Past exhibitions
2012
Champions Read: Children’s Book Week (2 August–3 September 2012)
Book of the Year has been awarded by the Children’s Book Council of Australia since 1946 and Book Week, established at the same time, is the longest running children’s festival in Australia. The 30 short listed books for 2012 are on display in Dixson Library through the month of August under the Olympian theme of "Champions Read". Pictured: Playground: Listening to stories from country and from inside the heart, compiled by Nadia Wheatley and illustrated by Ken Searle. Short listed for the Eve Pownall Award for Information Book. In Dixson Library.
Let’s Hang It! (20 July–5 August 2012)
At the New England Regional Art Museum, Kentucky Street Armidale: The Faculty of the Professions presents the 9th annual UNE School Acquisitive Prize Exhibition featuring art by students across New South Wales. The prize was initiated by the School of Education to encourage creativity in the arts. 65 Finalists are exhibited at the Art Museum and the winners of each of four categories become part of the UNE Art Collection. As part of the celebration, the 2011 UNESAP Winners will be on display in Dixson Library. Pictured: Landscape by Emily McDonnell, Year 7, Duval High School, UNESAP 2012 Finalist.
Transforming the Human Spirit (7–19 May 2012)
How can we rise above violence — to stop the rapid build-up of arms and forever ban the most fearsome weapons in history? Is it possible to transform a culture of violence to a culture of peace? This exhibition looks at how creating a global sense of deep connection among peoples is a first step. The exhibition is organised by Soka Gakkai International and sponsored by UNE Peace Studies in conjunction with the 3rd annual Nonviolence Film Festival 14-18 May. Pictured: Students say no, "Students Active at Atomic Conference", Neucleus Journal of the S.R.C. of the University of New England, 1955.
Patrick White’s Country Cousins: Photographs from the Saumarez Homestead Collection (5 June 2012–28 March 2013)
This year marks the centenary of the birth of Patrick White, Australia’s only Nobel Laureate in literature. In celebration the National Library of Australia is holding a major exhibition entitled The Life of Patrick White. It includes a rare photograph of a young Patrick White dressed as the Mad Hatter for a 1920 Charity Ball in Sydney. The photograph was discovered last year in the University of New England and Regional Archive and is part of the University’s Saumarez Homestead Collection. Comprising over thirty albums, this collection documents the lives of Patrick White’s Armidale cousins, their friends and the extended White family. Over the months this space will feature changing displays drawn from the Saumarez Homestead Collection exploring such themes as Houses, Family, Friends, Sport and Recreation. Pictured: Patrick White, age 8, as the Mad Hatter, Notman Studios, Strand Arcade, Sydney, 1920. In Dixson Library.
Griffith Taylor’s Antarctica: A Scott Centenary Exhibition (1 March 2012–28 March 2013)
In 1960 Thomas Griffith Taylor, one of the lucky survivors of Robert Falcon Scott’s ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition to the Antarctic, opened a new Geography building at the University of New England. Taylor further acknowledged Australia’s first regional university by donating his remarkable collection of artefacts from expedition. A selection of manuscripts, photographs, artwork, scientific instruments and recreational objects connected with one of the most famous and heroic voyages of discovery of all time is on display in commemoration of the expedition’s 100th anniversary. Pictured: The Second Western Geological Party (1911-1912). Left to right: Petty Officer Robert Forde, Frank Debenham, Thomas Griffith Taylor and Tryggve Gran. Griffith Taylor Collection, University of New England & Regional Archives. In Dixson Library.
Charles Dickens: Australian Connections (3 February–27 May 2012)
To celebrate the 200th year of Dickens’ birth, Australian connections in Dickens’ life and writing are explored through books, photographs and illustrations. Dickens introduced his English readers to Australia through his weekly journals, Household words and All the year round. From the very first issue, promoting Caroline Chisholm’s Family Colonisation Loan Society, Dickens portrayed Australia as a place for a new start and prosperous life. Dickens also sent two of his sons to Australia and it was his country of choice for the emigrating residents of the "penitent women’s home" he managed. Dickens’ enthusiasm for Australia permeated his fiction with many of his characters — Abel Magwitch, Wilkins Micawber and Emily and Daniel Peggoty — finding a new beginning in the Colony. Pictured: Charles Dickens in his study, William Powell Frith, 1859, collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London.
2011
Masks of Papua New Guinea (16 September 2011–15 April 2013)
There are over 800 Indigenous languages and more than 1000 cultural groups in New Guinea. The masks of Papua New Guinea are equally complex, referring to ancestors, clan spirits, totems, power and myth. This selection of masks includes 20th Century masks from Sepik River, Lae and Morobe provinces. Pictured: Sepik River mask, 20th Century, Wau Village.
Let's eat: Food through the centuries (2 September 2011–24 December 2012)
At the Museum of Antiquities: The Museum houses artefacts from the ancient Mediterranean and the Near East; from Africa, Mesoamerica and South East Asia; from Australia, New Guinea and Oceania. What better place to explore the wealth and diversity of food and eating through thousands of years! In celebration of History Week 2011 (3-11 September) the Museum will open a new exhibition featuring recipes and food customs, ancient and modern. A 'Food Trail' meandering through the cases will guide the discovery of all manner of eating vessels and storage containers — plain, fancy and unique. Pictured: Fish plate, 325-300 BCE, Campania, Italy.
One world, many stories (19 August 2011–29 August 2011)
Children's' Book Week celebrates books and Australian authors and illustrators. This year's display illustrates the theme, 'One world, many stories' and includes short-listed entries for the Children's Book Council of Australia Awards.
Let's Hang It! (22 July 2011–14 August 2011)
At the New England Regional Art Museum, Kentucky Street, Armidale: The UNE School of Education presents the 8th annual UNE School Acquisitive Prize exhibition featuring art by students from Kindergarten to Year 12 throughout northern New South Wales. The prize was initiated by the School to encourage creativity in the arts and winning artworks become part of the UNE Art Collection. Pictured: Frog, 2011, Jessica Deleiuen, 2011 Winner of Infants Section, Year 1, Woodford Dale Public School.
Basket Case (29 June–28 August 2011)
At the Museum of Antiquities: Basketry extends across civilisations, past and present. It is one of the oldest and widest spread crafts in the world. The Museum of Antiquities entry showcase displays a selection of baskets from Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Arnhem Land which can be used to winnow grain, keep fish and hold just about anything that will fit in a basket.
Cease not to Learne until you Cease to Live: the 50th anniversary of the Dixson Library building (27 May-16 October 2011)
In 1938 the New England University College (NEUC) began operations in Booloominbah and the 19th century stained glass mottos found in the house provided students with advice to inspire their studies. From the NEUC's early years it was recognized that using one of the rooms in Booloominbah to accommodate the library was only a temporary arrangement. A generous library endowment of £5,000 by Sir William Dixson provided the foundation for a purpose-built library, finally realised in May 1961.
The ground floor of Dixson Library has been given over to the celebration of this building. Photographs from the UNE & Regional Archives and the Library show the buildings and spaces of the Library, the staff and the community of Library users from 1938 to the current day. Seldom exhibited selections from the Rare Book and Special Collections demonstrate the depths of the Library's holdings and the generosity of its donors. The change in Library technology from card catalogue to electronic access is also showcased. Anyone unable to come to Dixson Library to view this exhibition can access the e-exhibition. Pictured: Dixson Library, c. 1960s, UNE & Regional Archives, P4015.
Archaeology & Paleoanthropology (11 May 2011–28 June 2011)
At the Museum of Antiquities: To celebrate National Archaeology Week (15-21 May) the Museum presents a display of field work 'tools of the trade', texts and information on the study of archaeology at the University and a slide show of UNE students and staff on digs through the years. Guest curator: Pauline Hams, UNE student and Museum of Antiquities volunteer.
Manual & Domestic Arts (11 February 2011–22 May 2011)
The teaching of manual trade skills and domestic arts was an important part of the primary school curriculum from the 1880s. It included the use of tools for boys and sewing and cooking for girls. In 1904 a new syllabus stressed the need for education to be less dependent on books and rote learning and to be more practical. The objects on display are typical of these skills training projects. From the Museum of Education.
Society of Arts & Crafts of NSW Jubilee Gift (11 February 2011–22 May 2011)
In 1951 the Society of Arts & Crafts of New South Wales donated a collection of work to the Armidale Teachers' College (ATC) to celebrate the first 50 years of Federation. Many of these artists became prominent in their fields. The Society was formed on 9 August 1906 and remains one of the longest-surviving craft organisations in Australia. From the ATC Heritage Collections, Museum of Education.
