum serves as a major centre for the collection, 

conservation and exhibition of Tasmania’s natural, historical 

and cultural heritage. It collects, researches and disseminates 

information in four major areas: Arts, Humanities, Natural 

Sciences and Physical Sciences. 

Arts 

Includes paintings, works on paper and sculpture from all 

periods, the historical Australian and international decorative 

arts collections, and the contemporary Australian craft and 

design collections. 

Provides information to a wide variety of individuals and 

organisations as well as undertaking research with particular 

emphasis on Tasmanian historical and contemporary art, 

Tasmanian historical decorative arts and contemporary 

Australian craft and design. 

Humanities 

Includes the collections of Tasmanian documents, photographs 

and ephemera that are primarily concerned with the northern 

region of the State, as well as the collections of material culture 

of Tasmania since European settlement, incorporating the 

ethnography, technology and archaeology collections. 

Provides information to a wide variety of research workers, 

organisations and individuals, as well as undertaking research, 

with a particular emphasis on Tasmanian photography, and 

industrial and social history. An important area of activity is the 

development of the Oral History Collection. 

Natural Sciences 

Includes the collections of Botany, Geology and Zoology, with 

collections mainly of Tasmanian origin but also including 

material from mainland Australia and overseas. 

Provides information to a number of government agencies, 

research workers, community groups and the general public as 

well as undertaking research in the taxonomy of invertebrate 

fossils in Tasmania and the taxonomy and ecology of Tasmanian 

flora and fauna. 

Physical Sciences 

Includes the Launceston Planetarium theatre. 

Provides information on astronomical matters and contributes to 

international research programs. 

Collection Management 

• Substantial progress was made during the year with the reformation 

of the Museum’s databases driven by the mutually 

supportive aims of increasing collection access, both 

internally and externally, and improving the quality of the 

data recorded on many aspects of the Museum’s collections. 

• A complete review of the paintings database was 

commenced. This included an audit of the collection records 

and of the paintings held in the collection. This major project, 

when completed and accompanied by visual records, will 

create a much more functional and accessible collection 

database. This will provide a more effective resource to 

facilitate the extensive research that will be required as part 

of the development of the exhibitions for the new art gallery 

at Royal Park. 

• Work commenced on the works-on-paper database which, 

when completed, will provide a similarly valuable resource. 

It will allow greater access to the breadth of the extensive 

works-on-paper collections. In hand with the Fine Art 

collection database project, significant time was allocated to 

work on location records. This work also informed decisions 

that were made during the year concerning the new 

collection stores that will form a key part of the Royal Park 

redevelopment. 

• All collection and conservation staff completed File Maker 

Pro training during the year in preparation for the changeover 

of collection databases. 

• The Collections Operations Group continued its work on the 

review of the industrial technology collection which ranges 

from large machinery from ocean-going vessels to smaller 

transport objects such as bicycles. The Group reviewed 

and identified items for de-accessioning, rehousing and 

commenced work on a re-organisation of the store area to 

increase ease of access to the collections for research and 

collection management. 

6

• Over 7200 collection records were checked for uploading to 

OzCAM. 

• An assessment of the value of our collection holdings was 

begun by Simon Storey. 

• Wet Vertebrate Collection was reorganised with mammals, 

reptiles and amphibians now stored in taxonomic order. 

• Small skeletal material in the Dry Vertebrate Collection was 

transferred to more appropriate containers and re-labelled to 

improve accessibility and security of material. 

• Sorting of mollusc samples collected from Greens Beach by 

RH Green and E Buchanan continued. 

• Ongoing re-housing, registration and shelving of invertebrates 

from Northern River Monitoring program continued. 

• Continued program of transferring pinned specimens from 

open drawer storage to unit trays. 

• Instituted and maintained a program of freezer fumigation to 

minimise risk to the dry Botany collection from insect attack. 

• Re-housing of part of fungal collection was undertaken. 

• Accessioning, registering, databasing and storage of 

specimens in the Rock Collection, the A Monger Collection 

and the Mineral collection continued. 

• An audit of Tertiary and Quaternary material began. 

• Audit and re-housing of Bullock Creek and Quaternary 

material in the Vertebrate Fossil Collection continues. 

• Complete re-housing and organising of the Plant Fossil 

Collection was undertaken. 

• Two thylacine mounts were conserved, put on protective 

mount boards and given secure storage support. 

• One Thylacine mount was x-rayed by the Launceston 

General Hospital. All mounts have now been x-rayed. 

Collection Development 

• The Museum’s new acquisition procedures had their first 

full year of operation. They have proved an effective tool 

in assisting both the curatorial staff and the Acquisitions 

Committee with achieving collection development 

objectives. All items accepted into the collections this year 

are listed at Appendix 3. 

Collection Research 

• Research on the Thylacine collection was continued. This 

included ongoing collaboration with TMAG regarding 

publishing part of this research. 

• Illustrations were completed of European Red Fox, Vulpes 

vulpes, as supplementary material for Skulls of the Mammals 

of Tasmania book. 

• Research continued on Australian and dangerous jellyfishes. 

• Natural Sciences Research Associates continued working 

on their respective projects: Bob Mesibov on Millipedes of 

Australia; and Andrew Osborn and Nigel Forteath on the 

Fauna of Lake Pedder. 

• Staff continued their research on various aspects of the 

collections. The variety of these projects ranged in subject 

from ceramics to jellyfish to thylacines to colonial portraits. 

Many staff members are involved in research in preparation 

for the upcoming redevelopment of Inveresk’s exhibition 

spaces. 

• A number of external institutions and individuals were 

assisted with their research through access to the Museum’s 

collections and information. This year these included 

researchers from: 

• Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery 

• CSIRO Entomology ANIC 

• DPIW 

• Melbourne University 

• Arts Tasmania, 

• South Australian Museum 

• Landcare Research, Auckland NZ 

• University of Tasmania 

• Griffith University 

• Collections Council of Australia 

• Threatened Species Unit 

7

Collection Conservation 

The Museum’s Conservation section—including Objects, Paper 

and Paintings Conservation—was very active preparing items for 

exhibitions at both the Inveresk and Royal Park sites. Services 

provided by these departments include: 

• condition reporting 

• relocating objects 

• providing advice about environmental control, pest 

management, display methods, suitability of display 

materials and OH&S issues 

• conservation and restoration treatments 

• installation of items. 

Two major portraits by Conway Hart depicting Mr Samuel 

Horton and Mrs Elizabeth Horton were conserved by the 

Museum’s Painting Conservation section this year. Samuel 

Horton’s portrait was in very poor condition, mainly caused by 

water damage and an opened old seam in the canvas. Extensive 

treatment included removing the painting from its stretcher, 

paint consolidation, surface cleaning, joining and seam with linen 

thread and re-stretching. Similarly Elizabeth Horton’s portrait had 

severe distortions, tears and creases in the canvas, and it also had 

an opened old seam. Treatment included removal from stretcher, 

flattening distortions, extensive tear repair, surface cleaning, joining 

seam and re-stretching. 

• The Museum provides information to other institutions, the 

media and the public. Museum staff answer enquiries from 

members of the public, ranging from insect identification 

to collection enquiries and access requests to more general 

questions about the local region. 

• The QVMAG has continued to support the Tasmanian 

Government outreach initiative which offers advice to 

small museums and collections by providing a base for Arts 

Tasmania’s Roving Curator program. 

• The Museum has provided in-kind support for the Oral 

History Association of Australia in hosting and providing 

technical support for the association’s conference website. 

• The Museum regularly hosts work experience students for a 

number of local high schools and colleges. 

• Although the Planetarium itself has been closed its staff 

have continued to be an important source of astronomical 

information. For example, sunrise and sunset data is provided 

to newspapers and television stations and astronomical 

enquiries have continued to be answered. These include 

rising and setting times of the Sun and the Moon for legal 

investigations; requests for computations from people and 

organisations doing research; and general public enquiries about 

the night sky. 

Community Support 

The QVMAG continues to enjoy successful partnerships 

with a number of community organisations. Through these 

collaborations Museum patrons enjoy access to an enriched 

program of activities in and around the Museum precinct. 

