Olivia Welch

Employment

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Museums & Galleries of NSW, Sydney, Australia: November 2018 - Present

    Exhibitions Manager, 2021 - Present

    Acting CEO, July - August 2023

    Gallery Programs & Touring Exhibitions Coordinator, 2018 - 2021

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Firstdraft: 2023 - 2024

    Co-Director, Firstdraft Board: volunteer position, 2-year term.

    Co-Chair, Firstdraft Board: volunteer position, 1-year term.

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MAY SPACE, Sydney, Australia: December 2009 - December 2018 (formerly Brenda May Gallery)

    Special Projects Coordinator (remotely), February 2015 - December 2018

    Senior Gallery Assistant, January 2014 - January 2015

    Gallery Assistant, December 2009 - December 2013

    Curatorial lead for:

• In Tandem, April - May, 2014. Playing the role of creative matchmaker, this exhibition paired together artists to see what two minds and four hands produce when working in tandem. Media: Eastside FM, The Sun-Herald, Sydney Moring Herald (SMH), Art Almanac.

• Mighty Small, July 2013. This exhibition was not simply concerned with works that were little, but works that defy the very notion of small meaning less or denoting an absence. Media: TimeOutSydney.com, Central Magazine, DailyTelegraph.com.au, SMH, The Art Life.

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Calouste Gulbenkian Museum - Modern Collection, Lisbon, Portugal: September 2015 - May 2018

    Assistant Curator, October 2017 - May 2018

    Exhibitions assistant (intern), September 2015 - May 2017

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Sector Experience

Creative Australia, Peer Assessor, Sydney, Australia: 1 June 2021 - 30 May 2024

  Grant assessment for Australia Council for the Arts

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This Is Who We Are Mentoring Programme: Reframing the Margins:  2022 - Present

  Mentee in this UK-Australian program for intergenerational & intersectional creative women of colour

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4A Curators Intensive, Online and QAGOMA, Australia: 4 August 2021 - 24 April 2022

   4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art curatorial intensive

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All A Part: APT10 Professional Engagement Forums, Australia: 23 March 2022 - 6 April 2022

   Asialink Arts and West Space bursary recipient

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Ballarat International Foto Biennale 2021 In Focus Curator Forum, Australia: 30 August - 2 September 2021

  Mentorship program with accomplished curators aligned with the Ballarat International Foto Biennale 2021

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Australia Council for the Arts, Venice Biennale, Italy: July - August 2015

   Volunteer exhibition Attendant for the Australian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale

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Educational Qualifications

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Master of Curating and Cultural Leadership 2020 - 2022

   University of New South Wales, Art + Design

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Bachelor of Art History and Theory (First-Class Honours), 2010 - 2013

   University of New South Wales, Art + Design

   Undergraduate Degree, receiving a Dean’s Award for outstanding achievement from Prof. Ian Howard in 2012 and Prof. Ross Harley 2014.

 

Independent Coursework

• A Practical Guide to Curating, Maeve Mulrennan, Node Centre for Curatorial Studies, November 2014.

• How to Make a Book: Art Publications from Start to Finish, John Holton, Node Centre for Curatorial Studies, October 2014.

• Career Pathways for Curators & Cultural Managers, Kate Brehme (neé Martin), Node Centre for Curatorial Studies, March 2014.

• Curatorial Procedures: Contracts, Loans & Official Documents, Marc LeBlanc, Node Centre for Curatorial Studies, March 2014.

• TAFE accreditation for Events Management, 2010.

 

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Major Curatorial Projects

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Co-curator - The Condensery | Somerset Regional Art Gallery

• Slow Churn, 9 April - 3 July 2022. This exhibition examines the delicate interactions and interdependencies that exist between us and our natural world in the face of a changing climate, global shifts in agriculture and food production, waterway management and the increased recognition of First Nations land management. Curated with Rachel Arndt.

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Curator - MAY SPACE

• Our Common Bond, April - May 2019. An exhibition that looks at the omissions present in the Australian Citizenship booklet of the same name that eliminate diverse histories and experiences from the Australian narrative.

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Assistant Curator - Calouste Gulbenkian Museum

• 'Post-Pop. Beyond the commonplace' - Pop detours in Portugal and England, 1965-1975, The exhibition departs from Pop Art, as an emblematic and renowned artistic language from the middle of the 20th century, to explore the diversions that various Portuguese and English artists took from it.

