A selection of publications recently supported by the Foundation

Art Gallery of New South Wales
Hoda Afshar: a curve is a broken line, 2023

Edited by Isobel Parker Philip with authors Behrouz Boochani, Taous Dahmani, Shahram Khosravi, Isobel Parker Philip, Sarah Sentilles and Snack Syndicate (Andrew Brooks and Astrid Lorange), Elyas Alavi and Hala Alyan. Cover image: Hoda Afshar Untitled #4 (detail), from the series In turn 2023, courtesy and © the artist

Drill Hall Gallery / Miegunyah Press
Ken Whisson: Painting & Drawing, 2023

Author: Quentin Sprague; Design: Small Tasks; Cover image: Birds, boat, faces and hair (detail), 2019–20, pen and ink on paper, 32.5 × 50 cm. Courtesy of Niagara Galleries, Melbourne

Spinifex Arts Project
Sun & Shadow, Art of the Spinifex people 2023

Edited by John Carty and Luke Scholes. Upswell Publishing

Powerhouse Publishing
1001 Remarkable Objects, 2023

A companion to the eponymous exhibition at Powerhouse Ultimo 2023‒24, led by Leo Schofield AM. Opening with a photographic essay by Lauren Bamford and stylist Sarah Pritchard, the book catalogues all 1001 remarkable objects, interspersed by new writing from 15 Australian authors

Charles Darwin University Art Gallery
Manburrba: Our story of printed cloth from Bábbarra Women’s Centre, 2023

Published to coincide with the exhibition in partnership with Bábbarra Women’s Centre, 4 August – 15 October 2023. Cover: (L-R) Helen Ngarridjdjan Lanyinwanga, Mat, fish trap and hollow log, 2013; Helen Ngarridjdjan Lanyinwanga, River and rocks, 2012; Abigail Bulanjdjan Namundja, Kunwardde dja kunronj (Rocks and billabong), 2012.

Art Gallery of South Australia
Brent Harris: Surrender & Catch, 2023

Author: Maria Zagala. Published in conjunction with an exhibition of the same title, co-presented by TarraWarra Museum of Art. Cover detail: Brent Harris, Listener, 2018, Melbourne, oil on linen, 152.0 x 110.0cm; Collection of Patricia Mason and Paul Walker, Melbourne

Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art
eX de Medici: Beautiful Wickedness, 2023

Contributors: Samantha Littley (curator), Dr Andrea Bubenik, Dr Ted Gott, Dr Marianne Horak and eX de Medici, Dr Jenny McFarlane, Chris Saines; Cover: eX de Medici I Killed Her with my Club (detail) 2017 / Private collection, Sydney / © eX de Medici

Museum of Australian Photography
ZAHALKAWORLD: an artist's archive, 2023

Authors and contributors include Angela Connor, Anne Howell, Stella Loftus-Hills, Gael Newton, Anouska Phizacklea and Vanessa Berry, David Ellison, Marie Hartley, Jasmine Proust, Donna West Brett; Designed by Alex Ward of Pidgeon Ward and edited by Kay Cambell of The Comma Institute

David Roche Gallery
Quilts: The Fabric of War 1760 – 1900, 2024

Published by The Beagle Press to coincide with the exhibition Quilts: The Fabric of War 1760 – 1900 at the David Roche Gallery, Adelaide, 15 February – 18 May 2024. Author: Dr Annette Gero. Cover: Prussia, Intarsia quilt with soldiers and musicians 1760-80 (detail)

Flinders University Museum of Art
If you don’t fight … you lose: politics, posters and PAM, 2024

Published to accompany the exhibition of the same name. Cover image: Mandy Martin, Adelaide railway station 2 (detail), 1973, screenprint, ink on paper, 50.0 x 73.7 cm (image), Ann Newmarch Collection, © the estate of the artist. Photo: Grant Hancock; Designer: Rachel Harris, Bit Scribbly Design; Printer Finsbury Green

National Portrait Gallery
The Companion, 2023

Author: Joanna Gilmour. Cover: Howard Arkley, Nick Cave 1999, National Portrait Gallery. Commissioned with funds provided by L Gordon Darling AC CMG 1999. Presents the stories behind 250 highlights from the National Portrait Gallery’s collection

Clifton School of Arts
Ian Gentle - the found line, 2023

Edited by David Roach. Contributing Editors: Sheona White & Guy Freer, Design and Production Director: Louise Lavarack, Designer: Luisa Laino, Cover image: Spinner Spider by Ian Gentle 2008

Aims, Guidelines and Application Procedures 2025

Aims

The Gordon Darling Foundation is a perpetual public charitable trust, established in 1991 to "support Australia-wide, activities of importance in the Visual Arts."