These groups include: 

• The Royal Society of Tasmania 

• Musica North 

• The Launceston Historical Society 

• The Friends of the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery 

• TAFE Tasmania 

• University of Tasmania 

• Arts at Work 

• Herpetological Society of Tasmania 

• Choose Employment 

• Arts Tasmania 

8

Outward Loans 

The significance of the Museum’s collections is recognised 

nationally. Many requests are received from other institutions 

each year to borrow items from the collections for exhibition or 

research. The Museum acknowledges this as an opportunity to 

provide improved access to its collections for a much broader 

audience and tries to accommodate these requests whenever 

possible. Items which have been on extended loan during the last 

year include: 

• Copper samovar – Governor’s Residence, Norfolk Island 

• Collection of domestic objects – National Trust of Australia 

(Tas) Franklin House, Launceston 

• ‘A’ Class locomotive – Don River Railway, Devonport 

• Heard Island blubber press – Antarctic and Southern Ocean 

exhibition, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart 

• Sydney Cove beer bottle – Numismatics exhibition, Tasmanian 

Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart 

• Exhibition of archaeological Chinese tin mining site material 

from Sir Garnet Creek – St Helens History Room 

• Model of semaphore – Military Museum of Tasmania, 

Anglesea Barracks 

• Selection of historical plates detailing community donors of 

funds and equipment to the Launceston General Hospital 

– Launceston General Hospital 

• Selection of 19th century furniture provenanced to the Ford 

Family of Highfield, Stanley – Highfield Historic House, Stanley 

• Selection of archaeological material from Wybalenna 

– Ningenneh Tunapry exhibition, Tasmanian Museum and Art 

Gallery, Hobart 

• Carved coconut goblet from the hulk Anson – Historic Houses 

Trust of NSW 

• Truganinni basket – Tayenebe exhibition, Tasmanian Museum 

and Art Gallery, Hobart 

• Items from Ross Female Factory – Tasmanian Museum and 

Art Gallery, Hobart 

• Items from Sydney Cove collection – Tasmanian Maritime 

Museum 

• Bothwell Cup – John Hawkins Lecture, Tasmanian Museum 

and Art Gallery, Hobart 

• Six Regency inlaid chairs (early 19th century) and a dropside 

table (early 19th century) – National Trust of Australia 

(Tasmania) Ltd for display at Franklin House, Launceston 

• John Coburn, Canticle 1966, a tapestry – Tasmanian Wool 

Centre, Ross 

• Four individual designs from the Modernage Fabrics texiles that 

were designed by Jack Carrington-Smith, Russell Drysdale, Jean 

Bellette and Alice Danciger and produced by Silk and Textiles, 

Hobart in 1947 – Claudio Alscorso Foundation 

The following artworks were also loaned: 

John Brack 

Portrait of Lindesay Clark 1969 

Oil on canvas 

Loaned to the John Brack Retrospective, National Gallery of 

Victoria, Melbourne, 24 April – 9 August 2009 and the Art 

Gallery of South Australia 2 October 2009 – 31 January 2010. 

Rosalie Gascoigne 

Pub, 1976 

Assemblage made from weathered wood, wool, hand-coloured 

photo, enamelling, wallpaper 

Loaned to Rosalie Gascoigne, National Gallery of Victoria, 19 

December 2008 – 15 March 2009 

Bea Maddock 

Street Reflection 

Head II 

Running 

Boy with a Bicycle I 

Cripple II 

From the Melbourne Series 1967-68, drypoints 2002 

Loaned to Open Air: Portraits and Landscapes, National Portrait 

Gallery, Canberra, 3 December 2008 – 1 March 2009 

9

Education 

The Museum’s Education Section is responsible for the provision 

of educational programs to encourage learning opportunities and 

enjoyment of our natural and cultural heritage. 

Highlights 

A Collected View 

This initiative is the result of a two-year project undertaken by 

the volunteer Gallery Guides in conjunction with the Museum’s 

Education Section. The Guides conducted extensive research 

which was edited and collated to produce an impressive 

publication cataloguing many of the works in the Museum’s 

Colonial Art Collection. Since being launched by Tasmanian poet, 

Alan Taylor, A Collected View has proven to be a very popular 

product, selling well through the Museum Shop. 

After School Classes 

Another initiative of the Museum’s Education Section this year 

was the introduction of a program of after-school art classes. 

This program was the result of a perceived gap in after-school 

activities available for children in Launceston. The classes were 

run by local artist, Lucy Cameron, and Museum Education 

Officer, Helene Weeding and were fully booked through Term 1 

and 2 in 2009. Both the students and teachers thoroughly enjoyed 

the experience with some travelling from as far away as Deloraine 

and Lilydale to participate. 

Playgroup 

With many of the Museum’s exhibition areas closed to the public 

during the year, themes for Playgroup were drawn from events 

and travelling exhibitions and where possible linked to collection 

items. Themes have included: Wildlife of Gondwana; Trains; 

Tadpoles and Tails; Rough and Smooth, Bright and Shiny; Music 

with a Bang; A Day at the Beach; Japanese Festivals; Mother 

Goose Day and Follow the Shape. 

Additional sessions have been run for playgroups throughout the 

region, including Hadspen, Legana, Early Learning Beauty Point, 

Deloraine Primary and Larmenier School. 

Animal Loans 

The Animal Loans Outreach Program continues to provide a 

unique opportunity for school students, childcare facilities, 

playgroups and community organisations by offering a collection 

of over 200 specimens for hire. Weekend pickup is still the 

preferred option for busy school teachers and general public alike. 

Drysdale’s Polytechnic Eco/Adventure Guiding students have 

toured Animal Loans several times over the past year, generating 

encouraging feedback from the unit co-ordinator and resulting in the 

students returning to hire loans to assist with assignments. 

Exhibitions 

ArtStart continues to receive a great deal of support from primary 

schools in the north as well as the general public. A wonderful 

standard of work has attracted many visitors and, on average, over 

100 guests have attended each of the openings. 

The exhibitions on show during 2008–09 included In the Eye of 

the Beholder, Ideas and Emotions and Hide and Seek. 

Art Rage 2008 was opened at the Museum on 20 December 

2008 by Michelle O’Byrne, Minister for Environment, Parks, 

Heritage and the Arts, and Minister for Sport and Recreation, 

with an audience of 180 from all areas of the State. ArtRage 2008 

showcased the work of 70 students from 20 secondary schools 

Tasmania-wide with the Examiner’s Choice awarded to Madeline 

O’Connor from Scotch Oakburn College in Launceston. This 

year the exhibition was held in the diverse John Lees Atrium at 

Inveresk which provided a wonderful space for visitors to engage 

with the work of these talented young people. While on display 

in Launceston the exhibition attracted over 1020 students in 54 

school groups which represents only a proportion of the total 

visitor numbers. 

The exhibition also toured again this year and the Museum has 

received great feedback from both the Burnie Regional Gallery 

and the Tasmanian School of Art in Hobart. 

Museum Learning Centre 

The Learning Centre has again been well-utilised throughout the 

year housing playgroup and school holiday program sessions 

as well as providing a break-out space for schools visiting 

the site. This year however the space was used by Invermay 

Primary School for two afternoons a week whilst the school was 

undergoing redevelopment. It was also used as a conference area 

and to host a science workshop for teachers. 

10

Information services 

Maintenance and updating of the Museum website is the 

responsibility of the Museum’s Library section. It continued to 

receive a large number of hits and improvements continue to be 

made to the collection and exhibition information available online. 

• Work began on the redesign of the Museum’s website, 

with the aim of improving functionality, allowing it to be 

more easily updated and, importantly, to present some of 

the QVMAG’s collections online. The first of these will be 

the Community History photographs, oral histories and 

collection guides. 

• The Tasmanian multipedes, Australian millipedes websites, 

Zoological Project Localities and QVMAG Type Specimen 

pages are updated regularly. 

• Martin George’s astronomical articles continue to be added 

to the site each week. 

• Initial planning has begun to prepare an online version of the 

very popular community exhibition Past Lives New Beginings, 

Migration and Tasmania. 

11

Exhibitions 

Exhibitions, both Museum-generated (*) and those from other 

institutions, enable the Museum to provide access to the 

collections, present ideas and stimulate interest in Australia’s 

natural and cultural heritage. 

Inveresk 

Permanent 

• Strings across time – Tasmanian Aboriginal Shell Necklaces * 

• Aspects of Tasmanian Art * 

• Pacific Encounters * 

• Blacksmith Shop * 

• Transforming the Island: Railways in Tasmania * 

• The Great Dying * 

• Phenomena Factory * 

• Replay>>Sporting Life in Tasmania 

• Heritage Trail * including: 

• Fenton’s Stables – The Railway Institute 

• Weighbridge 

• Signal Box 

• Signwriters Shop 

Temporary and Visiting 

• Wildlife of Gondwana 

Travelling exhibition from Monash Science Centre, 

Melbourne 

John Lees Atrium 

until 3 August 2008 

• Art Start: Reflections * 

ArtStart Gallery 

until 7 August 2008 

• 360 Professions: China Trade Paintings * 

Temporary Gallery 

until 12 October 2008 

• Great Railway Journeys of Australia 

Travelling exhibition from Queensland Museum 

Mezzanine gallery 

12 July – 28 September 2008 

• Hidden in Plain View 

Travelling exhibition from Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne 


16 August – 16 November 2008 

• ArtStart: Hide and Seek * 


29 August –16 October 2008 

• BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year 

Travelling exhibition from Australian Museum, Sydney 

Mezzanine Gallery 

11 October – 16 November 2008 

• ArtStart: In the Eye of the Beholder * 


7 November 2008 – 30 April 2009 

• ArtRage 2008 * 


20 December 2008 – 26 April 2009 

• Spatial Origami 

In association with Ten Days on the Island 

Entrance 

27 March – 5 April 2009 

• Sirens Installation by Ray Lee 

In association with Ten Days on the Island 

Temporary Gallery 

27 March – 5 April 2009 

• EarthQuest: Outer Space to Inner Earth 

Travelling exhibition from Questacon, Canberra 


16 May – 31 July 2009 

• ArtStart: Ideas and Emotions * 


22 May 2009 – continuing 

Exhibits 

Foyer exhibits * 

• 8 Treasures of the Museum’s Chinese Temple * 

• Medical History 

• Queen Victoria 

• Blacksmiths tools 

• Miss Flinders, DeSoutter aircraft 

• An Adventurous Spirit - Surveyor James Scott 

QVMAG Friends Case * 

• Gary Greenwood – Mountain Harp 

21 March 2009 – 12 July 2009 

• Noticing Nature Corner * 

Spring – Eggs 

6 September – 30 November 2008 

• Summer and Autumn – Charles Darwin in Tasmania 

1 December 2008 – 1 May 2009 

Winter – Hide and Seek 

1 June – continuing 

12

Museum Publications 

Museum Publications 

Publication Highlights 

• One of the most significant re-publishing projects of the 

Museum was launched on 27 November. Initiated around 10 

years ago by the Plomley Foundation, a new edition of NJB 

Plomley’s Friendly Mission: The Tasmanian Journals and Papers 

of George Augustus Robinson 1829–1834 was published. 

