How leadership collaboration is transforming the Art Gallery of NSW

Maud Page, the Art Gallery of NSW’s first female director, and president Michael Rose AM FAICD share a fresh and foundational mission — to show new audiences that art expresses what words cannot.

Michael Rose

I was a lawyer for 30 years, mostly as a partner at Allens. Today, my board career centres on cities, culture and policy. I’ve served on community institution boards including the Westmead Institute for Medical Research, Sydney Living Museums and the Committee for Sydney. I currently also chair Greater Sydney Parklands.

Succession planning

Former AGNSW president and UNSW chancellor, David Gonski AC FAICDLife and I have worked near each other at UNSW for around eight years, during my advisory roles with two vice-chancellors.

He was generous when I was offered the AGNSW president position, highlighting key initial tasks like recruiting a new director and leading trustees through judging the Archibald Prize. He shared insights about gallery strategy and government relations, stressing he didn’t want to leave his fingerprints all over my role. He said, “I’ll get out of your way... call me if you need me.”

Learning curve

Maud and I are both new to our roles, with different learning curves, but each requiring investment now. When we were recruiting for the director position, we had an impressive shortlist of international candidates. A key strength Maud brought was her deep, current understanding of Australia’s arts ecosystem. Other Australian candidates had lived abroad for many years, while Maud offered contemporary insight.

Sydney is a global city filled with global talent. Maud’s appointment sends a strong signal that in a global search, the best candidate was already here in the gallery and ready to start immediately.

Another important consideration for us and the government was collaboration between cultural institutions to drive Sydney’s creative agenda. Maud is highly respected and well-connected with other institutional leaders.

The gallery’s 2024–28 strategy strongly emphasises First Nations art, another of Maud’s strengths. Her immersion in this space brings unique advantages over someone based overseas or who hasn’t worked in Australia before.

While we have different jobs requiring different skills, doing them well depends on working effectively together. It’s less about specific complementary skillsets and more about finding it easy to collaborate. We’re still developing our working rhythm, with scheduled weekly meetings plus ad hoc discussions as needed. During the recent Archibald announcement and related events, we saw each other daily.

Capital investment

For a long time, the gallery’s focus was on developing and opening the new Naala Badu building. We both see the gallery as a creative engine, not just a place to consume art, but one that energises Sydney’s position as a global hub for creativity and talent. In terms of Sydney’s attractiveness and visibility overseas, Naala Badu is already having a return on investment. Its true impact is something we’ll learn over time.

Under the 2024–28 strategy, Maud’s priority is extending our reach to the broadest possible audience, reflecting Sydney’s diverse and changing demographics. Another key insight she has is that a gallery’s health and audience connection are measured by its relationship with artists. Maud strongly emphasises engaging artists as central to the gallery’s community. To maintain integrity and credibility, the gallery must have the trust of artists, particularly in commissioning and exhibiting works. Our ambitious focus on First Nations art, for instance, requires genuine knowledge, understanding and generosity.

Maud Page

I’ve been at AGNSW eight years, initially coming in as deputy director and director of collections, a role previously split, but amalgamated under my predecessor, Suhanya Raffel, now at M+ Museum for Visual Culture in Hong Kong. Suhanya alerted me to this opportunity. We had previously worked together at Queensland Art Gallery, where I had a similar broad portfolio.

Coming from Queensland, I was prepared organisationally, having learned to clearly define our uniqueness given Brisbane’s peripheral position compared to Sydney or Melbourne. My background is rooted in establishing institutional distinction, notably through the Asia Pacific Triennial exhibition.

A significant difference at AGNSW is the scale of stakeholder engagement, particularly philanthropic and corporate support. Historically, our collection has been built through individual contributions. This has created a community deeply invested and actively engaged, adding remarkable energy to the gallery beyond even the artists’ crucial contribution.

Passing the audition

Presenting myself to the board involved overcoming the “curse of the deputy” — the difficulty of transitioning from deputy to director. Australia has historically favoured those who gain experience abroad before returning and that perception was a challenge. People reminded me that I was “international”. I was born in France, grew up in Spain and have travelled extensively. Many women helped me to articulate this clearly. Their support was different, focused on authenticity, saying, “You have what it takes. Don’t pitch what you think they want, just pitch yourself.” That’s exactly what I did, stating what I could bring, my passions and vision for the gallery. It resonated strongly, a passion for the local, radiating outward, rather than relying on an external perspective.

Eight weeks in, I’m still in the honeymoon phase and the joy has been extraordinary. I hadn’t anticipated this overwhelming support. I approached the role prepared for a mixed response, not this genuine joy, which has become one of the most incredible experiences of my professional and personal life.

The new guard

Michael and I are both totally new, I hadn’t heard of him, nor he of me. Back when he first met the staff, including one-on-one with executives, he showed genuine interest and asked insightful, high-level questions. Immediately, I felt this person really understands where we need to be.

What struck me most about Michael was his genuine curiosity. He’s always fully present. He doesn’t impose external agendas or suggest other ways of working. Instead he asks, how can I help?

Our relationship focuses on my strengths as director, the gallery’s character and tackling issues realistically. From the beginning, we shared a mutual understanding. In board meetings, Michael instinctively knows where I’m heading and lightly supports me. That’s the beauty of our partnership, a genuine, intuitive understanding of how we work and what we need to do.

True partnership

Michael has exactly the experience needed for any situation, always available yet treading lightly, truly backing me. As a first-time director, I deeply appreciate he hasn’t imposed tighter guidance, but instead recognises and leans into our institutional strengths. When tasks arise, his extensive background comes fully into play, allowing us to work constructively and differently.

I also value his encouragement to remain connected with the rest of Sydney. His passion is ensuring Sydney, Greater Sydney and NSW genuinely thrive through interconnected infrastructure, culture, parks and medicine. He positions the gallery firmly within that broader ecology. This vision helps us see clearly our place in the city, state and nation.

Our working cadence at the moment includes a weekly one-on-one, but I also know he’s only a phone call away. Over the past two months, he’s been very present at the gallery, which has been particularly special. He has attended every subcommittee meeting we’ve had, as well as numerous events. He now has a deep sense of who we are and how we operate. We also hold corporate evenings where sponsors host events. Michael actively participates. Given how busy he is, I couldn’t hope for anyone more engaged.

Prioritisation

Our immediate priority is to bring more diverse audiences into the gallery. Actively and creatively engaging diverse groups remains essential, as art constantly reinvents itself. My goal is to clearly communicate, “This is your gallery, you’re represented here. It offers something for everyone.”

Given Michael’s leadership role as co-chair of Reconciliation Australia, we aim to significantly enhance our focus on First Nations art, locally and globally. Our current exhibition, High Colour, demonstrates this approach.

My third goal is enhancing our digital presence. With 2.3 million visitors annually, half under the age of 45, expanding digitally will help these stories reach even broader audiences.

Long-term resilience

We’ve always acquired contemporary art. The challenge now is to make meaningful connections between contemporary and historical works.

Throughout our 154-year history, we’ve moved through many phases. Today, our role involves positively contributing to our wider community, supporting artists and sustaining broader engagement. We have a diverse fundraising mix to meet these challenges, but we’ll explore all avenues resonant with our art ecology. Every commercial opportunity is on the table. Our goal is ambitious, sustainable growth, ensuring financial resilience for the future.

This article first appeared under the headline 'The art of partnership' in the July 2025 issue of Company Director magazine.