Foundation Day Address 2026

151 years ago, the first bridges were being built across the mighty Maiwar River and rail networks were expanding into this place we call Brisbane today. In this growing connected city, a radical idea emerged: to educate women, develop their academic talents, and enable them to follow their interests—change the world.

It truly is an honour to be here with you today, to mark the day when our forebearers dreamt of a better future for us. We too can look to the future with hope.

I am incredibly proud to be part of this history. My two sisters and I were educated here in the final years of the 20th century, when computers were in only a few classrooms and internet search engines were new and revolutionary. We were part of a new wave of connectivity, using email and chat rooms to connect with like-minded people across the globe. Into this connected world we truly spread our wings. My younger sister went to Sydney, then Canberra, then regional New South Wales, while my elder sister went to Scotland, Newfoundland, Alaska, and New Zealand. I moved to Sydney, Beijing and then Canberra, until late last year when I returned to Brisbane after 21 years away, to take up my dream job as Curatorial Manager of Australian Art at the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art.

When I was a Grammar girl, I embodied the motto, nil sine labore, but I would always try to find ways to make the hard work enjoyable. And so many weekends during my final years at School, I would ask my mother to drop me off at the State Library of Queensland so that I could study while looking out over the swirling river and the twinkling skyscrapers. Today, incidentally, my office at the Queensland Art Gallery has much the same view, however, with many more and considerably higher buildings reaching into the Brisbane skyline. And so, I’ve been reflecting on that young woman, dreaming about her future in this ever-ambitious city.

Nil sine labore, nothing without hard work, could also be the motto for every successful artist I have ever met. As alongside creativity and vision, all artists require resilience, persistence, and drive to make a life from their craft.

Art was always part of my life growing up. My mother was an artist and an art teacher who studied art here in Brisbane. Her teacher was the esteemed arts educator Betty Churcher, who would go on to be the first woman to lead an Australian art gallery. And so, from an early age I was nurtured in the belief that art was never a waste of time. Art was a pursuit for smart women, looking to see the world in different ways.

My sisters and I were always encouraged to pursue our own interests, which is one of the reasons my parents sent us here to Girls Grammar. In my final years here, I studied two Maths, Chemistry, Physics, English and Art. I was Head Girl, played in the Big Band, represented the School, and Australia, at the International Young Physicists Tournament in Vienna, and won the Art Prize for my year. I loved that at BGGS I could pursue all my interests, no matter how diverse they were.

After School, my life into art was not, at first, an obvious path. At university, I started a Science and Arts degree, completing first year Physics, Chemistry and Maths with high distinctions and Art History with a mix of distinctions and credits. But while I was excelling in Science, what I found when I looked around the Physics lab, with only two other young women in my class, was that I was not with my people. By this, I mean the people I really connected with, wanted to spend my time with, could share and build upon ideas with. On the weekends, I was out at live music gigs, visiting the art gallery, and watching art house cinema. And so, with my parent’s blessing, I stopped studying science and moved full-time to my Arts degree. Walking across the great court (Physics and Art History lecture theatres were literally across the green from each other) I was delighted to meet people in my art history courses who continue to be my friends and colleagues to this day.

My interests and background in science, however, have never been wasted. As major artistic projects that defy expectations and push limitations don’t happen outside the rules of gravity, or without complex budgets, or managing the statistical probabilities of risk.

I love how art can knock you off your feet and change the way you think about the world while also being able to offer a helping hand and provide respite in hard times. It is this diversity and multiplicity of perspectives that makes my job so interesting.

If you haven’t caught onto my enthusiasm already, I am really excited to be back in Brisbane. There are many exceptional artists who live and make work in this city. For example, currently at the Gallery of Modern Art, we have the remarkable kith and kin by Kamilaroi and Bigambul artist, Archie Moore on display. Curated by my colleague, Ellie Buttrose, this installation won the Golden Lion for Best National Participation at the Venice Biennial two years ago, the art world’s highest accolade—a gold medal in the Olympics of art.

The kith and kin installation includes a huge drawing in white chalk on blackboard paint that documents the artist’s relations over 65 000 years. It’s a giant genealogical star map that’s awe inspiring, in both its scale and material simplicity. It’s also a solemn memorial for First Nations individuals who have died in police custody, highlighting how Indigenous Australians are some of the most incarcerated people on this planet. I highly encourage you to visit this work while it is on display until October this year. It is an artwork to be experienced with your whole body and mind. It generously brings you into the story and asks you to pause and consider: Who are you? Who are your kith, your kin, your people? How are we connected? What makes us different? How can we reckon with our past to create a better future?

At every point in history, there are the creatives, the artists, the visionaries—who look towards the future—and not only to imagine how it could look different to our present and our past but also make it happen.

As Grammar girls, we have inherited a legacy that elevates the education of women in this country. With this inheritance we have responsibilities to know and recognise our history and keep working to make this country a fairer, more equitable place for every person.