The Armidale Environmental Centre Archives (11 February 2011–22 May 2011)
The Armidale branch of The Wilderness Society opened in 1987. It grew in the 1990s into the Armidale Environment Centre, incorporating the North East Forest Alliance and, later, Friends of the Earth. The Centre's archives, which date back to 1979, have been preserved and presented to the Dixson Library. The material covers a wide range of issues and includes calls for action, internal memoranda, policy statements, handwritten activist notes, leaflets, journals, posters and more. Pictured: New England gorge, Kathleen Letters, 1975, from the UNE Art Collection.
Through the Collector's Lens: Dissecting Booloominbah (11 February 2011–15 May 2011)
Through the Collector's lens: Dissecting Booloominbah (11 February-15 May 2011)
At the New England Regional Art Museum, Kentucky Street, Armidale: In 1883 Frederick White commissioned the distinguished architect John Horbury Hunt to design a substantial country house near Armidale. Called Booloominbah, it was Hunt's largest and most memorable domestic commission. Thomas Forster, Sarah White's son-in-law purchased the estate from the other beneficiaries and presented it to the University of Sydney conditional on the establishment of the New England University College. Through this contingency, Hunt's masterpiece became the catalyst for developing one of the largest holdings of scientific and cultural material in regional Australia. Through the Collector's lens: Dissecting Booloominbah uses the house and its setting as the springboard to explore the collections it unwittingly created. The exhibition material is drawn from the Museum of Antiquities, the Zoology Museum, the N.C.W. Beadle Herbarium, the Mineral, Rock, Fossil and Drill Core Collection, the UNE & Regional Archives, the Museum of Education and the UNE Art Collection. A sampler of the exhibition is also displayed in Dixson Library. Pictured: Bat vase (Heritage Collections, Booloominbah Collection), bat (Zoology Museum) and pine cone (N.C.W. Beadle Herbarium).
Migrating in time (13 January 2011–22 May 2011)
This series of five paintings highlights the geological evolution of landscapes in Southeast Queensland and Northeast New South Wales. This area, known as 'The Green Cauldron', includes the Scenic Rim, the Border Ranges, Mount Warning and parts of the Clarence Morton Basin and the Texas/Coffs Harbour Mega-fold. The geostory told by artist and geologist Dr. John H. Jackson is part of Australia's journey from Antarctica to Asia. Each painting represents a significant tectonic chapter in the four hundred million year old Green Cauldron. Pictured: 17 million years ago, Dr John H. Jackson, 2010
The ERA Collection (13 January 2011–22 May 2011)
Excellence in Research for Australia is a Commonwealth initiative to assess research quality within Australia's higher education institutions. To meet eligibility criteria for books, a publication must be a critical scholarly text, exhibit new interpretations of historical events, or present new ideas or perspectives based on established research findings. The ERA Collection of Dixson Library holds published books and chapters in books authored by UNE staff. These selections from over 400 entries demonstrate the strength, depth and high standards of research at UNE.
The UNE Gift Collection: Lacquerware & Chinese Embroidery (11 January 2011–22 May 2011)
These selections from the UNE Gift Collection feature the lacquerwork of China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar and Vietnam along with Su Xiu, Suzhou double-sided embroidery from Jiangsu Province.
2010
Selections from the Library's Special Collections (1 October 2010–6 February 2011)
The Special Collections of Dixson Library preserve materials which are rare, fragile, valuable, of special importance, or relate to the New England Region. This exhibition features books from the New England Collection, letters from the Geoffrey Atkinson Collection of Manuscript Letters and facsimile medieval scores from the Gordon Athol Anderson Music Collection.
Pictured: Dust jacket of Hanging Rock by Frank O'Grady.
Rock-Solid Robb: A Celebration of 50 Years (1 October 2010–6 February 2011)
Established in 1958 as the "Third College" after Wright and Mary White, Robb College was named in honour of William Menzies Robb the first Registrar of the University. The new college was designed by 24-year-old Michael Dysart. Although the project had a tight budget, he showed great skill in avoiding bland homogeneity by creating a series of distinctive spaces. Each of the five courtyards has its own character. Distinguished architect and critic Robin Boyd praised Dysart's fine attention to detail. Sir Leslie Martin, Chairman of the Australian Universities Commission, saw Robb College as an exemplar of good design reportedly saying to other universities: this is how to do it, combine beauty and economy. Pictured: Robb College. Photographer: Max Dupain. From the collection of Michael Dysart
The Four Seasons: Spring Promises (1 September 2010–30 November 2010)
The Four Seasons is a limited edition print portfolio featuring the poetry of Julian Croft with the art of ten contemporary Australian artists: Kate Briscoe, Fred Cress, Herbert "Bert" Flugelman, Robyn Gordon, Graham Kuo, Euan Macleod, Michelle Perry, Peter Pinson, Guy Warren and Salvatore Zofrea. Julian Croft taught at UNE from 1970–2001 and is an Emeritus Professor in the School of Arts. He is a published novelist and poet as well as a distinguished researcher. "Spring Promises" is the first of this poem/artistic response pairing to be exhibited. Pictured: Graham Kuo, Response to Spring Promises, 2002, screenprint.