The first edition was published in 1966 by the Tasmanian 

Historical Research Association. In 1971 the Tasmanian 

Historical Research Association published a supplement, 

also edited by Plomley. 

This new edition of Friendly Mission, co-published by the 

Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery and Quintus 

Publishing, incorporates the corrections and additions that 

appeared in the 1971 supplement, together with additional 

corrections collated by Plomley over subsequent years. 

Further, this edition includes Plomley’s revised version of 

‘The Bruny Island mission, 1829’ which corrects previous 

omissions and adds extra material such as the journal 

of Robinson’s clerk, Charles Sterling. There is also a 

comprehensive new index. 

• A Collected View, a guide to the art collections of the QVMAG. 

• QVMAG research reports will become progressively 

available online through the QVMAG website. Scanning and 

electronic conversion of these has been commenced. 

Papers and Articles 

Dean, JC, Forteath, GNR and Osborn, A.W (2008), ‘Marmenuera, 

a new genus of leptophlebiid mayfly (Insecta: Ephemeroptera) 

endemic to Tasmania’, Memoirs of Museum Victoria 65, pp. 43–50. 

Gershwin, L and Zeidler, W (2008), ‘Cladonema timmsii, a new 

species of hydromedusa (Cnidaria: Hydrozoa) from a salt lake in 

South Australia’, Zootaxa 1826, pp. 59–68. 

Gershwin, L and Gibbons, MJ (2009), ‘Carybdea branchi, sp. 

nov., a new box jellyfish (Cnidaria: Cubozoa) from South Africa’, 

Zootaxa 2088, pp. 41–50. 

Mesibov, R (2008) ‘On millipedes and sense of place’, 

The Tasmanian Naturalist 130, pp. 2–9. 

Mesibov, R (2008) ‘Redescription of Paurodesmus sjoestedti 

(Verhoeff, 1924) comb. n. (Diplopoda: Polydesmida: 

Dalodesmidae)’, Australian Entomologist 35(3), pp. 111–119. 

Mesibov, R (2008) Millipede salvage in southwest Victoria. 

Victorian Naturalist 125(4), pp. 96–103. 

Mesibov, R (2009) ‘Revision of Agathodesmus Silvestri, 1910 

(Diplopoda: Polydesmida: Haplodesmidae)’, ZooKeys 12, pp. 87–110. 

Mesibov, R (2009) ‘A new millipede genus and a new species of 

Asphalidesmus Silvestri, 1910 (Diplopoda: Polydesmida: Dalodesmidea) 

from southern Tasmania, Australia’, ZooKeys 7, pp. 55–74. 

Osborn, AW, Forteath, GNR and Stanisic, J (2008) ‘A new 

species of freshwater sponge (Porifera: Spongillidae) of the 

genus Radiospongilla from Lake Pedder in Tasmania’, Papers and 

Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania 142(2), pp. 39–44. 

Smithers, CN, Forteath, GNR. and Osborn, AW (2008) ‘A new 

species of Sisyra Burmeister (Insecta: Neuroptera: Sisyridae) from 

Lake Pedder, Tasmania’, Australian Journal of Entomology 47, pp 77–79. 

Tassell, CB (2008) ‘Upper Ordovician Gastropods from the 

Gordon Group, Western Tasmania’, Records of the Queen Victoria 

Museum, No. 114. 

Turney, CSM, Flannery, TF, Reid, C, et al. (2008) ‘Late-surviving 

megafauna in Tasmania, Australia, implicate human involvement 

in their extinction’, Proceedings of the National Academy of 

Sciences 105(34), pp. 12150–12153. 

Gershwin, L and Dawes, P (2008), ‘Preliminary observations on 

the response of Chironex fleckeri (Cnidaria: Cubozoa: Chirodropida) 

to different colors of light’, Biological Bulletin, 215, pp. 57–62. 

Gershwin, L (2008), ‘Morbakka fenneri, a new genus and species 

of Irukandji jellyfish (Cnidaria: Cubozoa)’, Memoirs of the 

Queensland Museum – Nature 54(1), pp. 23–33. 

Gershwin, L and Dabinett, K (2009), ‘Comparison of eight types 

of protective clothing against Irukandji jellyfish stings’, Journal of 

Coastal Research 25(1), pp. 117–130. 

13

Corporate Support and Special Purpose Grants 

Corporate Support and Special Purpose Grants 

Beyond the ongoing funding received from the Launceston City 

Council and the State Government grant received through Arts 

Tasmania, the Museum has continued to attract substantial 

levels of sponsorship and grant aid toward a variety of projects. 

Grants 

• Tasmanian Community Trust Fund 

• The Plomley Foundation 

• The Philip Archer Trust 

• Australia Council 

• Gordon Darling Foundation 

Sponsors 

Further support, in both cash and kind, was received from: 

• Rio Tinto Alcan 

• The Examiner 

• Southern Cross 

• Ricoh 

• Launceston Patchworkers and Quilters Inc. 

Support Groups 

Friends of the QVMAG 

The Friends of the Museum assist and promote the Queen 

Victoria Museum and Art Gallery and provide funds vital to 

the enrichment of the collections and the development of the 

Museum’s potential as a resource for the community. 

The management of the Friends is undertaken by the Friends 

Committee: 

President 

Vice-President 

Hon. Secretary and Public Officer 

Hon. Treasurer 

Committee Members: 

Mr David Henshaw 

Mrs Marissa King 

Mrs Sandra Campbell 

Mr Andrew Mackinnon 

Mrs Judy Morrall, 

Mrs Margaret Murray 

Mrs Jennifer Taylor, 

Mrs Ros Watson, 

Mr Stuart Williams 

QVMAG Director, 


Immediate Past President 

Mrs Jill Dearing 

An active membership of 1159 individuals were involved in the 

QVMAG Friends in 2008–09. Members were offered a variety 

of activities and benefits through initiatives of the Friends 

Committee. Special events included a talk on Aboriginal Shell 

Necklaces presented by Lola Greeno and a tour to Burnie to visit 

Creative Paper, Hellyers Road Whiskey Distillery, Burnie Regional 

Art Gallery and its Friends, and the Pioneer Village Museum. 

Through relationships established with the Northern Branch 

of the Royal Society of Tasmania, Musica North, Tasdance and 

Ten Days on the Island added benefits for members were also 

offered. These provided members with access to a stimulating 

range of extra lectures, concerts, performances and artist’s talks 

at special discount prices. 

Under the editorship of the President, David Henshaw, the 

Friends News was published quarterly. This newsletter 

keeps members up-to-date with progress on the Museum’s 

redevelopment projects at both Inveresk and Royal Park, behindthe-scenes 

activities, volunteer opportunities, staff changes and 

details of current exhibitions. 

This year the Friends became more actively involved in the 

organisation of the popular Morning Coffee Lecture Series 

with the President acting as the host and the Committee, in 

consultation with the Museum’s History Department, becoming 

involved with the selection of speakers. 

14

Support for the Museum’s Gallery Guide Program was provided 

to allow five representatives to attend the biennial national 

conference of the Australian Association of Gallery Guide 

Organisations. 

The work Mr Glover’s Antipodean Garden 2007, by Launceston 

artist Robyn McKinnon, was acquired by the Launceston 

Museum and Art Gallery Foundation with funds donated by the 

Friends in 2007–08 for acquisitions of Tasmanian contemporary 

art. A further donation of funds ($18,000) was made by the 

Friends this year to the LMAGF to assist in its fundraising for the 

development of the art collections ready for the opening of the 

Museum’s new Art Gallery in 2010. 

Launceston Museum and Art Gallery Foundation 

The Launceston Museum and Art Gallery Foundation 

(formerly the Launceston Art Foundation) was 

established in March 1985 to ensure that the best 

traditions of Australian art and Tasmanian cultural 

heritage were accessible to the Tasmanian community. 

