New art hub for region

STANTHORPE could soon have a brand new, multi-million dollar art gallery to boast about.

The Stanthorpe Regional Art Gallery Society, with guidance from Southern Downs Regional Council, has decided to build a whole new art space.

Shifting the library or expanding the gallery in its current space have both been touted but SRAG Society president Keith Brownjohn said their reputation and art collection warranted starting afresh.

The whole concept is contingent on receiving financial backing from both the state and federal governments.

"The current gallery is too small,” Mr Brownjohn said. "The collection space downstairs is very crowded and it's in quite a dangerous state due to the presence of all the electrical switchboards.

"We've been mooting for sometime that we need a bigger gallery.

"A couple of years ago we engaged an architect and he designed an extension to the current gallery.

"Then someone had the brainwave that the library space is too small and too old fashioned so it'd be good to build a new library and the gallery would move into the library space.

"That solved some of our problems but when council went to community consultation the library people didn't like that one little bit so that killed it,” Mr Brownjohn said.

"The council said 'hang on there's a fair amount of grants floating around for art type purposes so we'll go ahead and try and get a grant for a new gallery'.

"They've got a few spaces - one was out at Storm King Dam, which is a bit out of the road, one is on Granite St along Quart Pot Creek and there's one quite close to the gallery where there's a big block of land for sale.”

Council already owns the first two suggested sites, Mr Brownjohn said.

The society has utilised its own funds to engage Conrad Gargett, one of Australia's largest architectural firms.

They've been involved in the local and world renowned Piano Mill project.

"We're starting the process of getting to a concept design,” Mr Brownjohn said.

"It's going to take four or five months before we've got anything on paper.

"The current gallery is a you-beaut gallery but it's too small so we just want another you-beaut gallery that's twice the size.

"It all depends on funding from a government department somewhere as to how we go on from there.”

Council has appointed director Jane Stroud and councillors Jo McNally and Rod Kelly to work with the society on progressing the project.