Art Gallery of South Australia

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2015}} {{Use Australian English|date=August 2015}} {{Infobox museum | name = Art Gallery of South Australia | image = Main entrance of the Art Gallery of South Australia (DSCF3673).jpg | image_upright = 1 | caption = Front view of the art gallery, 2026 | mapframe-frame-width = 250 | mapframe = yes | mapframe-caption = Interactive fullscreen map | mapframe-zoom = 12 | mapframe-marker = museum | mapframe-wikidata = yes | coordinates = {{Coord|34|55|14|S|138|36|14|E|display=it|type:landmark}} | established = 1881 | location = North Terrace, Adelaide, Australia | type = Art gallery | visitors = 780,000 (2019)<ref name=power2019/> | director = Jason Smith (February 2025 – present) | website = {{URL|https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/}} }}

The '''Art Gallery of South Australia''' ('''AGSA'''), established as the '''National Gallery of South Australia''' in 1881, is located in Adelaide. It is the most significant visual arts museum in the Australian state of South Australia. It has a collection of almost 45,000 works of art, making it the second largest state art collection in Australia (after the National Gallery of Victoria). As part of North Terrace cultural precinct, the gallery is flanked by the South Australian Museum to the west and Adelaide University to the east. Jason Smith has been director of AGSA since February 2025.

As well as its permanent collection, which is especially renowned for its collection of Australian art, AGSA hosts the annual Festival of Contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art known as ''Tarnanthi'', displays a number of visiting exhibitions each year and also contributes travelling exhibitions to regional galleries. European (including British), Asian and North American art are also well represented in its collections.

==History== ===Conception=== On 13 October 1856 Charles Hill proposed the establishment of the South Australian Society of Arts to promote the arts through lectures, ''conversazioni'', and an art school, first conducted in his own home,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article161261648 |title=School of Art |newspaper=Adelaide Observer |location=SA |date=11 October 1856 |accessdate=29 March 2026 |page=1 Supplement: Supplement to the Adelaide Observer |publisher=National Library of Australia}}</ref> and to agitate for a permanent gallery. Hill was first President of The Society (subsequently granted the name Royal South Australian Society of Arts). Its first exhibition was held in 1857, and the South Australian School of Design was inaugurated in September 1861 with Charles Hill as its principal.<ref name=":0" />

=== Establishment === Five months prior to Charles Hill's proposal, the South Australian Institute was established by Act of Council with six Governors overseeing a Public Library and Museum, to encourage art, science, literature and philosophy, and incorporating other cultural societies in giving them access to rooms in the Institute Building and in appending their annual reports the Institute's own.

The South Australian Society of Arts, established in 1856 and incorporated in 1859 is the oldest fine arts society still in existence, held annual exhibitions in South Australian Institute rooms and advocated for a public art collection. In 1880 Parliament gave £2,000 to the institute to start acquiring a collection and the National Gallery of South Australia was established in June 1881<ref>{{cite web|first=Margaret|last= Anderson|others=History Trust of South Australia|title=Art Gallery of South Australia|website=SA History Hub|date= 13 April 2018|url=https://sahistoryhub.history.sa.gov.au:443/places/art-gallery-of-south-australia?hh=1&|access-date= 10 May 2019}}</ref> with 22 works purchased at the Melbourne International Exhibition, together with others lent by Queen Victoria, the Prince of Wales, the British Government and private collectors.<ref name="Germaine">{{cite book|author=Max Germaine|author-link=Max Germaine|year=1979 |title=Artists and Galleries of Australia and New Zealand |publisher=Lansdowne Editions |isbn=0868320196}}</ref> It was opened in two rooms of the public library (now the Mortlock Wing of the State Library), by Prince Albert Victor and Prince George. In 1889 the collection was moved to the Jubilee Exhibition Building, where it remained for ten years. On 6 March 1897 Sir Thomas Elder died, bequeathing £25,000 to the art gallery for the purchase of artworks.<ref name="memory">{{cite web|url=http://www.samemory.sa.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=1442&c=1952|website=SA Memory|title=Art Gallery, North Terrace, 1926 (photograph)|access-date=9 May 2019}}</ref> The Elder bequest was the first major endowment to any Australian gallery, seven years before the Felton Bequest to the NGV.<ref name="Germaine" />