It will give priority to exhibitions of Australian art, and will also consider exhibitions of Asian, Pacific or other international art.

It will assist with the costs of research, travel, publication, to promote knowledge and enjoyment of all aspects of the visual arts to the widest possible audience.

The Foundation encourages applications Australia-wide.

Who can apply?

The Foundation can only provide funding to Public Institutions in Australia. Applicant organisations must have Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status.

Individuals wishing to apply for funding for projects must partner with a Public Institution which then takes on responsibility for the project.

The Trustees will normally award only one application per organisation in any twelve-month period. Darling Travel Grants are considered a separate funding stream and do not preclude an organisation from applying for or receiving a grant.

What we do

Funding may be provided for:

  • catalogues and publications:
    • that are scholarly, with well-researched new information.
    • that provide a permanent record of an exhibition, collection, or work of an artist or movement.
  • professional education initiatives, including individual professional development.
  • collection management initiatives, including database development, digitisation and conservation.
  • research projects leading to the recognition and publication of material of significance.
  • internationally known speakers for symposia.

In relation to catalogue projects, preference will be given to exhibitions which will tour multiple venues, sharing costs, staff and experience.

Applications for international travel can only be made through the Darling Travel Grant / International program - see Application Procedures below.

What we don't do

The Foundation usually does not fund:

  • capital works, acquisitions, prizes or commissions.
  • general or core operational activities.
  • retrospective funding.
  • recurrent funding of a project or exhibition.

Guidelines for publication funding applications

In assessing applications for publication funding, several key factors will be considered, in addition to well-planned, scholarly content:

  • pricing should be as accessible as possible and suited to anticipated audiences.
  • print runs should be appropriate to reasonable anticipated demand.
  • plans for distribution beyond the applicant’s venue/s should be noted, and are encouraged.
  • circulating a large proportion of a print run as complimentary copies is usually discouraged, though gifts to a limited number of local, state and higher education libraries would be welcomed.
  • the expectation is that exhibition catalogues will be available from the launch of the exhibition.

Grant reports received by the Foundation continue to show that publication print runs are often far in excess of sales, regardless of the quality of the publication. Applicants are encouraged to carefully consider anticipated sales when deciding on a print run.

The Foundation usually does not fund:

  • publications to be given away.
  • major publications which largely replicate existing publications.
  • catalogues for commercial exhibitions.
  • "vanity publications", whether of the institution, author or subject of the application.
  • souvenir or promotional publications.
By publishing these guidelines, the Foundation aims to encourage a high standard of application.


Application procedures

General Grant Program

  1. Read these guidelines to ensure that your project is a good fit.
  2. Contact the Gordon Darling Foundation to request the current year's application form:
    • Email: - a brief description of your project would be advantageous.
    • Phone: 03 9820 3168
    Administrators: Alister Shew / Sherrie Antonio
  3. Applicants should phone the Foundation to discuss their proposed application prior to submission.
  4. Applications must be made using the current year's form and emailed to by 5pm (AEST/AEDT) on the closing date. The main application form should be submitted in the original Microsoft Word format. Supporting material should be submitted in A4 PDF format.
  5. Receipt of applications will be acknowledged by email.
  6. Applicants will be advised of outcomes by phone, and then by post.

Submissions will be examined by the Trustees of the Foundation three times a year.

The application closing dates for 2025 are:

  • Friday 3 January (outcomes advised in late February)
  • Friday 30 May (outcomes advised in early July)
  • Tuesday 30 September (outcomes advised in late October)



Darling Travel Grants / International

The aim of these grants is to provide visual arts professionals employed by Australian public institutions with the opportunity to undertake international travel. Travel must be for a specific purpose and deliver benefits for both the individual and the institution. Applicants should have written support from their Director or Board Chair to undertake the travel.

Applications for the 2025 Darling Travel Grants / International open on Monday 11 November 2024 - please email after this date for an application form. Applications must be submitted by email by 5pm on Friday 10 January 2025. Applicants will be advised of outcomes by Friday 28 February 2025.