In 1998 a Trust was established to accept taxdeductible 

donations on behalf of the Foundation. 

Patron 

Chairman 

Treasurer 

Secretary and Public Officer 

General Committee Members 

Kenneth von Bibra 

Mrs Sandra Campbell 

Mrs Lynne Stacpoole 

Mr Patrick Filmer-Sankey 

Mrs Anne Holyman 

Mrs Beatrice Chapman 

Mr Leigh Myers 

Dr Keith Adkins 

David Henshaw (from May 09) 

David Kent (from May 09) 

The support of the redevelopment of the Royal Park site of the 

Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery as a new art gallery 

for Launceston continued to be the focus of the Foundation’s 

activities in the past year. 

To this end the Foundation acquired ten works, by Tasmanian 

artists or of Tasmania, from historical to contemporary: 

• an acrylic on canvas by Robyn McKINNON, Mr Glover’s 

Antipodean Garden, 2007 which was acquired with funds 

from the QVMAG Friends donation made in 2007-08 

• four silver gelatin prints from the series Portrait of A Distant 

Land, 2005 by Ricky MAYNARD: 

i) The Healing Garden, Wybalenna, Finders Island, 

Tasmania 

ii) Death in Exile 

iii) Vansittart Island, Bass Strait, Tasmania and 

iv) Coming Home 

and from the auction held at Somercotes in December 2008: 

• Tom ROBERTS, 

Ulverstone Beach c. 1928–1930 

Oil on canvas on board 

• Edith HOLMES 

Mother and Child c. 1955 

oil on canvas 

• Edith HOLMES 

Blue Lagoon, Red Ochre Beach, Frederick Henry Bay, Tasmania 

oil on canvas 

• Tom ROBERTS 


oil on canvas on composition board 

• GG ROSSITER 

Tamar River from Rosevears, Tasmania - Sunrise 

oil on board 

• a Blackwood sofa, c. 1830 by an unknown maker. 

The acquisition of the sofa was made possible by the 

generosity of Mr John Millwood and Mr John Hawkins. 

In a year when the community was significantly affected by 

the global financial crisis, early plans were put on hold to carry 

out a major fundraising appeal for the Foundation. The mission 

became one of re-establishing the profile of the Foundation 

in readiness for a fundraising appeal once a more appropriate 

financial climate returned. 

A special function was held to strengthen relationships with 

previous donors and attract a new group of people, currently 

associated with the arts or with businesses, that were likely to 

support the Foundation. While this function took place on 9 July 

2009, it is included in this annual report as the project consumed 

the energy of the Foundation for most of the year. The focus 

15

of the evening was a talk made by the Director of the National 

Gallery of Australia, Mr Ron Radford AM. A display of recent 

acquisitions made by the Foundation provided the backdrop 

for a cocktail party which followed. The venue of the function 

was the QVMAG at Royal Park, which allowed the 181 guests to 

appreciate the significant heritage features of the building which 

will be highlighted in the redevelopment of the new Art Gallery. 

The Foundation acknowledges the contribution of the QVMAG 

staff to the success of this event. 

The Foundation greatly appreciates the continued support of the 

QVMAG Friends and Emeritus Professor Coleman O’Flaherty 

and the contribution this year of the Launceston Patchworkers 

and Quilters Inc. 

To reflect its support of the new Art Gallery the Foundation was 

rebranded and a brochure explaining the future direction for the 

Foundation was also published. 

Plomley Foundation 

This was established in 1984 through the generosity of the noted 

historian Mr NJB (Brian) Plomley, with the express intention 

of encouraging research into Tasmania’s natural and cultural 

heritage. The Foundation has had a profound impact upon the 

Museum’s research, collection management and acquisition 

capabilities. 

The Foundation funded the following projects in 2008–09: 

• The completion of a long-term project which saw the 

publication of a new edition of NJB Plomley’s Friendly Mission. 

A joint research project with the University of Tasmania’s 

Community, Place and Heritage Research Unit which 

will lead to a publication studying the correspondence of 

Adolphus Schayer. 

16

Volunteers 

Volunteers are an integral part of the Museum and provide 

support in many areas. A lively volunteer program has continued 

during 2008–09. This program allows the Museum to achieve 

many objectives which would not otherwise be possible. 

Seventy-seven Museum volunteers have provided over 550 days 

work this year. 

Museum volunteers are engaged in many projects which vary 

from researching and cataloguing collections to working with 

staff to design and build modules for the interactive science 

exhibition Phenomena Factory. Volunteers also provide an 

engaging series of public talks through the Museum’s Gallery 

Guides and provide support for Museum staff in the promotion 

of Friends activities, assisting with School Holiday Programs and 

conservation work. 

History 

Pat Ahearn, Jenny Barker, Wendy Devlin, Jenny Gill, Esme Jones- 

Dye, Rosalie Kelly, Ann Power, Paul Richards, Monissa Whiteley. 

Library 

Anne Lucadou-Wells, Kelly O’Grady 


Viv Buckley, Jeff Campbell, Peter Duckworth, Doug Ewington, 

Helen Fisher, Colin Hingston, Leslie Hingston, Helen Jones, 

Win Kershaw, Margaret Patterson, Craig Reid. 


Karenne Barnes, Peter Brake, Peter Daalder, Martin Harvey. 

Conservation (Objects) 

Sue Allright, Olive Bull, Jim Carroll, Jim Collier, Peg Pedley, 

John Van Tienen 

Conservation (Paper) 

Olive Bull, Melissa Smith 

Education 

Emma Allen, Joanna Brown, Ned Breward, Betty Clayton, 

Trish Clemons, Suzanne Creese, Karolyn Davidson, 

Christine Hannan, Peter Hynes, Louise Jolly, Alice Ryder, 

Margie Stackhouse, Rebecca Stewart, Sue Stevenson, Pat Traill, 

Shirley Watson, Nan Woodward 

Exhibitions 

Jim Carroll, Nick Cummings, Wen Nurmet, Hank Van Tienen 

Friends Services 

Pat Ahearn, Shirley Anthony, Jenny Barker, Judie Gardner, Coralie 

Griffiths, Brenda Harrison, Gill Ireland, Joan Jacks, Helen Jones, 

Mi Suk Lee, Pixie Lowe, Maureen Mann, Vera Manton, Margot 

Martin, Margaret Mullins, Audrey Partridge, Alan Peacock, Helen 

Scott Young, Jan Vincent, Beverley White, Elizabeth Weeks 

Gallery Guides 

Trish Alexander, Barbara Bullard, Rosemary Butler, Lyn Henshaw, 

Tricia Roberts, Annie Robinson, Janet Tomlinson, Pat Traill, 

Ros Watson, Shirley Watson 

17

Staff 

* Denotes part-time staff 

Director 

Patrick Filmer-Sankey, BSc 

Planetarium and Physical Sciences Manager 

Martin George, BSc (Hons) 

Collection and Information Services 

Manager 

Glenda King, DipFA 

Visitor Programs and Services Manager 

Paul Bishop, BFA, DipT 

Administration 

Friends and LMAGF Coordinator 

Kaye Dowling, BSc 

Marketing Officer 

Belinda King 

Research Officer 

Ann Teesdale* 

Administration Officer 

Karan Williams 

Conservation 

Curator of Conservation (Objects) 

Linda Clark, BSc, BA 

Associate Conservator (Objects) 

Michael Smith, DipFA 

Curator of Conservation (Paintings) 

Mar Gomez Lobon, B.appSc. 

Curator of Conservation (Paper) 

Jucara Quinteros de Farias, MA (Conservation 

Cultural Materials - Paper) 

Technical Officer (Paper) 

Tamara Hollister, BFA* 

Education 

Education Administrative Officer 

Lauren Dean, BFA* 

Education Officer 

Tammy Edmunds, B.Ed* 

Outreach Program Officer 

Ros Jordan* 

Playgroup Co-ordinator 

Daphne Mitchell, Dip.Ed* 

Education Officer 

Helene Weeding, MFAD, B.Ed, Dip.ATE, 

Ass. Dip.FA, TTC* 

Exhibitions 

Exhibition Officer 

Jeff Burgess, BA (VA)* 

Graphic Artist 

Jane Guy, AssDipGraphicDesign* 

Photographer 

John Leeming 

Photographic Assistant 

Shirley Leeming* 


Roy Mathers 

Exhibitions Manager 

Craig McCormack, CertTaxidermy 


Tony Mitchell* 

Exhibition Co-ordinator 

Alisanne Ramsden 

Graphic Design Coordinator 

Renée Singline, DipGraphicDesign 

History 

Curator of History 

Jon Addison, BA (Hons), MA 

Curator of Community History 

Rhonda Hamilton* 

Collection Manager 

Louise James, DipEd* 

Technical Officer 


Reference Officer 

Ross Smith 

Project Officer 

Barbara Valentine, ALA* 

Information Services 

Information Technology Officer 

Chris Arkless, BA, AssocDipBusiness 

(Computing)* 

Information Technology Officer 

Mark Gordon, BAppComp, GradDipSci (Hons)* 

Library 

Library Coordinator 

Kaye Dimmack, CertLibtechStud, ALIATec, 

GradCertMusStud 


Curator of Natural Sciences 

Lisa-ann Gershwin, BSc (Hons), PhD 

Research Officer, Zoology 

Tammy Gordon, BSc* 


Judy Rainbird, CertTaxid* 


Craig Reid, BSc (Hons)* 

Collection Officer, Geology 

Annette Vains* 


Curator of Physical Sciences 

Martin George, BSc (Hons) 