===Buildings=== In response to the Elder Bequest, the Government commissioned a specially designed building (now the Elder Wing)<ref name=Adelaidia>{{cite web|url=http://adelaidia.sa.gov.au/subjects/art-galleries|website=Adelaidia|title=Art galleries|access-date=9 May 2019}}</ref> and pushed ahead with all due speed,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article54544848 |title=The New Art Gallery |newspaper=South Australian Register |volume=LXIII |issue=16,075 |location=South Australia |date=21 May 1898 |access-date=29 November 2020 |page=4 |via=Trove}}</ref> to provide employment for skilled tradesmen in a time of economic recession. The building was designed by C. E. Owen Smyth in Classical Revival style, built by Trudgen Brothers,{{efn|Sons of contractor and mayor of St Peters, Nicholas Wallis Trudgen (died 1892)<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article48234576 |title=Obituary |newspaper=South Australian Register |volume=LVII |issue=14,205 |location=South Australia |date=24 May 1892 |access-date=29 November 2020 |page=3 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> they went out of business shortly afterwards.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article170489980 |author=Owen Smyth |title=Some Contractors I Have Known |newspaper=The Observer (Adelaide) |volume=LXXXI |issue=6,001 |location=South Australia |date=2 February 1924 |access-date=29 November 2020 |page=49 |via=Trove}}</ref>}} and opened by the Governor, Lord Tennyson on 7 April 1900.

Originally built with an enclosed portico, a 1936 refurbishment and enlargement included a new facade with an open Doric portico.<ref name=memory/>

Major extensions in 1962 (including a three-storey air-conditioned addition on the northern side), 1979 (general refurbishment, in time for its centenary in 1981) and 1996 (large expansion) increased the gallery's display, administrative and ancillary facilities further.<ref name=Adelaidia/><ref name=memory/><ref name =C&M>Barbara Cooper and Maureen Matheson, ''The World Museums Guide'', McGraw-Hill, (1973) {{ISBN|9780070129252}}</ref>

The building is listed in the South Australian Heritage Register.<ref name=memory/>

{{as of|2019}}, the building houses 64kWh worth of solar battery storage as part of the Government of South Australia Storage Demonstration project, powered by three 7.5 kW Selectronic inverters. This reduces the consumption of power from the state grid.<ref name=power2019>{{cite web|url=https://www.zenenergy.com.au/art-gallery-of-south-australia/|title=Art Gallery of South Australia|website=Zen|access-date=9 May 2019|archive-date=14 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414224820/https://www.zenenergy.com.au/art-gallery-of-south-australia/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Governance=== In 1939, an act of parliament, the ''Libraries and Institutes Act 1939'', repealed the ''Public library, Museum and Art Gallery and Institutes Act'' and separated the Gallery from the Public Library (now the State Library), and Museum, established its own board and changed its name to the Art Gallery of South Australia.<ref name=LA>{{cite web|website=Libraries Australia|url=https://librariesaustralia.nla.gov.au/search/display?dbid=auth&id=36484115|series=Libraries Australia Authorities - Full view|title=National Gallery of South Australia (Record ID 36484115)|access-date=30 July 2019}}</ref><ref name=Adelaidia/>

The ''Art Gallery Act 1939'' was passed to provide for the control of the library. This has been amended several times since.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.legislation.sa.gov.au/LZ/C/A/ART%20GALLERY%20ACT%201939/CURRENT/1939.28.AUTH.PDF|title=Art Galleries Act 1939, Version: 12.5.2011|date=2011|access-date=30 July 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|publisher=Government of South Australia. Attorney-General's Dept|website=legislation.sa|title=Art Gallery Act 1939|url=https://www.legislation.sa.gov.au/LZ/C/A/ART%20GALLERY%20ACT%201939.aspx|access-date=31 July 2019}}</ref>

In 1967 the National Gallery of South Australia changed its name to the Art Gallery of South Australia.<ref name=LA/>

Ballarat-born David Thomas was appointed Director in 1976.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Appleyard |first=R. G. |date=Spring 1981 |title=History of the Gallery |url=https://artandaustralia.com/archive/PDF/b1112309-00073-00001.pdf |journal=Art + Australia |volume=19 |issue=1 |issn=0004-301X |access-date=28 March 2026}}</ref> He had taken a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Melbourne, had been Keeper of the Pictorial Collections at the National Library of Australia, Canberra 1963-65, and Director of the Newcastle City Art Gallery in 1965-75. In 1983 he left AGSA to become Director of Adelaide's Carrick Hill House Museum & Garden, and from 1987-1995 was Director of Bendigo Art Gallery. Thomas died in 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Printmaking |first=Prints and |title=David Thomas |url=https://www.printsandprintmaking.gov.au/artists/21622/ |access-date=2026-03-27 |website=www.printsandprintmaking.gov.au |language=en}}</ref>

From about 1996 until late 2018 Arts SA (later Arts South Australia) had responsibility for this and several other statutory bodies such as the Museum and the State Library, after which the functions were transferred to direct oversight by the Department of the Premier and Cabinet, Arts and Culture section.<ref>{{cite web|website=South Australia. Dept of the Premier and Cabinet|url=https://dpc.sa.gov.au/responsibilities/arts-and-culture/about-arts-culture|title=About arts and culture|date=26 June 2019 |access-date=27 July 2019}}</ref>

