The 1960s and 1970s
Sydney Ball, Canzon nama, 1967
Peter Corlett, Bums, 1975

Although the Geelong Gallery had been collecting contemporary art since its inception, it was not until 1964 that an acquisitions policy was formulated which specified the collection of contemporary Australian art. As a result, there was a more systematic approach to the distribution of Gallery funds as well as a greater disposition towards taking risks in the acquisition of contemporary art.

The establishment of a variety of prizes provided regular opportunities to acquire works by leading artists. Works on paper were acquired through the F.E. Richardson Prize (1939-72), the Mayor of Geelong Prize (1962-63), and the Geelong Print Prize (1965-74). The Geelong Advertiser Prize (1961-64), the Corio 5 Star Whisky Prize (1965-74) and the Capital Permanent Building Society Award (1977-81) were held for paintings, and it was in this area that the more avant-garde, controversial art works entered the collection. The abstract paintings of winning artists Sydney Ball, Paul Partos and Peter Booth were amongst those that caused much public debate. Undaunted, the Gallery used both its own funds and, from 1972, funds provided by the Visual Arts Board of the Australia Council to purchase additional abstract paintings.

While the art of the 1960s and 70s comprised primarily paintings and works on paper, sculpture and ceramics of the period were also being considered. A modest but significant collection was amassed chiefly through external funding and donations from the private sector, in particular Geelong philanthropists, Dr Bruce Munro and Gordon Jackson who were instrumental in establishing the sculpture and ceramic collections respectively.

The range of art works obtained through these means reflects the vitality and diversity of approaches and techniques that characterised these two decades. At one end of the spectrum was the so-called 'Antipodean' art, which encompassed contemporary figurative paintings by artists such as Arthur Boyd, Albert Tucker and John Brack. At the other end was abstraction, which came with terms such as 'hard-edged', 'colour field', 'minimalist', 'modish' and 'expressionist'.

As well as challenging visual expectations, the non-figurative artists were experimenting with and pushing physical conventions. Frames were removed from paintings and two-dimensional constraints gave way to undulating surfaces or free-standing structures. The line between sculpture and painting was being eroded. Similarly, ceramics objects were moving away from their functional constraints. Becoming increasingly sculptural, many pieces were made as decorative items, existing in their own right rather than utilitarian objects.

By embracing controversial art works as well as more traditional offerings, the Geelong Gallery remained in tune with the spirit of the times, thus providing the foundation for one of the most significant collections of contemporary Australian art in regional Australia.