National Gallery Act 1975

In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:

A reference in this Act to any land or building owned by, or under the control of, the Gallery includes a reference to a part of any such land or a part of any such building, as the case may be.

The National Gallery of Australia is established.

The Gallery:

is a body corporate;

shall have a seal;

may acquire, hold and dispose of real and personal property; and

may sue or be sued in its corporate name.

The Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 applies to the Gallery. That Act deals with matters relating to corporate Commonwealth entities, including reporting and the use and management of public resources.

The seal of the Gallery shall be kept in such custody as the Council directs and shall not be used except as authorized by the Council.

All courts, judges and persons acting judicially shall take judicial notice of the imprint of the seal of the Gallery affixed to a document and shall presume that it was duly affixed.

The functions of the Gallery are:

to develop and maintain a national collection of works of art; and

to exhibit, or to make available for exhibition by others, in Australia or elsewhere, works of art from the national collection or works of art that are otherwise in the possession of the Gallery.

The Gallery shall use every endeavour to make the most advantageous use of the national collection in the national interest.

Subject to this Act, the Gallery has power to do all things necessary or convenient to be done for or in connexion with the performance of its functions.

Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), the powers of the Gallery referred to in that subsection include power:

to purchase or take on hire, to commission or produce, or to accept as a gift or on deposit or loan, works of art;

to make available (whether by hire, loan, sale or otherwise) works of art;

to accept gifts, devises, bequests or assignments made to the Gallery, whether on trust or otherwise, and whether unconditionally or subject to a condition and, if a gift, devise, bequest or assignment is accepted by the Gallery on trust or subject to a condition, to act as trustee or to comply with the condition, as the case may be;

to collect, and make available (whether by hire, loan, sale or otherwise), information on the visual arts;

to make available (whether for reward or otherwise) services in relation to the visual arts (whether with or without the supply of goods), including the carrying out of investigations and the giving of advice;

to make available (whether by hire, loan, sale or otherwise) reproductions of works of art;

to arrange for, or to assist in, research into matters pertaining to the visual arts;

to erect buildings;

to grant (whether for reward or otherwise) rights to use any land or building owned by, or under the control of, the Gallery;

to fix charges for entry onto any land, or into any building, owned by, or under the control of the Gallery, being charges that:

are in addition to the charges fixed by the regulations; and

relate to special exhibitions or other special events;

to purchase or take on hire, or to accept as a gift or on deposit or loan, and to dispose of or otherwise deal with, furnishings, equipment and other goods;

to act on behalf of the Commonwealth or of an authority of the Commonwealth in the administration of a trust relating to works of art or related matters.

The Gallery shall not dispose of a work of art in the national collection except in accordance with sections 9, 10 or 11.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, but subject to section 36 of this Act and subsection 59(1) of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (which deals with investment by corporate Commonwealth entities), any money or other property held by the Gallery upon trust or accepted by the Gallery subject to a condition shall not be dealt with except in accordance with the obligations of the Gallery as trustee of the trust or as the person who has accepted the money or other property subject to the condition, as the case may be.

The Minister may make available to the Gallery for the purposes of the Gallery such land owned by the Commonwealth as is specified by the Minister by notice in the Gazette and any building, structure or other improvements on that land.

Where the Council so requests, the Minister may:

transfer or cause to be transferred to the Gallery, for inclusion in the national collection, works of art owned by the Commonwealth; and

transfer or cause to be transferred to the Gallery such other goods or equipment owned by the Commonwealth as he or she considers would be of use to the Gallery.

Subject to subsection (4), where the Council is satisfied that a work of art in the national collection:

is unfit for the national collection; or

is not required as part of the national collection;

The Council shall not resolve that a work of art be disposed of by way of destruction unless the Council is satisfied that the work has no saleable value.

If the Council has resolved, in accordance with this section, that a work of art be disposed of, the Gallery may dispose of that work of art accordingly.

Subsection (5) is subject to section 38 (about restrictions on financial transactions).

Where the Council is satisfied that the exchange of a work of art in the national collection for another work of art would be advantageous to the collection, the Gallery may make that exchange.

An agreement for an exchange under subsection (1) may include an undertaking by one party to pay an amount to the other party in recognition of the difference in value between the works of art to be exchanged.

