Artist heads Arts Council

Press, 16 August 1989, Page 26

Artist heads Arts Council

Jenny Pattrick is the new Chairperson of the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council. She is a leading craft jeweller whose work has been included in major exhibitions both in New Zealand and overseas and is the former Deputy Chairperson of the council.

Pattrick is the first artist to have been appointed to the position. “I believe that my work as a professional artist coupled with my experience as the Deputy Chairperson of the council provides an ideal mix to lead the organisation into the 19905,” she says. “I believe that the arts are a powerful force in our society and that they are playing a vital role in defining our sense of place and identity in the South Pacific. "The Council must be a state-of-the-art organisation — efficient, effective and responsive to the needs and contributions of the artists and communities it serves.”

The Council will be distributing $l6 million in 1989/ 90. This year the council has decided to place greater emphasis on programmes with New Zealand content which are likely to promote a sense of national/cultural identity in all communities. The council also resolved to make an increased investment in Maori art programmes and to lend additional support to Pacific Island communities through its regional council structures.

“Pattrick says she strongly supports, the council’s increasing commitment to the development of new work which promotes a sense of cultural identity. Earlier this year she was awarded an OBE for services to the arts. She was also made a life member of the Crafts Council of New Zealand in 1984 in recognition of her contribution to the development of craft in this country.