Frances Lindsay b. Melbourne, Vic.

Also known as Frances McCarthy
  • Curator
Frances Lindsay, Deputy Director of the National Gallery of Victoria, whose first curatorial position was as Brian Finemore's Associate Curator of Australian Art, has a made a substantial contribution to scholarly curatorial practice, especially in Australian art.
Talk | Version history | Updated Jan. 10, 2012 | Created Jan. 9, 2012
Name
Frances Lindsay
Also known as Frances McCarthy
Birth date
Birth place
Melbourne, Vic.
Gender
Female
Roles
  • Curator
Other Occupation
  • Guide Lecturer (ANZSIC code: 82) 1967 National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Vic.
Active Period
  • 1968-
Training
  • Bachelor of Arts (Fine Arts), c.1964- c.1966 University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Vic.
Is Indigenous
No

She was born Frances McCarthy, and spent her childhood at Moonie Ponds, later made famous by Barry Humphries. On graduating from the University of Melbourne (Bachelor of Arts with a major in Fine Arts) she joined the staff of the National Gallery of Victoria as a guide-lecturer. A year later she had so impressed the senior staff, including the formidable Dr Ursula Hoff and the curator of Australian Art, Brian Finemore, that she was appointed as Assistant Curator, later Associate Curator of Australian Art. She was a part of the curatorial team for The Australian Landscape.
In 1972 she was appointed as Assistant Curator of Australian Art at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, working directly with Daniel Thomas. She was co-curator for Recent Australian Art, an exhibition that coincided with the opening of the Sydney Opera House in 1973. At the gallery she met her future husband, Robert Lindsay, who was an education officer. At the Art Gallery of New South Wales she initiated a series of project exhibitions examining different Australian artists, many contemporary but also some older unrecognised artists such as Clewin Harcourt.
In 1976 the Lindsays left Sydney and the Art Gallery of New South Wales to return to Melbourne where she was director of the gallery for the Victorian College of the Arts until 1978.In 1984 she was appointed Director of the University of Melbourne Art Gallery, and then became the founding Director of that university’s Ian Potter Museum of Art. Her curatorial practice was characterised by fine, detailed analysis combined with a strong visual sense. She also became good friends with many artists, collectors and patrons of the arts.
In 2000 Lindsay joined the National Gallery of Victoria as Deputy Director with overall curatorial responsibility for Australian art. In 2007, after the other deputy director, Tony Ellwood, was appointed to lead the Queensland Art Gallery, her position was expanded to include curatorial responsibility for the entire National Gallery of Victoria collection.

Writers:

mendej
Date written:
2012
Last updated:
2012
spouse of
Robert Lindsay
Curator
associate of
Terence Lane
Curator
associate of
Joanna Mendelssohn
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
associate of
Patrick McCaughey
Curator
associate of
Gerard Vaughan
Curator
associate of
Bernice Murphy
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
associate of
Ron Radford
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
associate of
Dr Ursula Hoff
Non-Artist/Designer/Curator
associate of
Peter Booth
1940
Artist
friend of
Nicholas William Draffin
1943
Curator, Artist (Mixed Media Artist)
associate of
Brian Finemore
1925
Curator
he mentored the youn
friend of
John Stringer
1937
Curator
associate of
Daniel Thomas
1931
Curator
The Australian Landscape
1972- 1973
Exhibition (curator of)
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, SA
"The Australian Landscape" was a national touring exhibition organised by the Australian Gallery Directors' Council in 1972. The organising gallery was the Art Gallery of South Australia, and the curators were Daniel Thomas (Art Gallery of New South Wales) Ian North (Art Gallery of South Australia) and Frances McCarthy [later Lindsay] (National Gallery of Victoria). Generous funding from the Peter Stuyvesant foundation enabled the curators to travel the country together in order to make considered judgements. The exhibition opened at the Art Gallery of South Australia on 3 March 1972, and toured to the Western Australian Art Gallery, National Gallery of Victoria, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Australian National Gallery (temporary premises), Art Gallery of New South Wales, Newcastle City Art Gallery, and the Queensland Art Gallery. The catalogue introduction claims that the exhibition comprised of 'fifty-five of the best Australian landscapes ever executed'. It was characterised by a breadth of vision, with works from every state – including regional galleries and private collections. It is distinguished by having a greater emphasis on colonial works than previous exhibitions, and elevating the reputation of Eugene Von Guerard and John Glover. There were only two works by women – Grace Cossington Smith and Margaret Preston– and none by any Aboriginal artist.
Citations:
  • McCulloch, Alan; & McCulloch, Susan, (1994), Encyclopedia of Australian art, (Place: St Leonards, NSW : Allen & Unwin, 1994)
  • National Gallery of Victoria http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/
  • Thomas, D., North, I., & McCarthy F., (1972), The Australian Landscape, (Published by the Art Gallery of South Australia), Type: catalogue
  • Thomas, Daniel & McCarthy, Frances, (1973), Recent Australian Art, (Art Gallery of New South Wales), Type: catalogue