Debates Day 1 - Tuesday 23 May 1995
Parliamentary Record 11
Debates for 7th Assembly 1994 - 1997; ParliamentNT; Parliamentary Record; 7th Assembly 1994 - 1997
1995-05-23
Made available by the Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory
English
Debates
Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory
Darwin
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Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory
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DEBATES - Tuesday 23 May 1995 somebody to whom they can tell their troubles when nobody else will listen, they are likely to be less well-balanced and more likely to offend against the community. Another matter on which I wish to speak briefly is an exhibition at the Northern Territory Museum of Arts and Sciences. I am not taking away from this exhibition by commenting critically on its being at the museum. However, I refuse to go and see it. I was at the museum for a CPA function that was held there recently. I attended with one of my daughters and we had a brief tour around the museum to acquaint ourselves with the items of interest, and there are indeed many items of interest. The Aboriginal art collection is certainly to be envied by any other museum in Australia. The wildlife collection is coming along nicely. It could be improved and added to considerably, but no doubt that will come with time. The art collection is very interesting because interesting acquisitions have been made over the years. There are some paintings among them that I would not hang in the smallest room in the house, but that is my taste. Most are paintings that can be appreciated by the general public. In previous years, touring exhibitions have been displayed there free of charge to the general public, and that is the case with the whole museum. To apply an entrance fee as a condition of seeing the exhibition I mentioned, which was called The Gargantuans, goes against the original intention of having a museum and art gallery open for the public. If it is a public building, it is a public building. If it is intended that entry to it be free of charge as well as its being a public building then entry is free of charge. Visiting exhibitions should be mounted on the same condition - that they can be accessed free of charge by the general public. I was not the only person who objected to going in ... M r Reed: 12 000 people went in. M rs PADGHAM-PURICH: There would have been many who did not. Under the previous curator, travelling exhibitions were open to the general public as a matter of course, as part of the museums attractions. Consideration must be given to this. I know it will probably mean that more money will have to be spent by the Northern Territory government, but a principle is at stake here. I believe the current curator holds views that are different from those of the previous one. I did not always see eye to eye with the previous curator, but I believe different points of view must be expressed, particularly if members of the public wish to make them through their MLAs. An interesting point in the Aboriginal art section which I believe should be noted was the way that Aboriginal paintings have developed over the years in terms of the materials used. I was walking around with the member for Goyder and we were commenting on the very high standard of the Aboriginal paintings exhibited. Some of those paintings are absolutely magnificent. However, this needs to be noted in an historical context. The member for Goyder told me that, many years ago when he was working on Bathurst Island in the carpentry shop, he instructed the Tiwis in the use of modem machinery to fashion their pukamani poles. When it came to painting them with the traditional paints, the durability of those paints was discussed and it was he who suggested that woodwork glue be mixed with the paints to make the paints adhere to the wood. This white woodwork glue has been used ever since. The member for Goyder said that his idea of mixing this glue with the dried paints before they were applied to the articles was noted in Department of Education papers at the time and is recorded 3608