Committee

Stanthorpe Art Gallery Society Inc. Committee members (2024-2025)

  • Barbara is a visual artist, her primary reason for pursuing her art is to situate herself in relation to the world in which she lives. 

    Insight in this endeavour comes from:

    her interactions with the media she works with whether it be paint on canvas as she does currently, or architectural/sculpture installations as she has in the past and;

    developing visual systems of interrelated shapes, textures, colours with the logic of a language. 

    She worked successfully for many years as a public artist with several large-scale state and corporate commissions. From this experience she wrote a tertiary educational course in Public Art for TAFE QLD. 

    The skills she developed while completing these projects encompassed dialogue and connective discussion with stakeholders such as architects, public servants, works managers, industrial suppliers and trades people. In her administration of the projects, she ensured quality assurance, workplace health and safety, and record keeping. 

    She has a Visual Arts Degree/ Sculpture major/ with Honours and a Master of Arts by research from QUT. She was a recipient of two Australia Council Creative Arts funding grants for New Work, 2005 & 2010.

    She looks forward to contributing to and working with the SRAG Management Committee in 2024.

  • (Immediate Past President, non-voting member of the Committee)

    Christine Sayer has over 30 years’ experience as an arts centre director, art educator, community arts officer and community engagement team leader. She has held positions in Federal, State and Local Government agencies as well as community led arts organisations. These experiences enable her to understand the cultural landscape from many viewpoints. She has a passion and deep belief in the importance of art and culture in the ongoing development and health of communities.

    Her move from Brisbane to Stanthorpe in 2010 has brought her in touch with a very creative rural community which she enjoys living in and exploring.

  • Cosette is relatively new to the organised arts scene. She has had no previous experience in this field prior to becoming a volunteer at the gallery 5 years ago.

    Her previous work history consists of management experience at Spotlight and Lincraft in the bridal wear departments, as well as consultancy rolls in the financial services industry (teller and consultant at one of the large banks).

    She does, however, have a burning passion for the home hand crafts. Knitting, sewing, crotchet, quilt making, embroidery and smocking. 

    She has a certificate in pattern design, construction and dress making.  She has manufactured one off clothing for selected clients, although this is not one of her preferred crafts.

    She enjoys making unique baby and younger children’s clothing, but only for grandchildren and hopefully great grandchildren in time to come.

    At the gallery, she has assumed the role of organising catering for our opening nights and special events. Along with a group of very dedicated elves, they are proud of the quality and range of the food they present.

    She is also an active member of the gallery change over team and recently has had the chance to learn the art of condition reporting on selected art works, which is something she has enjoyed. 

  • Courtenay has been a Visual Art teacher for 17 years, being a classroom teacher of art and various other subjects over the years. Teaching has seen her work in a variety of schools, places and settings including Brisbane, Moranbah, Tianjin (China), Proserpine, Torres Strait and now Stanthorpe, which is where she grew up. She says she is a terrible contradiction – She is an art teacher that never has enough time to create art but is constantly inspired by our gallery and its exhibitions. Her involvement with the gallery has included facilitating school holiday art workshops, writing the educational content for the 150 years exhibition education resource and being part of the Rebranding sub-committee which developed the new logo and brand direction.

  • Dan is the Business Manager at the Stanthorpe Regional Art Gallery. Dan comes to the gallery with over 20 years administrative experience (mostly in Health), with 10 of those as General Manager of a private medical device company in Brisbane with an annual turnover of approx. $40m. He has post graduate qualifications in Business Administration, specialising particularly in HR and Quality Management. At his previous company, he successfully wrote, organised and implemented a Quality Assurance program with accreditation of the company successful (and ongoing) to ISO9001 standards. He also wrote and implemented a company-wide performance management program for all staff and was on the executive management team that developed the company’s strategic plan. He brings to the gallery strong financial administrative skills, proficient in administering budgets and forward planning. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Managers and Leaders, a Justice of the Peace (Qual) and an active member of the State Emergency Service. In his spare time, he runs his own B&B with his partner, on acreage just out of town.

