Australian Museums and Galleries Association Annual Report 2019 1 Australian Museums and Galleries Association operates with the generous support of Museums Victoria, Western Australian Museum, ICOM Australia, and Australian Library and Information Association, as well as individual members who have made generous donations. Australian Museums and Galleries Association PO Box 24 DEAKIN WEST ACT 2600 Telephone 02 6230 0346 ABN 83 048 139 955 Auditor Accountability PO Box 776 Mitchell ACT 2911 Telephone 0407 407 776 ABN 65 119 369 827 All images in this Annual Report 2019 have been sourced and reproduced with the permission of the owner/s. If you have any questions about the images reproduced herein, please contact the National Office on 02 6230 0346. The National Office of Australian Museums and Galleries Association acknowledges the Ngunnawal people who are the traditional custodians of this land on which we work and pay respect to the Elders of the Ngunnawal Nation both past and present. 2 Contents National President’s Introduction 4 National Director’s Introduction 6 National Council 2019-2021 8 About the Association 9 Membership 14 Branches & Chapters 16 National Networks 21 Partnerships 22 Awards 24 Conference: At the Centre 25 Communications 26 2019 Operating Results 28 Organisational Members 29 3 National President’s Introduction In 2018 we, as an organisation, did a lot of each other’s situations and all tried to gently analysis and thinking about who we were and move the conversation forward through better what we stood for. This resulted in the change of understanding of different experiences and name to the Australian Museums and Galleries viewpoints. There was enormous goodwill and Association, at a Special General Meeting in a willingness to listen and to learn.” It was a Canberra on 26th November 2018. conference that those fortunate enough to attend, will never forget. We are indebted to the Northern We entered 2019 with a new name and promptly Territory branch for their role in bringing it to launched our new Corporate Strategic Plan 2019- fruition. 2021 which came directly out of the consultation in our Strategic Review. We launched First Peoples: A Roadmap for Enhancing Indigenous Engagement in Museums We began to roll out the name change and and Galleries at the conference. This is a landmark branding across the organisation. A year on it document for our sector which was produced looks good and sits comfortably in the cultural for us by Terri Janke and Company with Australia landscape. We look like a national organisation, Council for the Arts Funding. We set in train and I am pleased to say, that all the state and initiatives that will allow our members to engage territory branches are working positively together with it and begin to implement it. and it has been a delight to chair the meetings of the National Council. I would like to acknowledge the work of our National Director, Alex Marsden, who has There have been many highlights this year. worked tirelessly as an advocate for museums Our members expressed a clear desire for and galleries. Alex takes every government professional development to be an important inquiry and every meeting with public servants priority for AMaGA. Whilst much of this is carried or parliamentarians as an opportunity to get out at a State or Branch level we conceived, across the message about the importance to our developed and delivered a national program of communities and indeed the nation of the work webinars. These were very successful, exceeding we do. all expectations. Little did we know at the time that we were establishing a platform that would be so The National Office of AMaGA has again acted as important in the following year, 2020. the secretariat for GLAM Peak and I have been the Co-Chair of the group alongside Liz Jack of Our annual conference was held in Mparntwe/ National and State Libraries Australia. The role of Alice Springs. It was a special time, gathering at GLAM Peak, at its three meetings in 2019, moved the Centre. As I wrote in the magazine immediately from a focus on digital access to include advocacy following the conference, and sustainability. AMaGA has also played a major “This conference presented us all with role in setting the agenda for GLAM Peak. unexpected challenges. The conversations were I would like to thank my fellow members of the frank, and often confronting, as we encountered executive Simon Elliot (Vice President), Carol 4 Cartwright (Secretary) and Margaret Lovell ABOVE Terri Janke launches the Indigenous Roadmap at the 2019 national (Treasurer) and my fellow Council Members who conference. Photo: Tibor Hegedis. served during 2019. This year we co-opted two Indigenous councillors Marcus Hughes and Deanne Fitzgerald and we are indebted to them for their time, patience and expertise. I would also like to thank the staff of the national office who I interact with regularly and thank them for their work. In addition, I acknowledge the excellent work of the state and territory branches carried out