Planetarium Assistant 

Chris Arkless, BA, AssocDipBusiness 

(Computing)* 

Visitor Services 

Site Operations 

Wayne Chatwin 

Bookings and Administration Officer 

Lauren Dean, BFA* 

Museum Shop Officer 

Christine Gleeson 

Visitor Services Coordinator 

Craig Williams, BSc 

Visitor Services Staff 

Linda Bryan* 

Paul Cooper* 

Lauren Dean, BA* 

William (Bill) Evans, BFA, GradDipFA, BPA 

(Music)* 

Annie Fischer* 

Ros Jordan* 


Matthew Loone, BA (Hons), Cert 2 Tourism* 

Cara Massey* 

Sandra Maxwell, BA* 

Heather McInnes, Dip.ArtCraft.Design * 

Jai Patterson, MA (AusHist)* 

Emma Pennicott, BA (Hons) 

Judy Rainbird, CertTaxid* 

Julieanne Richards, BA, DipEd* 

Alison Rush, BCA 

Alan Sharp* 

Kim Simpson, BM, BA 

Louise Thrush* BFA, 

Cinnamon Whatley, DipSocSci* 

Nick Wylie* 

Stephen Wright* 

Visual Art and Design 

Curator, 19th Century Australian Art 

Yvonne Adkins, BA (VA), GradDipFA* 

Curator, Australian Art 1900–1980 

Bridget Arkless, BA, GradDipMusStud* 

Associates 

Honorary Research Associate 

Ralph Bottril, Mineralogist 


Jill Cassidy, BA (Hons), DipEd 


Mark Davis 

Curator Emeritus / Hon Research Associate 

Bob Green AM, Hon DSc 


Professor Nigel Foreteath, 

Research Associate and Curatorial Specialist 

Bob Mesibov, BA, PhD* 


Professor Andrew Osborn 


Chris Tassell, AM, BSc (Hons), MSc 

18

Staff Community Activities 

Yvonne Adkins 

Member, Musica North Chamber Music 

Committee 

Linda Clark 

Cultural Heritage Practioners Group of 

Tasmania – membership committee 

Australian Institute for the Conservation of 

Cultural Material (Tasmania) 

Kaye Dimmack 

Treasurer, Museums Australia Tasmanian 

Branch 


Member, Council of Australian Museum 

Directors; Member, Tasmanian Cultural 

Collections Sector; Member, Fox Eradication 

Taskforce; Member, Council of Heads of 

Australian Fauna Collections 

Martin George 

Member, Astronomical Society of Tasmania 

Incorporated; Member, Astronomical 

Society of Australia; Member, Education 

Subcommittee, Astronomical Society of 

Australia; Past President, International 

Planetarium Society; Chair, International 

Relations Committee, International 

Planetarium Society; Member, International 

Astronomical Union; Member, Tasmanian 

Churchill Fellowship Selection Committee 

Jane Guy 

President, Tasmanian Herpetological 

Society; Committee Member Reptile Rescue 

Incorporated 

Michael Smith 

Treasurer, Australian Institute for the 

Conservation of Cultural Material (Tasmania) 

LCC OH and S Committee Member (Museum 

staff representative) 

Mar Gomez Lobon 

Secretary, Australian Institute for the 

Conservation of Cultural Material (Tasmania) 

Glenda King 

Member, Management Committee, Return of 

Indigenous Cultural Property, Department of 

Communications, Information Technology and 

the Arts, Canberra 

Renée Singline 

Member, Australian Graphic Design 

Association 

19

Museum Statistics 2007–2008 2008–2009 

Total Museum attendances 102 826 104 755 

Website visits 1 369 713 1 625 357 

Outreach activities 915 1025 

Touring exhibitions unknown unknown 

Animal loan program 1166 993 

Planetarium 2979 closed 

Education 9892 16 542 

Public enquiries 10 143 9940 

No. of exhibitions / displays mounted 18 9 

No. of exhibitions toured 2 2 

No. of visiting exhibitions mounted 5 6 

No. of public programs 118 137 

No. of donations 52 62 

No. of items added to collection databases 3433 4656 

No. of volunteers 70 77 

No. of volunteer days 600 552 

20

Appendix 

Appendix 1 

Freedom of Information 

The Tasmanian Freedom of Information Act 1991 applied to all local 

government sectors in Tasmania from 1 January 1994. The position 

authorised to make decisions under the Act, relevant to Museum Records, 

is the Curator, History. No requests for access were received during the year 

2008–2009. 

Appendix 2 

Acquisition Code and Policy 

The Acquisition Code requires that both the Code and Policy be reviewed 

every two years. The revised Code and Policy as adopted by the Launceston 

City Council 21 February 2005 are set out below. 

Acquisition Code 

1. Museums and art galleries have a very distinctive role in 

collecting, preserving, researching and communicating to the wide 

community, students and scholars original evidence of our natural 

and cultural heritage. 

2. The origins of the collections of the Queen Victoria Museum and 

Art Gallery date back to the middle of the nineteenth century. 

Since that time, they have developed as an important component 

of Tasmania’s and Australia’s natural and cultural heritage. 

3. The Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery will make 

acquisitions consistent with the Museum’s mission, which is: 

To be a leader in the intellectual and creative development of 

Launceston and the State by increasing our enjoyment and 

understanding of our natural and cultural heritage. 

4. The Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery’s collections are 

made for the following purposes: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

To be an archival record of: 

• the artistic heritage of the people of Tasmania 

• the material culture of the peoples who now and 

previously inhabited Tasmania and adjacent lands 

• the living and past faunas and floras of Tasmania and 

adjacent lands and seas 

• the minerals and rocks which make up Tasmania 

To be a source of material for researching the fields of art, 

decorative arts and crafts, Tasmanian history, archaeology, 

ethnography, geology, zoology and botany. 

To be a source of materials and ideas for educational programs, 

particularly exhibitions. 

5. The Launceston City Council, as owner of the Queen Victoria 

Museum and Art Gallery, will adopt and publish a written 

statement of its acquisition policy in respect of works of art and 

museum specimens. This policy shall be reviewed at least once 

every two years. Acquisition outside the stated policy shall only be 

made in exceptional circumstances. 

6. The Council supports the principles of the UNESCO Convention on 

the means of prohibiting and preventing the illicit import, export 

and transfer of ownership of Cultural Property, 1970, acceded to by 

Australia in 1990. 

7. The Council will not acquire, whether by purchase, gift, bequest or 

exchange any work of art or object unless the responsible officer is 

satisfied that the Museum can acquire a valid title to the specimen 

in question, and that, in particular, it has not been acquired in, 

or exported from, its country of origin (and/or any intermediate 

country in which it may have been legally owned) in violation of 

that country's laws. 

8. So far as biological and geological material is concerned, the 

Council will not acquire by any direct or indirect means any 

specimen that has been collected, sold or otherwise transferred in 

contravention of any national or international wildlife protection or 

natural history conservation law or treaty of Australia or any other 

country, except with the express consent of an appropriate outside 

authority. 

9. If appropriate and feasible, the same tests as are outlined in 

paragraphs 5 and 6 above will be applied in determining whether 

to accept loans for exhibitions or other purposes. 

10. The Council recognises the need for cooperation and consultation 

between museums and art galleries with similar or overlapping 

interests and collecting policies, and will seek to consult with 

such institutions both on specific acquisitions where a conflict of 

interest is thought possible, and, more generally, on defining areas 

of specialisation. 

Acquisition policy 

1.0 Introduction 

1.1 The Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery has a special 

responsibility to preserve and exhibit material evidence of the 

natural and cultural history of Tasmania. The Museum’s collecting 

policy recognises this as its primary responsibility. However, in 

some limited areas a better understanding of Tasmania’s natural 

and cultural heritage will be provided by the acquisition of material 

from beyond the State. For this reason as well as for historic 

reasons, the Museum already has significant collections of material 

from beyond Tasmania. Such areas are very closely defined in the 

Acquisition Policy. 

1.2 In developing its collections, the Museum will: 

• reflect the cultural diversity of Tasmania 

• reflect the histories and experiences of Tasmanian 

culture within a national and international framework 

• seek to research, document and maintain the 

collections to the highest standards resources permit 

• seek to make the collections accessible through 

exhibitions, loans, publications and on-line collection access. 

1.3 The suitability of all objects proposed for acquisition will be 

assessed against stated selection criteria as appropriate for each 

collection area. In acquiring objects for its collection, the Museum 

shall consider items for which it can adequately care and store 

and which are not beyond recognisably achievable conservation 

requirements. 

