Karina Devine, Gallery Director of the Warwick Art Gallery, accepting her GAMAA trophy from Museums & Galleries Queensland’s Executive Director, Rebekah Butler. Photo: LeAnne Vincent, courtesy of M&G QLD.

Individuals

Paid Staff

Joint Winner

Jumpers & Jazz at Eat Street markets, Brisbane
Jumpers & Jazz at Eat Street markets, Brisbane. Karina Devine pictured centre.

Karina Devine
Gallery Director, Warwick Art Gallery

In her ten years as Gallery Director of Warwick Art Gallery, Karina Devine in her quiet and humble way has delivered excellent and innovative artistic outcomes to the Warwick community and beyond. Her approach is underpinned by hard work and dedication and a strong belief in the value of collaboration, equity and planning for sustainability.  

As well as the delivery of a well-planned annual program of diverse exhibitions for the Gallery, Karina is the Creative Director of Warwick’s Jumpers & Jazz in July Festival. For the past ten years she has injected life, passion, enthusiasm and opportunity into this unique and quirky platform for the arts in the community. 

Karina’s spirit of collaboration with community groups and businesses also shines.  She has the ability to motivate the amateur to the professional and to deliver art that is truly inspiring and conversation-provoking. She also has a talent in securing grants and sponsorship to enable creative dreams to become audience realities as demonstrated by the Portraits of a Tea CosyTouring Exhibition, which was initiated by the Gallery and toured to national venues from 2013 to 2015.

Karina is a great example of a Gallery Director elevating her community’s cultural capacity and appreciation from that of a conservative agricultural community to one of sophistication and innovation in the realm of textile art.  

Finalists

Shane at the Glencore Percival Portrait Painting Prize
Shane Fitzgerald.

Shane Fitzgerald
Manager Gallery Services, Townsville City Council

Shane Fitzgerald is nominated in his role as Manager Gallery Services, Townsville City Council, for his contribution to the growth of Townsville’s leading public galleries, Perc Tucker Regional Gallery and Pinnacles Gallery, over the course of his three-year tenure. 

Shane’s leadership and particular skillset has seen the development and implementation of a Visual Arts Strategy that has netted many and various positive outcomes for the entire Townsville region. These include the restructuring of the Gallery Services’ business unit; increased support, advocacy and collaboration with Council and external cultural organisations; increased Gallery visitation; innovative exhibitions and publications; growth of Townsville City Council’s internal and external art collections; facilities and equipment upgrades; greater national media; increased funding through State and Federal grants programs; and contribution to the public consultation process for significant arts and cultural infrastructure development in the proposed city masterplan.

Geraldine in Longreach as a 2013 Standards Reviewer
Geraldine in Longreach as a 2013 M&G QLD Standards Reviewer.

Dr Geraldine Mate
Senior Curator Transport and Energy, Queensland Museum Network | The Workshops Rail Museum

Dr Geraldine Mate has been employed by the Queensland Museum Network since 2007. She is nominated in her capacity as Senior Curator Transport and Energy at The Workshops Rail Museum, for her contribution and commitment to the Queensland Museum, The Workshops Rail Museum and the wider profession over an extended period. 

In her role as Senior Curator of Transport and Energy she has lead the development of two significant temporary travelling exhibitions for The Workshops Rail Museum – I’ve been Working on the Railway, exploring the untold story of Indigenous Australians’ experience of working on the railways, and Railways 1914–1918 exploring the Australian railway experience both at home and on the front during the Great War.

Geraldine has acquired significant collections for the Queensland Museum including the Mick Marsden model railway collection of 11,500 models and the transfer of the Queensland Energy Museum Collection. She has chaired the Queensland Museum’s On Line Service Committee, and edited and published a number of volumes of the Queensland Museum Memoirs.

Her leadership and professional commitment to the sector is evidenced by her willingness to be involved in a wide array of activities including as a Standards Reviewer over a number of years for Museums & Galleries Queensland Standards Review Program; and her contribution to organising a variety of industry and professional association conferences including the 2015 railway heritage conference, the 2015 M&G QLD Conference and the 2014 Joint Australian Archaeological Association/Australasian Society for Historical Archaeology conference.

Review Site
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