FOR more than a decade, Adam Harding has been a friendly face to Horsham art lovers.
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After spending 11 years with the Horsham Rural City Council – first as Horsham Regional Art Gallery’s curator, and then as its director for the past nine years – Adam will bid farewell to his adopted hometown for a new adventure.
He will soon move back to Melbourne to start his new role as director of the Centre for Contemporary Photography.
Adam said he originally came to Horsham in 2009 because of the quality of the gallery’s photography collection.
“We had an amazing photography collection at Warrnambool, where I was working at the time. When the opportunity to come to Horsham emerged, I thought it would be excellent fun,” he said.
“Then 18 months after I arrived, Merle Hathaway – the gallery’s then director – retired and I had the great honour to replace her.”
Through his role as gallery director, Adam was able to learn more about the medium he loved – photography.
“I first started learning about photography when I moved here. In Warrnambool I had really been interested in focusing on their Australian printmaking collection, and before that in Geelong I was looking at architecture. I love photography because it is so democratic – we can all do it,” he said.
Adam said he loved how the Wimmera community embraced art and creativity.
“The great thing about this gallery is the way it’s connected to the community,” he said.
“Merle set that tone by working with the community on the Art Is… Festival and working with artists to create the artwork that goes into the gallery’s collection.
“Since the redevelopment especially, that’s something that we’ve really been able to do.
“We’ve been having workshops where participants learn new skills or improve existing ones.
“It’s been really fantastic to work with local artists and allow them the opportunity and space to work and present new work in a high-quality way. The art community is only going to grow and get better. It’s really been exciting to be a part of.”
After a decade of overseeing every single piece of art that goes into the gallery, Adam said he had a number of favourite exhibitions.
“One of the most exciting projects was when we initially moved into Jubilee Hall – the temporary building. There were a few years where we worked with the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art. We had five artists come and engage with five community groups,” he said.
“Another was a partnership that we did with the Centre for Contemporary Photography, which was about saving seeds.
“Dave Jones, who is a local artist based in Natimuk and Steve Hull, who is an indigenous artist, both investigated the seed bank here in Horsham.
“They got to spend time investigating the work they do at the Grains Innovation Park and making artwork about that. We got to present that show in Horsham as well as Melbourne.
“So it was great that we were able to present an issue that we face here about farming technology in Melbourne too.”
Adam said having input into the redevelopment of the art gallery had been a great achievement.
“The building project did take a little longer than we thought it would, but it was really amazing to be able to see it through and shape how the gallery spaces would feel,” he said.
“One of the major changes was the collection storeroom. When I first started, if I needed to do some work on an artwork, I could only do it on a Monday when the gallery was closed.
“I had to pull out a temporary folding table and set it up in one of the gallery spaces and turn that into my temporary workroom.
“Then it all had to be packed away by 10am Tuesday morning when the gallery opened. Now we have a collection storeroom and it’s a much safer place for the artworks.”
Related: Horsham Regional Art Gallery reopens
After spending more than a decade of his life in the Wimmera, Adam said he was excited for a change of scenery by moving to Melbourne.
“Centre for Contemporary Photography is a place that really allows the artists’ voices to be heard and a place that pushes the idea of what is photography,” he said.
“It was the first place that I went to where I saw artists that were my age have a red hot go. It’s a place where the artist really gets to shine and where they are really supported.”
Adam said his departure would be bittersweet.
“I am definitely going to miss the community of Horsham; I have met some amazing friends here,” he said.
“The gallery wouldn’t exist without the volunteers and the committee of management and the trustees who have stood up and said that the gallery is an important place. Without that support, the gallery would be nothing.
“Each new director brings their own vision to the gallery and it will be a great opportunity for something new to come in with their own ideas.”
Adam will finish as gallery director on August 22.
The opening of Del Kathryn Barton: The Nightingale and the Rose, Ghosts: Belinda Eckermann and Shooting Conflict, and Adam Harding's farewell, will be at the Horsham Regional Art Gallery on Friday from 6pm.
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