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Published Writing

• Contributor of articles: Textile Fibre Forum, Framework, Trouble Mag, Jimmy Rix

• Catalogue text: Bathurst Regional Gallery, Curator Megan Fizell, Our Common Bond, In Tandem

• Selected writer: IS THIS ART? catalogue, dLux MediaArts, March 2016

• Editing translations: Anozero: Bienal de Arte Contemporânea de Coimbra, 2015

• Selected writer: Archive_ Writer’s Program, June 2014, October 2014

• Editing text from Annika Öhrner’s Avant-garde in motion, 2015

 

Media and Citations

• Slow Churn exhibition at The Condensery, Artshub, 2022, online listing

• Public & Regionals: What’s On?, ‘Group exhibition: Slow Churn’, Art Collector, 2022, online

• What’s on at The Condensery, SomArtset e-newsletter, 2022, online

• Live Performance for Opening Night, The Lockyer and Somerset Independent, 6 April 2022, page 19, print

• Michael Anthony, A Great New Art Exhibition For All, The Sentiel, 14 April 2022, page 6, print

• Robert and Dawn Ver Maas, The Calibre of the Work Being Displayed is Astounding, The Somerset, 21 April 2022, page 4, print

• Slow Churn at the Condensery, The Somerset, 23 March 2022, page 8, print

• Hannah Donnelly, 'Amala Groom: Cosmic body of remembrance', Artlink. June 2019. Print [Pictured]

• Emma-Kate Wilson, 'Our Common Bond', Art Almanac, 28 March 2019. Print + online.

• 'Group Exhibition: Our Common Bond', Art Collector. April 13 2019. Online.

• Jane O’Sullivan, 'Testing our common bonds', Art Guide. 12 April 2019. Online

• 'ART Our Common Bond', Sydney Morning Herald. April 2019. Print.

• Make Nice. 'Olivia Welch, Curator & Writer'. Make Nice. 24 July 2017. Online. [Interview]

• Tosetto, Riccardo. Shooting Different. riccardotosetto.com. August 2015. Online. [Profiled + Pictured]

• UNSW Art & Design. 'A&D at the Venice Biennale'. University of New South Wales Art & Design. 13 May 2015. Online.

• Fairley, Gina. 'Guess who’s going to Venice?'. Visual Art Hub. 30 January 2015. Online.

• Australia Council for the Arts. 'Life-changing career opportunity for arts professionals'. Ausralia Council for the Arts. 28 January 2015. Online.

• Wolff, Sharne. 'English Tea Party... gone wrong'. The Art Life.17 October 2014. Online. [Citation referencing: Welch, Olivia. '"My good opinion once lost, is lost forever…” A conversation with Tanmaya Bingham. Unpublished interview. October 2014.]

• Art Almanac. 'In Tandem'. Art Almanac. May 2014, p 57. Print

• Elphick, Nicole. The Sydney Morning Herald - Shortlist Planner. April 25 2014, p 6. Print.

• Elphick, Nicole. 'Tuesday April 22: Going Out'. The Sun-Herald - Unwind. 20 April 2014. Print.

• Stretch, Angela. Interview with Olivia Welch for 'In Tandem'. Eastside FM. 4 April 2014. Radio.

• Shetty, Deepika. 'Homegrown artists see brisk sales at start of Art Stage Singapore'. Straits Times. 15 January 2014. Print. [pictured].

• Wolff, Sharne. 'Mighty Small', The Art Life. 19 July 2013. Online.

• Fitzgerald, Michael. 'Open Gallery - Mighty Small'. The Sydney Morning Herald - Spectrum. 20-21 July 2013. p 13. Print.

• Gorman, James. 'Brenda May Gallery plays host to Sydney's smallest art exhibition'.DailyTelegraph.com.au. 23 July 2013. Online.

• Gorman, James. 'Mini-works Create Huge Appeal'. Central Magazine. 24 July 2013. front cover, p 7. Print.

• Time Out Sydney. 'Mighty Small'. TimeOutSydney.com. 28 July 2013. Online.

• Mannan, Aniqa. ‘Collective Thinking Picnic. The Thousands. Dec 2012. Online.

• Cox, Jesse. Exhibition recommendation of ‘OF LIGHT’. Fbi Radio – Canvas. 15 July 2012. Radio.

• Small, Bethany. ‘YOLK Collective ‘OF LIGHT’’. The Thousands. 9 July 2012. Online.

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