21

1.4 The Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery recognises the 

need to describe the significance of the objects in its collection 

using a consistent and widely accepted methodology. As part 

of the acquisition process, each object entering the collection of 

the Museum will be considered in terms of its historic, aesthetic, 

scientific and social values to determine how its meaning is 

understood by people and by communities. The Statement of 

Significance will consider: 

• historic significance 

• aesthetic significance 

• scientific, research or technical significance 

• social or spiritual significance 

In addition, significance will also be determined by considering: 

• provenance 

• representativeness 

• rarity 

• condition, completeness, intactness 

• interpretative potential 

1.5 Deaccessioning Policy 

The Museum's policies and procedures for deaccessioning objects 

from the collection are outlined in a separate policy document 

entitled: Deaccessioning Policy. 

2.0 Collections 

The Museum’s collections are managed in eight collecting areas: 

• Natural Sciences 

• Fine Arts 

• Decorative Arts and Design 

• Tasmanian History 

• Comparative Cultural 

• Community History 

• Architectural and Engineering Drawings 

• Rare Books 

2.1 Natural Sciences 

Natural sciences within the Museum cover five distinct areas, each 

with their own collection goals and spheres of specialisation. These are: 

2.1a Zoology 

Comprehensive collections of Tasmanian vertebrate and 

invertebrate fauna with specialist research collections from 

the remainder of Australia and beyond in molluscs, spiders 

and mammalian ectoparasites. 

2.1b Botany 

Comprehensive collections of Tasmanian plants, including 

significant historical holdings. 

2.1c Geology 

Mineral and rock collections from throughout Tasmania 

with important comparative material from interstate and 

overseas. 

2.1d Palaeontology 

A significant collection of fossils from Tasmania and 

important vertebrate fossil material from elsewhere in and 

beyond Australia. 

2.1e Astronomy 

Meteorite and tektite material (as part of the Geology 

collections). 

Subject to nature conservation interests, the Museum will continue to 

collect all kinds of evidence of Tasmanian geology, flora and fauna for 

display, study, reference and educational purposes. It is expected that the 

primary source of such material will be controlled and properly documented 

field collecting by Government Agencies, Museum staff and research 

associates. However, acquisition (by purchase if necessary) of important 

private or historic collections of Tasmanian natural science material of all 

kinds (including records) is of great importance. 

Individual specimens or collections of material from elsewhere in Australia 

will be acquired for education, exhibitions and research where they enable a 

better understanding of Tasmania’s natural history. 

2.2 Fine Arts 

The fine art collection has three principal components, each of 

which has its own distinct collection policy. These components are: 

2.2a Tasmanian Colonial Art 

This collection documents the artistic heritage of Tasmania 

through paintings, works on paper and sculpture. In this 

context, ‘Tasmanian’ is considered to include work by 

Tasmanian artists regardless of the subject of the painting 

and work depicting Tasmanian subjects by any artist. 

2.2b Modern and Contemporary Australian Art 

This collection documents the history of Australia’s 

postcolonial art of aesthetic value through paintings, works 

on paper, sculpture and multi-media. Particular emphasis 

will be placed on the achievements of Tasmanian artists. 

The Museum has a small but significant collection of 

International paintings and works on paper. This collection 

will be maintained. 

2.2c Frames 

Frames are collected either in their own right or in 

association with the item inside the frame. For the most 

part, frames are not collected in their own right but are 

generally associated with the item they surround. 

2.3 Decorative Arts and Design 

The Decorative Arts and Design collection has four principal 

components, each of which has its own distinct collection policy. 

These components are: 

2.3a Contemporary Craft and Design 

This collection aims to document and promote 

understanding of the evolution of contemporary craft 

and design in Australia since 1945 in all media. Particular 

emphasis will be placed on the achievements of 

Tasmanian practitioners. The importance of this collection 

is emphasised by the fact that it is the principal such 

collection in Tasmania. 

Emphasis will be given to collecting objects, which illustrate 

in an exemplary way innovation in design, construction, and 

use of materials and technologies. 

2.3b Tasmanian Decorative Arts 

This collection is a special component of the Museum’s 

history collection and documents the material cultural 

heritage of Tasmania with particular reference to ceramics, 

furniture and woodwork, textiles and costumes with 

significant aesthetic value. 

2.3c Australian Decorative Arts 

This collection documents the evolution of Australian 

decorative arts, particularly through ceramics and textiles 

with significant aesthetic and cultural value. The collection 

focuses primarily on objects designed and made in 

Australia pre 1945. 

22

2.3d International Decorative Arts 

This collection documents in particular the development 

and evolution of British, European and Asian decorative 

arts through ceramics, textiles and costumes of significant 

aesthetic value. Consideration will be given to the work of 

international practitioners post-1945 where their work has 

had a critical and identified influence and/or impact on the 

development of Tasmanian and/or national craft and design. 

2.4 Tasmanian History Collection 

This collection documents the material cultural heritage of the 

Tasmanian community with particular reference to threatened 

ways of life and the northern region of the State. 

2.5 Comparative Cultural Collection 

This collection consists of cultural material from communities and 

societies from beyond Tasmania and provides a resource for the 

Museum’s education and exhibition programs. 

2.6 Community History Collection 

The Community History collections document the cultural heritage 

of the Tasmanian community and reflect the island’s diverse and 

changing ways of life with particular reference to the northern 

region of the State. 

2.6a Photographs 

This collection is a comprehensive visual record of 

Tasmania from the 1840s and includes all photographic 

formats from daguerreotypes onwards. A small 

component of film and video supports the visual record. 

2.6b Manuscripts 

This collection has two principal components: manuscripts 

collected as single items and collections of textual records 

created or acquired by an individual, family or organization. 

It also includes a comprehensive collection of 20th 

century Tasmanian ephemera. 

2.6c Oral History 

This unique collection consists of recorded interviews, 

which document the achievements of Tasmanians in the 

20th century, and beyond. 

It also includes a small component of recorded music. 

2.7 Architectural and Engineering Drawings Collection 

This collection documents the built and engineering heritage of 

Tasmania through drawings and specifications. 

2.8 Rare Book Collection 

This collection includes books with specific historical or cultural 

value, books of aesthetic importance or with a significant 

provenance 

Appendix 3 

Major Acquisitions for 2008–09 

Purchases 

History 

Pharmacist’s sample box from Benneworth’s Pharmacy 


Fossil femur from dinosaur Maiasaura from The Stone Company, Boulder, 

Colorado, USA 

Visual Arts and Design 

Unknown maker, Tasmania 

Sofa, c. 1830 

Blackwood, Acacia melanoxylon 

Purchased through the Launceston Museum & Art Gallery Foundation with 

the assistance of Mr John Hawkins and Mr John Millwood 

Robyn McKinnon 

Mr Glover’s Antipodean Garden, 2007 

acrylic on canvas 

Purchased through the Launceston Museum & Art Gallery Foundation with 

the assistance of the Friends of the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery 

Tom Roberts 


oil on canvas on board 

Purchased through the Launceston Museum & Art Gallery Foundation 

Edith Holmes 

Mother and child 

oil on canvas on board 


Edith Holmes 

Blue Lagoon, Red Ochre Beach, Frederick Henry Bay, Tasmania 

oil on board 


GG Rossiter 

Tamar River from Rosevears Tasmania - Sunrise 

oil on board 


Ricky Maynard 

The Healing Garden, Wybalenna, Flinders Island, Tasmania 

from the series Portrait of a Distant Land, 2005 

silver gelatin photograph 

Purchased through the Launceston Museum & Art Gallery Foundation, 2008 

Ricky Maynard 

Death in Exile 




Ricky Maynard 

Vansittart Island, Bass Strait, Tasmania 




Ricky Maynard 

Coming Home 




Donations 

History 

Miss Leonie Ransom 

Collection of material relating to Mary and Edith Ransom, including Edith 

Ransom’s MBE, Mary Ransom’s OAM, and the suitcase she used as a nurse 

at Flinders Island 

Mr AJ Perkins 

Collection of signwriters’ brushes used at the Inveresk Railyards 

23

Mrs Helen Wing 

Plywood caravan used in the 1930s for holidays in northern Tasmania 

Mr Tony Styles 

1948 Tasman Shields Trophy for best and fairest awarded to footballer Harry 

Styles. 

ISPT Industrial Superannuation Property Trust 

Lamplighter’s ladder from the Launceston Gasworks c. 1860–96 

Mineral Resources Tasmania 

Two ore carts 

Mr Rick Von Stieglitz 

Turret lathe 

Launceston Benevolent Society Inc. 

Launceston Benevolent Society Seal & Lever Press, post 1894 

Dr John Ball 

‘No Pulp Mill’ sign used in protest 

Launceston Art Society 

Additions to existing CHS Series (CHS 106) 

Tasdance 

Additions to existing CHS Series (CHS 18) 

Library 

Dept. of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Canberra 

Book—Australian convict sites: World Heritage nomination 

Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts,Canberra, 

ACT, 2008 

George H Bryan 

Book—A guide for dogmen and crane chasers, New South Wales. 