by staff and members, and the collaborative national networks of members drawn from across the country who share their expertise and interests. In literally the dying moments of 2019, we were not to know it, but a virus was detected in Wuhan, China and this was about to turn the Dr Robin Hirst PSM world upside down. Our move to webinars and National President videoconferencing in 2019 would prove to be Australian Museums and incredibly valuable. ● Galleries Association 5 National Director’s Introduction The Australian Museums and Galleries Association inform the Protection of Indigenous Knowledge is a national organisation that has two defining in the Intellectual Property System; A proposed and complementary roles: a membership National Indigenous Arts and Cultural Authority association and a peak body for the industry. As (NIACA); the Productivity Commission Inquiry a member-supported body we aim to provide into Mental Health; the National Science and advice, communications and services to our Research Priorities Review; the Senate Inquiry into individual and organizational members; and as a Nationhood, National Identity and Democracy; peak body we speak with delegated authority to and the Australian Infrastructure Audit 2019. All raise awareness and appreciation of the sector. submissions are made available on the national We advocate, conduct research, and develop and website and drawn upon by members. Interviews, promote standards, guidelines and principled conference presentations, articles and media practice. releases were also prepared and the national office strongly supported the GLAM Peak 2019 was a significant year for AMaGA as we collaborative network. celebrated our 25th year as a national association for Australia’s museums and galleries. Our growth At the state/territory and network levels, rate of new members increased, building on last significant advocacy and collaboration have year’s upwards trend. It was also another very busy also strengthened the impact and effectiveness and challenging year for our state and territory of your association. In particular, the Victorian branches, our national networks and the national and South Australian branches contributed council and office. The ground-breaking 10-Year to their respective states’ new cultural plans, Indigenous Roadmap was completed at the end national office and the NSW state branch were of 2018, and launched successfully at the national clear advocates for the sector during their conference in May 2019. The sector response state government election, and national office has been sincere and heartening. The challenge advocated for a range of policies and urgent for AMaGA is to guide and monitor the uptake, actions leading up to the Federal Election in including delivering on our own commitments. May. We continue to put good ideas forward, and protested strongly when the Commonwealth Throughout 2019, AMaGA continued to be an Department of the Arts disappeared in the Prime active advocate, making numerous presentations Minister’s portfolio restructures at the end of at symposiums and researching submissions the year. I believe our voice contributed to the to Inquiries at both state and national levels. subsequent establishment of the new Office for Nationally, submissions were developed to the Arts early in 2020. 6 Capacity building and professional development still frustrating aspects and we are developing a continued to be a critical part of what we offer business case for its replacement. around the country – 2019 saw numerous workshops and seminars developed and delivered Driven by the needs and aspirations of our by branches and networks, the roll out of the diverse membership, advocacy, training and national professional development webinar skills development, principled leadership, and program, and a highly successful national collaboration have thus been important themes of conference held in Alice Springs/Mparntwe. My the year. As the President notes, the foundations thanks to the NT branch and Araluen Arts Centre we laid in 2019 have provided exceptional support for their invaluable support. as we navigate the crises of Australian bushfires followed by the pandemic in 2020. In 2019 we were guided by year one of the new Corporate Strategic Plan 2019-21. Amongst the Finally, my thanks to the national council, staff in priorities were establishing new connections at national and state offices, and to all members - for the national level with state-based associations of the continued privilege of working as your national public galleries, developing Advocacy Guidelines, director. ● developing AMaGA’s own implementation plan for the Indigenous Roadmap, and strengthening other relationships with peak bodies. Both the Plan and the new name were launched at the beginning of 2019, and rolled out across a number of platforms giving us a cohesive, clear and inclusive national identity. Developing a more secure and diversified financial footing for the organisation continues to be an important and difficult objective.