    • First person in family to acquire Tertiary and Post Grad qualifications.

    • Employment in various and eclectic spheres over 50 years, including working as a trained nurse in 3 countries, and education in Australia.

    • None of this, now, has any relevance.

    • Current primary focus is being a “guardian” and manager over their property which is a “hot spot” for environmental diversity

    • Volunteer and participant in local community

    • Preference for being in the background.

  • Hélène’s teaching career began as a Primary Music Specialist in Queensland schools (1987-1997) and after further study in the USA she taught in Kodály Summer Institutes in Brisbane, California, and Puerto Rico (2003 – 2019).

    She served as a member of KMEIA National Council (Kodály Music Education Institute of Australia) as Vice President (2012-2014) and convenor of the Finance and Strategic Management Planning committee (2012-2016).  In 2019, she was awarded Hon Life Membership.

    Hélène was the Director/Founder of an a Capella women’s ensemble (25+ years in Brisbane) and has sung with a wide variety of choral groups.  With a passion for encouraging and enabling women to ‘find their voice’, Hélène is an advocate for making music, and all of the arts, accessible to ALL people – and delighted to join the SRAG management committee.

    “Real art is one of the most powerful forces in the rise of mankind, and he who renders it accessible to as many people as possible is a benefactor of humanity.” (Zoltán Kodály, 1974).

  • After completing a Bachelor of Art in Film and Television Jesika threw on a backpack and bounced around, never to dip her feet in professional film or television. Her take-home from this degree was a fine sense of editing - both visually and narratively.

    Returning to university saw Jesika complete a Bachelor of Fine Art majoring in Gold and Silversmithing, joined by printmaking electives throughout the course of her study.

    The following 20yrs or so saw her arts practice develop into a production line of silver and titanium jewelry, drawing on inspiration from the night sky. Jesika also developed her contemporary jewelry exhibition work where she often explored the marriage of metal with ephemeral elements such as fabric, paper and seaweed. 

    Pulling back from the jewelry bench, Jesika is currently revisiting her love of printmaking, drawing and fibre arts and is looking forward to seeing what comes out of that combination.

    Jesika has previously volunteered at the Tweed Regional Gallery and the Lone Goat Gallery in Front of House roles and was the Volunteer Coordinator for a short period at the Lone Goat Gallery.

    Along the way Jesika has supported her arts practice with admin, bookkeeping, customer service, hospitality and community support work. Currently, she periodically works in a vegan cooking school and does a little bookkeeping while pursuing her at-home interests of wholefood cooking and permaculture.  

    Jesika has been a Committee Member since 2023 and has joined the sub-committees for Artist in Residence program, Strategic Management and Public Programs.

  • Les spent 22 years with the Royal Australian Air Force as a Radio Technician (Air). He spent 4 years on posting in Malaya, and two detachments to America, training on the F111 and Phantom aircraft. The rest of the time he spent at various bases in Australia. The last 12 years of his service were spent in management positions.

    The last 21 years of his working life was spent as a workshop manager with the School of Life Sciences at the University of Queensland. In 2002, he retired and moved to Glen Aplin. He became involved with the Glen Aplin Rural Fire Brigade. He is the chairman of the brigade. He was also the Fire Warden for 15 years, retiring in December 2023.

    He has an interest in the arts and has been a volunteer at the Gallery since 2009. He is also a member of the Management Committee and has been for several years. He likes working with wood and he also does mosaic and copper foil work.

  • Mary Findlay has been the Director at Stanthorpe Regional Art Gallery for eight years. Her background is in Education and Theatre, and she studied both at the University of Queensland. Her passion for the Arts has been lifelong: Believing that the Arts has the capacity to transcend differences and bring communities together. For the past four years Mary has been on the board of Australian Museum and Galleries Queensland and represents the Granite Belt Arts Alliance on the Southern Downs Regional Council Alliance Group. Her role at Stanthorpe Regional Art Gallery has supported her involvement in building relationships and strengthening community through the arts. 

  • Robyn joined the Stanthorpe Art Gallery Society in 2019 and since that time she has done a variety of tasks from washing up after events to representing the Gallery at professional development workshops. Diversity of roles and opportunities for growth and learning, collaboration and collegiality are the gifts of membership of the Stanthorpe Art Gallery.

    Highlights of her roles at the Gallery have included membership of the Collection Team, which has oversight and care of the Gallery’s excellent art collection; working with others to develop the strategic direction of the Gallery; co-ordinating the artist ‘In Conversations’ and book launches; involvement in the Gallery’s ‘Caring for Nature’ project and supporting volunteer wellbeing.

    She has a passion for the role of the Arts in community development: how the Arts broadly, and Stanthorpe Art Gallery specifically, reflect and contribute to the vigour and vision of our region.

    She is currently President of the Stanthorpe Art Gallery Society.

    Her life beyond the gallery includes writing, dabbling in artistic endeavours, travelling, kayaking and reading.

  • Sue became a member of Stanthorpe Art Gallery Society in 2020 and joined the Management Committee that year as Acting Secretary.  She is currently the Secretary and has been in the role for three years.  She volunteers on the front desk of the Gallery and is involved in Working Groups for supporting volunteers and inducting new Committee members, developing strategic direction of the Gallery and reviewing the Gallery’s policies and procedures. She hopes to bring her skills, experience and passion in supporting and managing community organisations to support the Stanthorpe Art Gallery Committee.

    Sue has a long history in developing and leading therapeutic and support services in government and not-for-profit organisations in NSW, Victoria and Tasmania and the development and management of volunteer community groups.  She is a voracious reader of fiction (Australian crime fiction is high on the list!), loves knitting for her family and joining with those who share this passion, and she enjoys swimming laps in the pool during the summer. She loves art in all its forms and believes that it is the soul of a community.

  • Tim joined SAGS as Treasurer in 2024.

    He is one of seven siblings from a traditional farming family who went to university to study Agricultural Economics in 1982, planning to become a farm management advisor.  Somewhere along the way he completed a PhD in Economic Statistics and then worked as an academic for 20 years, teaching statistical methods to economists and providing advice to governments and NGOs on agriculture, development, environment, energy, transport, health, education and much more.  

    He ”retired” as Professor of Economics at the University of Queensland at the age of 43 when he moved to the Granite Belt with his wife (Michelle) and 4 small children in 2007.  Together they have established a successful small business, Twisted Gum Wines, on Eukey Rd near Ballandean.  Tim & Michelle have no employees, so their work is very hands on, growing grapes, making wine, and doing wine tastings in their cellar door on weekends.  Their passion is for sustainable viticulture – arguing that industrial (chemical) farming systems are suboptimal (economically, environmentally and in terms of wine quality), when compared to low-input, regenerative agriculture that instead focuses on healthy living soils.

    As an economist, Tim believes that cultural activities and our natural environment are both regularly undervalued in our society and hence was pleased to be asked to contribute to the excellent work that SAGS provides in our local community. 

  • Professor Vanessa Tomlinson is a university lecturer, artistic director, musician, curator and arts advocate. She has toured the world as a percussionist for 30 years, premiering hundreds of works, and presenting work at festivals, including recent Australian arts festivals Volume (Art Gallery of NSW), Rising (Melbourne), Brisbane Festival, and touring with countrymen on the award-winning Journey Down/Tura (Kununurra to Perth). Locally Vanessa is known for her artistic direction of Easter at the Piano Mill and co-direction of Lagavulin concert series (Harrigans Lane) which has received national architecture and music awards. She was the inaugural Director, Creative Arts Research Institute and is currently Professor of Music at Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University. Vanessa has sat on national arts boards including the Australian Music Centre, Deans and Directors of Creative Arts, has been a peer assessor for state and federal arts councils, and an arts advisor to national peak bodies.

    Vanessa lives on Wylah Nature Refuge and has a keen interest in the bio-diversity of the Granite Belt region. She actively encourages art/science collaborations that help to raise awareness of the unique and diverse environment in which we live. She is passionate about community, arts access, sustainability, equity, listening and opening pathways to understanding indigenous knowledge systems.