Name

Ian Brown

Culture

Australian

Gender

Male

Birth date

active by 1962

Occupations

Clergyman | Print collector

Summary

Worked: Australia (NSW, VIC).

Context

Australia | New Zealand

Biography

The Reverend Ian Brown was ordained an Anglican minister in 1962 and retired in 2002. He served in parishes in Croydon, Eltham, Glen Iris and Richmond, as well as in Sydney, Paris, London and New Jersey. Ian Brown’s interest in the visual arts grew from an exhibition he organised in 1967 called Art and the Church, which included work by many leading artists then working in Melbourne. In this same year, Ian Brown began collecting works on paper, fascinated by the immediacy of expression and the connection with the hand of the artist. This interest is apparent in works throughout his collection; many of the artists represented are known for the supreme quality and inventiveness of their draughtsmanship. The affordability and transportability of works on paper was also a key factor. From 1970 to 1972 Ian Brown travelled in Europe and began collecting international art; he later became a dedicated collector of New Zealand art. Ian Brown began donating works from his collection to the NGV in 1984, and since then has made many generous gifts of prints, drawings and photographs. He has also indicated that he will bequeath more. In 2009, the NGV presented an exhibition titled Making a mark: prints and drawings gifted by Ian Brown, curated by Alisa Bunbury, which surveyed the significant collection of one of the NGV’s most generous benefactors. [Prints, printmaking and Philanthropy, 2019]

Last Updated

04 May 2024