National Centre for Photography Facts for Kids

The National Centre for Photography is a special place in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. It shows amazing photos, helps people learn about photography, and keeps important photo collections safe. It's a hub for everything about photography!

History of the Centre
- How it Started
- Government Helps Out
Why it's Important
The Building Itself
Past Exhibitions
See also

History of the Centre

Fred Kruger's photo of Lydiard Street in Ballarat, 1871. The Union Bank building is on the right.

How it Started

The National Centre for Photography officially began in March 2018. The Ballarat International Foto Biennale, a big photography festival, bought an old building for it in April 2018. This building used to be the Union Bank.

The Centre opened its doors for the 2019 Foto Biennale. One of its first big shows was called Capital. This exhibition showed how photography can explore ideas about money and culture. People really liked the old bank building as a place for art.

On the second floor, an artist named Robbie Rowlands created an artwork called Incremental Loss. He changed the inside of the building to celebrate its new use. The top floor featured Stock Market by Mathieu Asselin. This show looked at the growth of a company called Monsanto, which makes insecticides and special seeds.

Government Helps Out

In November 2020, the Victorian government announced it would support the Centre. This was because the Ballarat International Foto Biennale had been so successful since 2009. The government's help allowed the Foto Biennale to buy the historic Union Bank building. This also helped create an arts area around the Art Gallery of Ballarat and other art places.

The government gave $6.7 million to create the new Centre. This was the biggest amount of money ever given to a photography group in Australia! The goal was to bring visitors to Ballarat, create jobs, and make the city a stronger cultural hub. It's expected to bring in a lot of money for the city over the next 15 years.

Martin Pakula, a government minister, said the Centre would help Ballarat's economy all year. Fiona Sweet, who is the artistic director of the Foto Biennale and now manages the Centre, worked hard to get this support. She said the money was a real investment in art and would bring many visitors to Ballarat.

Why it's Important

The opening of the National Centre for Photography happened around the same time another big photography centre, the Australian Centre for Photography in Sydney, closed. That centre had been open for 47 years but faced challenges like less government funding and fewer visitors during the COVID pandemic.

The Building Itself

The Union Bank of Australia building in Ballarat around 1870.

The Centre is in a beautiful three-story building that is 436 square metres in size. It was built in the 1860s and is considered the best work of architect Leonard Terry. He came to Australia from Yorkshire in 1853.

Before the Centre opened, the building was renovated. An artist-in-residence, Robbie Rowlands, helped with this. Starting in February 2019, he carefully peeled back walls and changed parts of the building. He documented this process as his artwork Incremental Loss, which was shown in the 2019 Biennale.

Today, the Centre has many different spaces. There are four galleries for big exhibitions by artists from Australia and around the world. It also has spaces for workshops and a special darkroom for developing black-and-white photos. There's a program for artists to live and work there, and chances for local artists to show their art. The Centre also keeps the Foto Biennale's collections, like the Martin Kantor Portrait Prize, and has a library of photo books. There's even a rooftop bar!

Most of the money from the Victorian government was used to fix up this historic building from the gold-rush era. There are also plans for a digital 3D "immersive" gallery that will be open every day.

Past Exhibitions

2019: Incremental Loss, by Robbie Rowlands
2019, August 24 - October 20: Capital, featuring Gabi Briggs, Peta Clancy, Mark Curran, Simryn Gill, Kristian Haggblom, Newell Harry, Lisa Hilli, Nicholas Mangan, Darren Siwes, Martin Toft, Yvonne Todd, Justine Varga and Arika Waulu.
2019, August 24 - October 20: Stock Market, by Mathieu Asselin
2019, August 24 - October 20: Laia Abril, History of Misogeny (shown in the Bath Lane Gallery)

National Centre for Photography facts for kids

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