Where:

the Council wishes to apply this section to any property (including a work of art) that is not the property of the Gallery but has been submitted to the Gallery with a view to its acceptance by the Gallery or for any other purpose;

the property has remained in the possession or custody of the Gallery for a period of not less than 1 year after its submission to the Gallery;

in a case to which subsection (2) applies:

the Council has complied with the requirements of that subsection; and

the period specified in the notice under that subsection or, if such notices were sent to more than 1 person, the period specified in the notice last sent, has expired; and

the property is not the subject of a claim lodged with the Gallery by the person who submitted the property to the Gallery or by any other person who has an interest in the property;

Where the Gallery has a record of the name and address of a person who has an interest in property referred to in paragraph (1)(a) or of the person who submitted that property to the Gallery, the Council shall send by pre‑paid registered post to that person or to each of those persons, addressed to him or her at the relevant address, a notice informing him or her that, after the expiration of 3 months from the date of the notice, the Council intends, unless the person who submitted the property to the Gallery or any other person who has an interest in the property lodges with the Gallery a claim with respect to the property, to deal with the property under this section.

The Council may, in respect of property in relation to which this section applies, cause a notice, in accordance with subsection (4), relating to the property to be published twice, with an interval of at least 7 days between the dates of the publications, in such daily newspapers as will ensure its publication in every State and internal Territory.

A notice under subsection (3) shall sufficiently identify the property to which it relates and shall state that, at the expiration of 3 months from the date of publication of the notice, the Council intends to deal with the property under this section unless, before that time, the person who submitted the property to the Gallery or any other person who has an interest in the property has lodged with the Gallery a claim with respect to the property.

Where:

the period of 3 months specified in a notice under subsection (3) that has been published for the second time has expired; and

the property to which the notice relates has not ceased to be property in relation to which this section applies;

if the property is a work of art and the Council wishes to acquire it for the national collection—request the Minister to approve its acquisition for the national collection; or

in any other case—request the Minister to approve its disposal in accordance with this section.

Before approving of the acquisition of a work of art in accordance with a request under paragraph (5)(c), the Minister shall obtain a valuation of the work of art from an independent expert.

Where a work of art the subject of a request under paragraph (5)(c) has not ceased to be property in relation to which this section applies, the Minister may, by notice published in the Gazette, approve the acquisition of the work of art for the national collection.

Upon the publication in the Gazette of a notice under subsection (7), the work of art to which the notice applies is, by force of this subsection:

vested in the Commonwealth; and

freed and discharged from all interests, trusts, restrictions, obligations, contracts, licences and charges;

The Minister shall, on behalf of the Commonwealth, transfer to the Gallery for inclusion in the national collection a work of art referred to in subsection (8).

Where property the subject of a request under paragraph (5)(d) has not ceased to be property in relation to which this section applies, the Minister may approve the disposal of the property and advise the Council accordingly.

Where the Minister has advised the Council of his or her approval of the disposal of property and the property has not ceased to be property in relation to which this section applies, the Gallery may:

cause the property to be sold by public auction; or

if the Council determines that the property is valueless or that for some other reason it is not practicable to sell the property by public auction—cause the property to be disposed of otherwise than by sale or to be destroyed.

For the purposes of a sale or other disposal of goods under subsection (11), the Gallery shall be deemed to be the absolute owner of the property.

The interest of every person in a work of art to which a notice published under subsection (7) relates is, on the date of acquisition of that work of art, converted into a right to compensation against the Commonwealth.

Parts VII and IX of the Lands Acquisition Act 1989 apply in relation to a right to compensation referred to in subsection (13) as if:

that right were an entitlement to compensation under section 52 of that Act;

a reference in those Parts to an interest in land were a reference to the legal estate in the work of art to which that right relates; and

a reference in those Parts to the Minister were a reference to the Minister administering this Act.

Where a person satisfies the Council that he or she had an interest in property immediately before the property was sold by virtue of subsection (11), the Gallery shall pay to the person such amount as it considers appropriate having regard to the interest that person had in the property but not exceeding the amount by which the amount of the proceeds of the sale exceeded the amount of any expenses incurred by the Gallery in connexion with the storage and sale of the property.

No action, other than an action under the Lands Acquisition Act 1989 as applied by subsection (14), lies against any person by reason of any act or thing done in accordance with this section.

The affairs of the Gallery shall be conducted by a Council to be known as the Council of the National Gallery of Australia.

All acts and things done in the name of, or on behalf of, the Gallery by the Council or with the authority of the Council shall be deemed to have been done by the Gallery.

The Council shall consist of not more than 11 members, namely:

the Chair;

the Director; and

not more than 9 other members.

The members, other than the Director, shall be appointed by the Governor‑General having regard to their knowledge and experience with respect to the visual arts or any other area of knowledge relevant to the affairs of the Gallery.

A member, other than the Director, shall be appointed to be a part‑time member and holds office for such term, not exceeding 3 years, as is fixed by the Governor‑General in the instrument of his or her appointment.

A person must not be appointed as a member referred to in paragraph (1)(a) or (c) for a term if the sum of the following exceeds 9 years:

that term;

any terms of previous appointment of the person as a member.

A part‑time member is eligible for re‑appointment.

The exercise or performance of the powers or functions of the Council is not affected by reason only of there being a vacancy in the office of a member.