Recent Acquisitions: UNE Museums & Collections (1 August 2010–28 September 2010)
Recent additions to the UNE's museums and collections are as varied as the entities themselves. This exhibition feature four new acquisitions: the 6th century BCE carved head of a young man purchased by the Museum of antiquities for their 50th anniversary celebration; a fragment of a mammoth tusk
donated to the Zoology Museum by local collector, Bretton Homes; the watercolour Sienna Cathedral
by Pearl Sheldon donated to the University of New England & Regional Archives by Caroline Chapman; and an 1855 auction catalogue
for the Salisbury Court sale of the household effects and store also donated to the Archives by Sir Owen Croft. The exhibition runs through the month of August.
Let's hang it! (11–27 June 2010)
The seventh annual "Let's Hang It" art exhibition features 60 works selected from 500 entries and is on Show at NERAM — the New England Regional Art Museum in Kentucky Street, Armidale from 11 June, 2010 to 27 June, 2010.
The winning works become part of UNE's permanent collection, and are hung on the second and third floors of the University's Education Building. The competition and exhibition are supported by UNE's Faculty of The Professions, NERAM, and the art supply company S&S Creativity Unlimited.
2009
China: Country, Custom, Culture (4 December 2009–28 September 2010)
In September 2009 a gift of over 100 books on China was presented to Dixson Library by the Confucius Institute Headquarters (Beijing) and the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China (Sydney). This exhibition has been prepared in honour of that gift.
Guatemalan Craft (3 November 2009-14 September 2011)
Each Guatemalan village has its own distinctive shape, design, style and colour. Colours and patterns signal where you belong. This selection of Guatemalan textiles is from the Bruce Reuman Collection of the Museum of Antiquities.
Recent Acquisitions: The Regional Artists Collection (23 October 2009–31 August 2010)
The UNE Art Collection holds many works by local and regional artists, donated to or purchased by Schools, Departments and Colleges. This selection of work represents the most recent acquisitions to the Regional Artists Collection.
Life with father (3 September 2009–5 October 2010)
A look at life in New England through digital reproductions of early 20th century photographs from the Glass Plate Negative collections of the University Archives.
Arabic Calligraphy and Culture (25 August–18 December 2009)
Islamic calligraphy (colloquially known as Arabic calligraphy) is the art of artistic handwriting. In the use of writing as decoration, Islamic art stands alone. Islamic calligraphy is used in painting, drawing and printmaking; on glass, ceramic and metal plates, cups, vessels and plaques; on coins and tiles; on wall hangings and tapestries. The exhibition was made possible through the contributions of the Muslim community of Armidale and New England, coordinated by the Rev. Mostafa E. Ghandar.
Indonesian Art & Craft (25 August–18 December 2009)
A selection of traditional art and crafts from the Lombok, Ngada, Sentani, Dyak, Asmat and Nagakeo people of Indonesia featuring shadow puppets, canoe prows, masks, carved figures, clothing and shoes, baskets and trays. From the collection of the Museum of Antiquities.
Fashionista: Florence Martin Fashion Plates (7–21 August 2009)
Florence Martin was born in Ballarat, Victoria and studied with Archibald Colquhoun. She began her art career designing costumes and setting for the ballet and theatre including Borovansky’s Australian Ballet Company and the Theatre Company in Melbourne before moving overseas in 1942. These pastel "fashion plate" drawings were donated to Dixson Library in 1997 by John P. Lubrano or J & J Lubrano – Music Antiquarians, Massachusetts, USA.
Selections from the Shanghai Youth Exhibition (6 August–23 October 2009)
The Armidale Rotary Club’s 1987 Shanghai Youth Exchange Exhibition was the first youth-based people-to-people cultural exchange between school children and young adults from the New England and Shanghai. At the exhibition’s end, 75 artworks by Shanghai youth were given to the University by the Rotary. These selections were created by some of the oldest student artists from the Shanghai Drama Institute and the shanghai Normal Teachers’ University. From the UNE Art Collection.
