Resources

The Gordon Darling Fellowship recipients

2003

The 2003 Gordon Darling Fellowship for the study of Australian prints, posters and illustrated books has been awarded to the Canberra based writer and designer Anna Zagala.

Anna Zagala was born in Poland in 1974 and migrated as a child to Melbourne, Australia. In 1996, she completed a Bachelor of Arts at Latrobe University, majoring in Art History and Cinema Studies. These have been her twin passions ever since.

Inspired by an exhibition of Russian Constructivist graphics at MoMA in New York, Anna returned to Australia and enrolled in a Bachelor of Graphic Design (Design History and Critical Theory) from Swinburne University of Technology. Her honours thesis focused on the socially engaged screenprinting workshop Redback Graphix (1979-1994). The self described ‘advertising agency for the Left’ printed vibrant posters for local and national community organisations, in Wollongong and later Sydney.

Anna has worked at various cultural institutions around Australia including the Museum of Sydney and ScreenSound Australia, The National Screen and Sound Archive. She is currently undertaking a Master of Philosophy (Creative Writing) at The University of Queensland and continues to work as a freelance designer.

As the Gordon Darling Fellow, Anna researched the collection of Redback Graphix material held by the Gallery. Her project examined the way in which design, art and activism intersected in the work and studio practice of Redback Graphix.

2001

The 2001 Gordon Darling Fellowship for the study of Australian prints, posters and illustrated books has been awarded to the Melbourne based artist and writer Alex Selenitsch.

Alex Selenitsch was born in 1946, in Regensburg, Germany. A displaced person from post-war Europe, he arrived in Australia with his parents in 1949. He lived in Geelong, Victoria, as a child and later studied in Melbourne. He was awarded his Bachelor of Architecture 1968, and Master of Architecture 1991. Alex is currently a Senior Lecturer in Architecture, University of Melbourne.

Since 1969 Alex has exhibited visual poems, sculpture, books, drawings and models in both commercial and public galleries. His work is represented in the National Gallery of Australia, the State Library of Victoria, the Victoria and Albert Museum (London) and the New York Public Library.

Alex has written extensively on issues relating to images and text. As Gordon Darling Fellow he will research the Gallery's collection of Australian artists' books and concrete poetry.

Inaugural recipient

The inaugural Gordon Darling Fellowship for the study of Contemporary Australasian Prints at the National Gallery of Australia was awarded to Melanie Eastburn.

While at the National Gallery Melanie Eastburn focused on the Gallery's extensive collection of prints from Papua New Guinea. The project explored and documented the various social, cultural and economic factors associated with the practice of printmaking.

Melanie Eastburn, who lived in Papua New Guinea as a child, has a Bachelor of Applied Science specialising in Cultural Heritage Management from the University of Canberra (1995) and an honours degree in Art History and Curatorship from the Australian National University (1997). Her honours thesis surveyed the work of Guan Wei, a Chinese-born artist who has lived in Australia since 1990. Melanie has a strong personal and professional interest in prints and has worked for a number of public cultural institutions, as well as for Sherman Galleries in Sydney.

Melanie was employed as Assistant Curator of Asian Art at the National Gallery of Australia before being appointed Curator of Asian Decorative Arts and Design, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney.