The University Art Collection

The University Art Collection is a growing collection of over 3,000 individual works of art and culturally significant material that contributes to the learning, enjoyment and wellbeing of our community and adds to the unique culture and built environment of the University of Newcastle.

Since the Collection’s establishment over sixty years ago, the University Art Collection has continually evolved to reflect the best of both regional and nationally significant creative practices. The Collection began with the acquisition of some of Australia’s most notable artists, including Margaret Preston, John Coburn and esteemed University of Newcastle alumni Dr Margaret Olley and Dr John Olsen. Other renowned alumni held within the collection are Chris Langlois, Vera Zulumovski, Simon Munro, Nicole Chaffey, Braddon Snape, Alexia Sinclair and Izabela Pluta among many others who have made successful careers in the arts. The Collection also constitutes works by James Drinkwater, Judy Cassab, Charles Blackman, Janet Laurence and Lottie Consalvo.

In recent years the Collection has focussed on the acquisition of contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island artwork. Over half of our Collection constitutes First Nations art created by artists from across the breadth of Australia such as Kaylene Whiskey, Ms D Yunupingu and Minnie Pwerle. The Art Collection also includes a substantial holding of First Nations printmaking that documents the medium’s growing presence and importance to remote Australian communities over the past two decades. Notable artists from this focus include Blak Douglas, Banduk Marika, Timothy Cook, Lorna Kantilla, Tjukupati James, Nongirrna Marrawili and Jimmy Pike.

View all the artists in the University Art Collection.

The University Art Collection plays a significant role within the  University to ensure the visibility of culture across all our campuses and offsite partner locations through artwork installation; a practice that reflects the University's and the Wollotuka Institute’s enduring commitment to Indigenous education, employment and leadership.

The diversity of artworks that comprise the Art Collection speak to the University of Newcastle’s reputation as an institution that values innovation, equity and excellence through learning and creative thinking practices. The Art Collection encapsulates both a proud history and a mission to support and respond to progressive and contemporary issues, today and into the future.