[NSW Dept. of Labour and Industry], [Sydney], 1973 

Philip McElwee 

Book—A locomotive handbook: for the guidance and instruction of drivers, 

firemen and cleaners 

Transport Department Tasmania, Railway Branch, Tasmania 


Book—Tasmanian Government Railways: rolling stock 3’6” gauge 

[Tasmanian Government Railways] 


Book—Tasrails 70’s, Tasmania. Transport Commission 

Marketing Productions, Bondi Junction, NSW, 1971 


Book—Working time table for passenger, mixed and goods trains and motors 

over all lines, for the guidance and exclusive use of officers and employees, ANR, 

Tasmanian Region 

Australian National Railways, [Launceston, Tas.], [1978] 


Book—Instructions to running-gear repairers etc., Tasmania. Government 

Railways 

John Vail, Government Printer Tasmania, [1928] 


Pamphlet—Centenary celebrations February 7th to 14th, 1971: first train, 

Launceston and Western Railway Company, February 10th, 1871, TGR 

Tasmanian Government Railways, [Tasmania], [1971] 


Pamphlet—What the railways are doing! TGR 

Transport Commission, Hobart, [1954?] 


Pamphlet—Travel by Tasman Limited: Tasmania’s luxury train, Transport 

Commission 

[Tasmanian Government Railways], [Hobart] 


Pamphlet—Tasmanian Government Railways 


Pamphlet—Tasmanian railway lines: historical data 

Ivan Heazlewood 

Book—Sesquicentenary of the Wesleyan Chapel – Whitemoor, 1857-2007, Ivan 

C. Heazlewood 

Ivan C Heazlewood [Whitemore, Tas.], 2007 

Dept. of Premier and Cabinet, Hobart 

Book—Garnaut Climate Change Review draft report: June 2008, Ross Garnaut 

Dr BA Meidell 

Book—Nationalnyckeln till Sveriges flora och fauna. Mangfotingar.Myriapoda 

[Encyclopedia of the Swedish flora and fauna: Nordic Myriapods], G 

Andersson, BA Meidell, U Scheller, J-A Winqvist, et al. 

ArtDatabanken, SLU, Uppsala, Sweden, 2005 

John Neale 

Book—Old Launceston, John Neale 

Stenlake Publishing, Ayrshire, UK, 2001 

Quintus Publishing 

Book—Reading Robinson: companion essays to Friendly Mission, Anna 

Johnston & Mitchell Rolls (eds) 

Quintus Publishing, Hobart, 2008 

Ross Smith 

Pamphlet—Giant military wallchart 

Your Family Tree, [UK], [2008] 

Mike Nash 

Book—Investigation of a survivors camp from the Sydney Cove shipwreck, Mike Nash 

Department of Archaeology, Flinders University, Adelaide, 2004 

Mike Nash 

DVD—H.M. Sydney Cove [footage of 1991, 1992 and 1993 site excavations] 

Parks & Wildlife Service, Tasmania, [Hobart] 

Mike Nash 

Book— [Sydney Cove shipwreck – published and unpublished reports and 

documents] 

[Environment, Parks, Heritage and the Arts], [Hobart], [2008] 

Mike Nash 

Book—The Sydney Cove shipwreck survivors camp, Mike Nash 

Department of Archaeology, Flinders University, Adelaide, 2006 

Mike Nash 

Book—The history and archaeology of the Sydney Cove shipwreck (1797): a 

resource for future site work, Shirley Strachan 

Dept of Prehistory, Research School of Pacific Studies, Australian National, 

Canberra, 1986 

John McPhee 

Book—”Personal recollections” of the Right Reverend Robert William Willson, 

D.D. (First Bishop of Hobart Town) with a portrait of His Lordship and an 

introduction on the state of religion in Tasmania, prior to the year 1844, 

Thomas Kelsh 

Davies Bros, Hobart, 1882 

Donated through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program 

24

John McPhee 

Book—Excursions and adventures in New South Wales: with pictures of 

squatting and of life in the bush: an account of the climate, productions, and 

natural history of the colony, and of the manners and customs of the natives, with 

advice to emigrants, &c., John Henderson 

W. Shoberl, London, 1851 


John McPhee 

Book—Our antipodes, or, Residence and rambles in the Australasian colonies, 

Godfrey Charles Mundy 

Richard Bentley, London, 1852 


John McPhee 

Book—Three essays: on picturesque beauty; on picturesque travel; and on 

sketching landscape, William Gilpin 

T. Cadell and W. Davies, London, 1808 


John McPhee 

Book—Bland stenaldersmanniskor i Queenslands vildmarker, Eric Mjoberg 

Albert Bonniers Forlag, Stockholm, 1918 


WD Booth Estate 

Book—Ricky Maynard: portrait of a distant land, Keith Munro 

Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, [2007?] 

Paul Cuniffe 

Book—Iona National Airways: Ireland’s first commercial airline, Michael 

Traynor 

Michael Traynor, Dublin, 2005 

Smithsonian Institution 

Book—Smithsonian at the poles: contributions to International Polar Year 

Science, Igor Krupnik, Michael A. Lang & Scott E. Miller (eds) 

Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, Washington, D.C., 2009 

Elizabeth Parkes, Elizabeth 

Book—Thomas Diprose and Elizabeth Children Diprose of Kent and Van 

Diemen’s Land, Elizabeth Parkes & Jean Doggett 

Elizabeth Parkes, Lindisfarne, Tas., 2008 

Trevor L Holton 

Book—As they saw it, Trevor L Holton 

[unpublished work], 2008 

Erike Behrisch Elce 

Book—As affecting the fate of my absent husband: selected letters of Lady 

Franklin concerning the search for the lost Franklin expedition, 1848-1860, Elce 

Behrisch (ed.) 

McGill-Queen’s University Press, Montreal and Kingston, 2009 

Marika Kocsis 

Book—Risk assessment for object conservation, Jonathan Ashley-Smith 

Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford, 1999 

Marika Kocsis 

Book—The Penguin archaeology guide, Paul Bahn (ed.) 

Penguin Books; Penguin Putnam, London ; New York, 2001 

Devonport Maritime Museum & Historical Society Inc 

Book—Annie Cocker: colonial artist and historian, 1857-1939, Faye Gardam 

Devonport Maritime Museum and Historical Society Inc., Devonport, Tas., 

c. 2005 

Dr R Mesibov 

Reprint—‘A new millipede genus and a new species of Asphalidesmus 

silvestri, 1910 (Diplopoda, Polydesmida, Dalodesmidea) from southern 

Tasmania, Australia’, Robert Mesibov 

ZooKeys 7, 2009 

Dr R Mesibov 

Reprint—‘Redescripton of Paurodesmus sjoestedti (Verhoeff, 1924), comb. n. 

(Diplopoda: Polydesmida: Dalodesmidae)’, R. Mesibov 

Australian Entomologist, 35(3), 2008 


Dept of Primary Industry and Water, Fox Eradication Branch 

Specimens—Symmons Plains Fox carcasses with additional material 

(specimen and paper based) relating to these specimens. 

Dept of Primary Industry and Water, Fox Eradication Branch 

Specimens—First portion of collection of Fox-DNA-positive scats collected 

in Tasmania by DPIW. 

Doug Ewington 

Specimens—Rocks, fossils and minerals from personal collections and many 

publications from personal library. 

Bob Mesibov 

Specimens—Approximately 200 specimen lots for arthropod collection. 

Northern River Monitoring Program (2007). 

Specimens—Several thousand vials of freshwater invertebrates, sorted and 

identified at least to family. 

Andrew Osborn and Nigel Forteath 

Specimens—Freshwater Sponge type material from Lake Pedder. 

Visual Arts and Design 

Clyde McGill 

True stories iv: as we walked, 2008 

screenprint, monoprint and etching on paper 

Print Council Member’s Print 

Gay Hawkes 

Whalebone Bench, Sommers Bay, 2004 

driftwood, whalebone 

AW Eustace (mountain views) oil paint on a gum leaf 

AW Eustace (landscape) oil paint on a gum leaf 

Gladstone Eyre (landscape) oil 

Gladstone Eyre (landscape) oil 

Richard Nichols (emus) oil 

Unknown Artist (portrait of a young soldier) gouache and watercolour 

Bequest of Mrs Antonietta Bessant 

Marika Kocsis 

Book—The elements of archaeological conservation, JM Cronyn & WW 

Robinson 

Routledge, London ; New York, NY, 1990 

Collections Council of Australia Ltd 

Book—Significance 2.0: a guide to assessing the significance of collections, 

Roslyn Russell & Kylie Winkworth 

Collections Council of Australia Ltd, SA, 2009 

25

Appendix 4 

Special Purpose Operating Statement 

This special purpose statement of revenue and expenses is prepared 

from the accounts of the Launceston City Council and should be read in 

conjunction with the audited financial statements for the year ended 30 

June 2009. 

The accounts of the Launceston City Council are prepared in accordance 

with Australian Accounting Standards and the Local Government Act 

1993. Under the Accounting Standards it is a requirement that grants are 

recognised as revenue in the year in which they are received or when the 

Council obtains control over the assets comprising the contributions, but 

the related expenditure can occur in a later period. 

