Gael Newton

Who is Gael Newton?

Gael Newton is the Senior Curator of Australian and International Photography at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra.

From 1974 to 1985 Newton was the foundation curator of photography at the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Newton then moved to Canberra and from 1985 to 1988, was the visiting curator for the Bicentennial Photography Project at the NGA. During this period she researched and mounted the 900 work exhibition Shades of Light: Photography and Australia 1839-1988, and published the major Australian reference book in association with the exhibition. She also held the position of Curator of Australian Photography at the NGA before the current position.

Newton has curated many exhibitions - both historical and contemporary. More recently Newton has overseen the establishment of a new significant collection within the National Gallery. This resulted in the landmark survey exhibition in late 2008, Picture Paradise: Asia-Pacific photography 1840s-1940s.

Newton is the author of the standard reference work on the history of Australian photography, Shades Of Light: Photography And Australia 1838-1988 and monographs on several Australian photographers: Harold Cazneaux, Max Dupain, John Kauffmann and Tracey Moffatt. She also wrote Silver And Grey: Fifty Years Of Australian Photography 1900–1950. Newton is a regular contributor to magazines and collections of essays.