GAMAA Judge, Robert Ryan, Mackay Regional Council with Dr Valerie Boll, accepting an award on behalf of Dr Valerie Keenan, Girringun Aboriginal Arts Centre – Winner of Individuals: Paid Staff category. Photo: Blueclick Photography, courtesy of M&G QLD.

Individuals

Paid Staff

Winner

Dr Valerie Keenan headshot
Dr Valerie Keenan. Photo: R. Morten, courtesy of Girringun Aboriginal Art Centre.

Dr Valerie Keenan
Art Centre Manager, Girringun Aboriginal Art Centre, Cardwell, North Queensland

Valerie is recognised for the sustained effort and dedication she has shown in her position as Art Centre Manager at the Girringun Aboriginal Art Centre and Keeping Place Museum. Valerie has worked with the centre from the outset in 2008 when it first received full-time funding. Since then, she has applied for and received significant grants for projects and for individual artists from a wide variety of funding bodies.

With a huge workload from the beginning, Valerie has enabled real jobs for staff, volunteers and trainees. Her multiple duties have included: arts program development, business plan development; staff hire, training and funding; administration; grant writing and acquittals; exhibition development; professional development opportunities; media and promotion; merchandise development; and research – not to mention, bus driver; cook; and more.

Under Valerie’s guidance, major highlights for the centre have included solo and group shows in places such as Monaco, Paris, Canada, and numerous Australian venues. Girringun artists are represented in major collections including the British Museum, National Gallery of Australia, National Museum of Australia, and many private collections.

Under Valerie’s direction, the centre has successfully completed public art projects in Monaco and many in Australia, including the Queensland Rail Tilt Train Art+Place Project, Bagu on the Foreshore in Cardwell, Strand Ephemera in Townsville, and most recently at the Cairns Performing Arts Centre.

A major exhibition of Girringun artists’ works, Manggan – gather, gathers, gathering, is currently touring to five states of Australia by M&G QLD through Visions of Australia funding.

Valerie has supported staff and artists to undertake professional development, and facilitated many opportunities for staff and artists to attend museums and galleries to learn about collections, attend and speak at exhibitions, and have their work acquired.

During this time, she has completed her PhD, and was personally awarded the Vida Lahey Memorial Travel Scholarship 2019 (Queensland Art Gallery | GOMA) to research Norwegian Explorer Carl Lumholtz who undertook exploration of parts of the Girringun region in the 1880s. Findings from this study will result in an exhibition and be included in the Girringun archives. Valerie is currently in Norway undertaking this study.

Finalists

Michele Pickering
Michele Pickering. Photo: Andrea Higgins, M&G QLD.

Michele Pickering
Coordinator, Brisbane’s Living Heritage Network (BLHN)

Michele is a quiet achiever who works hard for the members of Brisbane’s Living Heritage Network. She is passionate about all that she does on behalf of the heritage sector, and her enthusiasm for her work is evident to all who come into contact with her.

Michele is recognised for her years of service to Brisbane’s heritage sector, but also for one achievement in particular. This year, the Brisbane City Council announced a new grant – the Historical Organisation Assistance Grant Program – that will help to address some of the running costs and operational expenditure in the heritage sector, and will make an enormous difference to small museums struggling with day-to-day expenses. Michele was a key lobbyist for this initiative. In her role as Coordinator at BLHN, she consulted members to find out how she could best help them and, through her careful research, identified that a number of the members were struggling to stay open due to rising rates, electricity and insurance costs. Advocating for BLHN members, she took every opportunity to make sure Council was aware of the struggles that small museums were facing. The new grant can be partly attributed to Michele’s persistence.

Michele works hard to raise the profile of BLHN members and to increase public awareness of the heritage sector. She visits sites, creates networking opportunities, organises walking tours and seminars, and is responsible for publication of the BLHN Guide Book. Under her watch, membership of BLHN has increased to its highest ever level in 2019.

Michele works hard to raise the profile of BLHN members and to increase public awareness of the heritage sector. She visits sites, creates networking opportunities, organises walking tours and seminars, and is responsible for publication of the BLHN Guide Book. Under her watch, membership of BLHN has increased to its highest ever level in 2019.

Rebecca Milliner. Courtesy of Cairns RSL Sub-branch.

Rebecca Milliner
Events and Marketing Coordinator, Cairns RSL Sub-branch

By her singular efforts, Rebecca has raised the profile of the Sub-Branch’s Kokoda Hall Museum to achieve a level of community engagement unsurpassed in the history of the Museum. Rebecca has delivered these outcomes by implementing three key initiatives:

  • Effective promotion of the Museum through Sub-Branch periodicals, social media and advertising to the general public;
  • Developing and implementing an educational initiative for school students involving tours of the Museum, themed toward and commemorating the November 2018 Centenary of Armistice, including an interactive activity titled The Armistice Centenary First World War Treasure Hunt; and
  • Capitalising on these successful outcomes by promoting further comprehensive and educational school tours of the Museum.

Rebecca has demonstrated an exemplary level of professionalism, commitment and vision in dedicating hours of her time to planning, development and execution of the Armistice treasure hunt and commemorative activity, and in her contributions toward promoting the Kokoda Hall Museum and defining its strategic direction.

She has become a role model and mentor, inspiring other Sub-Branch staff and volunteers to similar levels of professionalism and commitment, and raised the profile of the Cairns RSL Sub-Branch to achieve recognition as a valued contributor to the Cairns community.

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