L'art en jeu
Interview with Jörg Zutter, Head of International Art, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra.
From 1991 to 2000 Jörg Zutter was the director of the art museum in Lausanne. Since December 2000 he is head of International Art, National Gallery of Australia in Canberra. I have asked him a few questions about the institution where he is working now.
1. Jörg Zutter you have been working for 8 months now at the National Gallery in Canberra. Could you describe briefly this institution for us and explain its position in relation to other similar institutions in Australia.
The National Gallery of Australia (NGA) has been opened to the public in 1982. The firm Edwards, Madigan and Torzillo have designed the building. It is the only national art gallery in Australia. There are other important museums in New South Wales, the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney and the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, to mention only the two most important. The NGA collects national (Australian and Aboriginal) and International art. Important works include Eugene von Guérard, Sidney Nolan, Russel Drysdale, John Olsen, Dawidi, Yirawala, for Australian and Aboriginal art and Monet, Malevich, Matisse, Picasso, Magritte, Pollock, De Kooning, Bacon, Viola for International art, among others. The NGA is expanding all its collections with important works, recent acquisitions include works by Bonnard, Giordano, Freud, Yan Pei-Ming, Callum Innes, and Rover Thomas. The exhibitions, which tour nationally and internationally, include Monet, Federation and many other projects.
2. Let's have a brief look backwards. What are some of the most inspiring moments of your curatorial past.
Working in close relation with artists like Balthus, Bruce Nauman, Bill Viola, Leon Kossoff, Lucian Freud, Yan Pei-Ming among others and presenting their work. Meeting important collectors like Samuel Josefowitz, Ernst Beyeler, Bernard Hahnloser, Marie-Caetana Matisse, Bruno Giacometti. Doing scientific work on European artists like Gustave Courbet and Edouard Vuillard and organising monographic exhibitions of their work.
3. How would you describe the artistic relationships between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States on one side and the whole Pacific area on the other side?
The contacts with all parts of the world are important. We have had a Leon Kossoff exhibition; the most recent acquisition is a painting by Lucian Freud. We are also interested in the art of North and South America. At this moment we show an exhibition on Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera and Mexican Modernism. Last Year we presented an exhibition of contemporary art from China. I am just back from the art fair in Basel where we bought an important work by the Korean Artist Chun, Kwang-Young. This fall the Chinese artist Wenda Gu will present a new installation. For 2004 we are working on an exhibition on Oceania including art from about 1800-2000 in the Pacific area.
We are fostering on developing partnerships with institutions in Asia and would like to exchange exhibitions and curators. Artists we would like to present in a larger context are Wenda Gu and Yan Pei-Ming.
4. In your institution, what is the place dedicated to Australian art and respectively to foreign art?
We try to balance it and to create synergies. We are eager not to isolate Australia but to use the isolation as a challenge and invitation for a dialogue!
In future exhibitions, I would like to include artists from New Zealand, Australia and Europe. There are many parallels of artistic mentalities. We are also working on a Pollock exhibition focused on Blue Poles and including Australian abstract painters from the 1970s.
5. Recently you acquired an important painting from Lucian Freud. Is your department more dedicated to the acquisition of new works or to the organisation of temporary exhibitions?
As already mentioned, our department (and the department of Australian and Aboriginal art) are eager to do acquisitions (often with the help of donors) and exhibitions. Future exhibitions in International art will include Bonnard, Renaissance art from Siena, French art of the 18th century with a particular section of artists influenced by China, Bacon etc.
The site of the National Gallery of Art in Canberra is: http://www.nga.gov.au
Patrick Schaefer, L'art en jeu 26 juillet 2001