Penguin Gizzards and More! From the UNE Collections (29 May 2009–27 September 2009)
At the New England Regional Art Museum, Kentucky Street, Armidale: Whale vertebrae, 19th Century pressed plants from the New England, Bronze Age Cypriot pottery, children's samplers, art by Gruner and the penguin gizzards collected by Griffin Taylor and just some of the weird, rare and beautiful objects to be found in collections of the Zoology Museum, the N.C.W. Beadle Herbarium, the Museum of Antiquities, the Museum of Education, the UNE Art Collection and the UNE & Regional Archives. Sunday Gallery Talks and an Art Discovery Day will be held at the Art Museum in conjunction with the exhibition. Pictured: Drawer of bird's egg, Zoology Museum.
Australian Children's Books (26 May–3 December 2009)
The first known children’s book to emerge from the Colony was A Mother’s Offering to Her Children: By a Lady Long Resident in New South Wales (1841). Early children’s books about Australia were adventurous tales about travel, sea voyages, treks to the bush and marvellous encounters.
Some were written by people who had never visited Australia and, except for the descriptions of native animals such as the kangaroo, wallaby and emu, children would have had a difficult time recognizing the country they saw every day. From the collection of the Museum of Education.
Magic Carpet Ride: Canvas Embroidery of Frank Holloway (16 February-6 August 2009)
Frank Holloway taught German at UNE from 1947 until his retirement in 1974. Throughout his tenure as lecturer and into his retirement, Holloway perfected the art of canvas embroidery, basing many of his designs on traditional Persian or ‘Oriental’ carpet motifs.
Each carpet was started in the centre, both vertically and horizontally. No frames were used and the canvas was simply unrolled at each end as he went along. The intricacies of the designs were created as he stitched and as the canvas unfurled.
Uniform Education (16 February–25 May 2009)
The first school uniforms were worn by children at charity schools for the poor in 16th century England. Known as the Blue and Grey Coat Schools, students were required to wear this uniform when outside the school so that their benefactors could observe their behaviour. School uniforms in Australia have traditionally followed the British model, but the idea was slower to evolve.
School uniforms were not worn in 19th century Australia, except in some exclusive private schools, and welfare schools. During the social revolution of the 1960s British schools began relaxing strict uniform codes. In Australia, however, the movement for uniforms was just gaining momentum but the reasons had become more egalitarian to encourage equality, tidiness, school pride and teamwork. From the collection of the Museum of Education.
Photo Credit: Armidale 1964. Photo courtesy of The Armidale Express.
2008
Families of NEUC: A Social History (9 October 2008–29 June 2009)
In celebration of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the New England University College (1938–1954), this exhibition looks at the early days of the University through the eyes of the families that accompanied the first academics to their teaching posts in Armidale and the families of the staff that supported the running of the College. The stories from those years are illustrated with photographs and objects from the University Archives and with memorabilia loaned by the families and their descendents.
Arrernte Watercolours: The Hermannsburg School (10 July–19 October 2008)
‘Hermannsburg School’ is the name given to the style of art practiced by Western Arrernte watercolourists living near the former Finke River Lutheran Mission outside of Hermannsburg, NT. The first and most famous of these artists was Albert Namatjira who taught painting to his sons and other Arrernte men. This selection includes work by Walter Ebatarinja, his first student; four of his sons, Oscar, Ewald, Keith and Maurice Namatjira; and one grandson, Gabriel Namatjira. From the David Phillipps Collection of the UNE Art Collection.
Max Dupain (8 July–6 October 2008)
Max Dupain first photographed the University buildings, grounds, classrooms, students and lecturers in 1955 for a 24-page promotional brochure. These undated photographs of Robb College and the Agricultural Economics Building are from a second visit, most like early in 1964 after the opening of Agricultural Economics. The photographs exemplify Dupain’s increasingly abstract attitude towards built images. From the University & New England Regional Archives.
Books to Blogs (8 July–6 October 2008)
Information and modes of communication have changed rapidly in the last thirty years, but the development of the WWW (World Wide Web) is claimed to be the biggest revolution in communication since the development of the book itself.
In the classroom face to face instruction has been the traditional teaching method for centuries. The Internet, the Web and Web 2.0 and recent improvements such as weblogs, wikis, podcasts, personal websites and online discussion forums have made radical changes to how education is delivered. The global classroom has replaced the traditional classroom and e-Learning is rapidly replacing previous teaching aids and modes of delivery.
This display illustrates the evolution of educational technology in the classroom up until the mid 20th century and highlights the rapid changes that have occurred over the last sixty years. From the collection of the Museum of Education.