Launceston City Council Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery 

Special purpose statment of revenue and expenses for the year ended 30 June 2009 

2009 2008 

$ $ 

TRADING ACTIVITIES NET SURPLUS 43,324 60,681 

GRANTS & DONATIONS 

State Government Grant 1,188,600 1,154,000 

Funded Projects Net Surplus/(Deficit) 1,906 (13,846) 

Plomley Foundation Net Surplus/(Deficit) (8,428) 58,676 

GRANTS & DONATIONS NET SURPLUS 1,182,078 1,198,830 

OTHER OPERATIONAL REVENUE 3,647 9,523 

TOTAL REVENUE EXPENSES 1,229,049 1,269,034 

Operating Activities 3,706,285 3,668,805 

Internal Service Charges 252,331 197,560 

Depreciation 608,335 528,644 

TOTAL EXPENSES 4,566,951 4,395,009 

LCC CONTRIBUTION 3,337,902 3,125,975 

26

Appendix 5 

Public Activities and Special Events 

July 2008 

Monday 7 

Royal Society Lecture Series: Silt and the Tamar 

River with Geoff Brayford, Director, Water and 

Sewerage Services, Launceston City Council 

Attendance 63 

Friday 11 

Official opening of Great Railway Journeys of 

Australia by Federal Member for Bass, Jodie 

Campbell 

Attendance 141 

Wednesday 16 

Playgroup: Wildlife of Gondwana with Daphne 

Mitchell 

Attendance 14 

Wednesday 23 

Guides Choice of the Month: Great Railway 

Journeys of Australia with Tricia Roberts 

Attendance 36 

Morning Coffee Lecture with Patrick Reilly, 

Former CEO of J Boag and Son 

Attendance 50 

August 

Monday 4 

Royal Society Lecture: From Poverty to Nobel 

Peace Prize Nomination with Dr Terry Hannan, 

Consultant Physician, LGH 

Attendance 34 

Friday 15 

Official opening of Hidden in Plain View – the 

Forgotten Flora, a touring exhibition from the 

Royal Botanical Gardens with guest speaker 

Dr Teresa Lebel 

Attendance 74 

Saturday 16 – Sunday 24 

Scinema Festival of Science Films 2008 

Attendance n/a 

Wednesday 20 

Playgroup: Trains with Daphne Mitchell 

Attendance 34 

Tuesday 26 

Filming of an episode of the ABC’s The 

Collectors 


Wednesday 27 

Guides Choice of the Month: 360 Professions: 

China Trade Paintings with Trish Alexander 

Attendance 34 

Morning Coffee Lecture Series with artist, 

teacher and gallery owner Jill Ferrall 

Attendance 56 

Friday 29 

Official opening of ArtStart: Hide and Seek 

by Mrs Sandra Campbell, Chairman of 

the Launceston Museum and Art Gallery 

Foundation 

Attendance 43 

September 

Monday 1 

Royal Society Lecture: Climate Change: Science 

vs Politics with Dr Nick Towle 

Attendance 53 

Monday 8 – Friday 19 

School Holiday Program 

13 Sessions 


Wednesday 24 

Guides Choice of the Month: Circa September 

2001 2002 and Belonging 2002 by Denise 

Campbell with Lyn Henshaw 

Attendance 40 

Morning Coffee Lecture Series with Examiner 

journalist Alison Andrews 

Attendance 98 

QVMAG Friends AGM 

Royal Park 

Attendance 73 

October 

Monday 6 

Royal Society Lecture: Stress and the Brain in 

Health and Disease with Dr Adrian Bradley 

Attendance 59 

Wednesday 15 

Playgroup: Rough and Smooth, Bright and Shiny 

with Daphne Mitchell 

Attendance 30 

Official opening of Wildlife Photographer of the 

Year, a travelling exhibition from Australian 

Museum, Sydney with Philip Kuruvita, 

M.Photog III 

Attendance 68 

Wednesday 22 

Guides Choice of the Month: Sunset and 

Mount Direction from Moonah by Edith Holmes 

with Annie Robinson 

Attendance 30 

Morning Coffee Lecture Series with Jill 

Dearing 

Attendance 56 

November 

Friday 7 

Official opening of ArtStart: In the Eye of the 

Beholder by Patrick Filmer-Sankey 

Attendance 81 

Monday 10 

Royal Society Lecture: Gambusia in the Tamar 

River: how can we eradicate this pest? with 

David Maynard, AMC 

Attendance 37 

Wednesday 19 

Playgroup: A Day at the Beach with Daphne 

Mitchell 

Attendance 40 

Wednesday 26 

Guides choice of the Month: Launceston from 

the Westbury Road by Frederick Strange with 

Rosemary Butler 

Attendance 36 

Morning Coffee Lecture Series with Ailsa 

Bond 

Attendance 64 

Thursday 27 

Friendly Mission Book Launch by the Hon 

Michelle O’Byrne 


Friendly Mission book launch 

Lecture by Prof Henry Reynolds 

Attendance 70 

December 

Thursday 4 

Friends Christmas Party 


Saturday 20 

Official opening of ArtRage 2008 with 

Michelle O’Byrne Minister for Environment, 

Parks, Heritage and the Arts 


January 2009 



14 sessions 


Wednesday 21 

Playgroup: Music With a Bang with Daphne 

Mitchell 

Attendance 24 

February 

Wednesday 18 

Playgroup: Bugs & Grubs with Daphne Mitchell 

Attendance 29 

Wednesday 25 

Guides Choice: ArtRage 2008 with Pat Traill 

Attendance 75 

Morning Coffee Lecture with Ned Terry 

Farmer and Oral Historian 

Attendance 40 

27

March 

Sunday 1 

Launch of new QVMAG Art Guide, A Collected 

View with Tasmanian Poet, Alan Taylor 

Attendance 63 

Royal Society Forum on Darwin’s visit to 

Hobart 


Wednesday 4 

Weekly After School Art Class 

Attendance 15 

Thursday 5 

Friends’ Preview of Tasdance’s performance 

KELP 

Attendance 7 

Wednesday 18 

Playgroup: Japanese Festivals with Daphne 

Mitchell 

Attendance 39 

Wednesday 25 

Guides Choice: Four-fold blackwood painted 

screen, 1889 by Amelia Burrows with Janet 

Tomlinson 

Attendance 33 

Morning Coffee Lecture with Roderick 

Thirkell-Johnston AM 

Attendance 62 

Saturday 28 

Official opening of Spatial Origami, in 

association with 10 Days on the Island 

Attendance 40 

April 

Thursday 2 

100 hours of Astronomy lecture and viewing of 

the night sky with Martin George 

Attendance 65 

Friday 3 

Spatial Origami a talk by Helen Norrie, School 

of Architecture and Design 

Attendance 19 

Saturday 4 

Shell Necklace Making in Tasmania – a 

presentation by Lola Greeno 

Attendance 75 

100 hours of Astronomy lecture and viewing of 

the night sky with Martin George 


Monday 6 

Royal Society Lecture Series The Social History 

of Iodine Deficiency in Tasmania & Derbyshire, 

UK with Paul Richards 

Attendance 63 

Wednesday 22 

Guides Choice: Hyde Park 1925 by Roy de 

Maistre with Rosemary Butler 

Attendance 28 

Morning Coffee Lecture with Annie Greig, 

Director Tasdance 

Attendance 56 

Friday 24 

Friends Tour to Burnie 

Attendance 29 

May 

Monday 4 

Royal Society Lecture Series: Jellyfish: a 

leisurely journey of wonder with Dr Lisa-ann 

Gershwin 

Attendance 46 

Wednesday 13 

Special preview of Earthquest by competition 

winners 


Thursday 14 

Official opening of Earthquest, a touring 

exhibition from Questacon, the National 

Science Centre, Canberra with Brendan 

McMahon, Bureau of Meteorology 

Attendance 52 

Wednesday 20 

Playgroup: Mother Goose Day with Daphne 

Mitchell 

Attendance 38 

Friday 22 

Official opening of ArtStart: Ideas and 

Emotions 


Wednesday 27 

Guides Choice: ‘Jimmy possum’ chair, 

early 20th century, Tasmania, 1982 by Gay 

Hawkes with Shirley Watson 

Attendance 48 

Morning Coffee Lecture with Bertram (Snow) 

Thomas of North Down 

Attendance 79 

Playgroup: Mother Goose Day with Daphne 

Mitchell 

Attendance 23 

June 

Monday 1 

Royal Society Lecture Series: Barry Cash, 

CEO Ben Lomond Water 

Attendance 38 



11 sessions 


Monday 1 – Sunday 14 

Little Big Shots International Film Festival for 

Kids 

28 sessions 


Wednesday 17 

Playgroup: Follow the Shape with Daphne 

Mitchell 

Attendance 32 

Wednesday 24 

Guides Choice: Mimosa 1999 by Kerry 

Gregan with Ros Watson 

Attendance 28 

Morning Coffee Lecture with Don Blew 

Attendance 52 

28

QUEEN VICTORIA MUsEUM AND ART GALLERY

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