Christopher Menz was director of the gallery until 2010, when he refused to renew his five-year contract because he believed that government funding to the gallery was inadequate.<ref name=turner2018>{{cite web | last=Turner | first=Brook | title='I will change everything': The assured ambition of new NGA director Nick Mitzevich | website=The Sydney Morning Herald | date=8 June 2018 | url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/art-and-design/i-will-change-everything-the-assured-ambition-of-new-nga-director-nick-mitzevich-20180605-p4zjij.html | access-date=27 May 2024}}</ref>

Nick Mitzevich was appointed as director in July 2010, when he was hardly known in SA.<ref name=artwrite2014>{{cite web | title=Nick Mitzevich: innovator and educator|first= Zoë|last= Wilesmith | website=ArtWrite | date=27 May 2014 | url=https://artwriteissue55.wordpress.com/articles-2/nick-mitzevich-innovator-and-educator/ | access-date=27 May 2024}}</ref> He had grand ambitions and made a big impression in the eight years he ran AGSA. During this time, he acquired and commissioned works that would make an impression on the public, such as projecting an AES+F video work onto the gallery's façade during the Adelaide Fringe in 2012, and buying an entire exhibition of 16 paintings by Ben Quilty on the 130th anniversary of AGSA. He also hung ''We Are All Flesh'', an epoxy resin sculpture of two headless horses by Belgian artist Berlinde De Bruyckere, from the ceiling of the gallery, which attracted much press coverage. His overall approach was to display contemporary works in close proximity to classics. Although he had a few detractors, the general opinion was that he had done a fine job at AGSA.<ref name=turner2018/><ref name=artwrite2014/><ref>Osborne, Margot. [https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.222510238189311 "(Re)fresh: AGSA under Nick Mitzevich."] ''Art Monthly Australia'', no. 240, pp. 14–16. "The transformation in programming, mood and style is absolutely awesome and outstanding."</ref><ref name=boland2018/> His achievements included curating the highly successful 2014 Adelaide Biennial,<ref name=artwrite2014/><ref name=boland2018/> the purchase of Camille Pissarro's ''Prairie à Eragny'', with its {{AUD|4.5}} million price raised from donations only. He also oversaw a major internal refurbishment of the gallery, introduced the Tarnanthi festival, hosted large-scale exhibitions, and greatly increased the collection of both contemporary Australian and international art. Annual visitor numbers increased from 480,000 in 2010 to 800,000 by the time of his departure. He was the first gallery director in Australia to implement a provenance project, which investigates old objects which were acquired without historical checks.<ref name=boland2018>{{cite web | last=Boland | first=Michaela | title=Nick Mitzevich heads to National Gallery of Australia after successful AGSA tenure | website=ABC News | date=9 April 2018 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-04-09/nick-mitzevich-to-head-national-gallery-of-australia/9633626 | access-date=27 May 2024|quote=Mitzevich leaves the Art Gallery of South Australia with a reputation for effecting change.}}</ref>

After the departure of Mitzevich, who left to lead the National Gallery of Australia in April 2018, the first female director in the history of AGSA was appointed. On 22 October of that year, Australian-born Rhana Devenport {{post-nominals| country=NZL| ONZM}} started her appointment<ref>{{cite web |title=Rhana Devenport to Lead Art Gallery of South Australia |url=https://www.artforum.com/news/rhana-devenport-to-lead-the-art-gallery-of-south-australia-76096 |website=Artforum| date=26 July 2018 |access-date=10 February 2022}}</ref> after leaving the Auckland Art Gallery, where she had been director since 2013.<ref>{{cite web| title=Directors|url=https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/about/history-and-collection/directors|website=Auckland Art Gallery|access-date=10 February 2022}}</ref> In March 2024 Devenport announced that she would depart after her contract ended on 7 July 2024, having served for six years.<ref>{{cite web | title=Art Gallery boss Rhana Devenport quits after six years|first=David| last= Washington | website=InDaily | date=22 March 2024 | url=https://www.indaily.com.au/news/2024/03/22/rhana-devenport-art-gallery-boss-quits-after-six-years | access-date=23 March 2024}}</ref>

In June 2024, Lisa Slade, who joined the gallery in 2011 as project curator and was appointed assistant director, artistic programs, in 2015, announced her departure from 3 July 2024, after being appointed Hugh Ramsay Chair in Australian Art History at the University of Melbourne,<ref name=keen2024>{{cite web | title=Second departure signals a new chapter for Art Gallery leadership |first=Suzie|last=Keen| website=InDaily | date=14 June 2024 | url=https://www.indaily.com.au/news/2024/06/14/second-departure-signals-a-new-chapter-for-art-gallery-leadership | access-date=16 June 2024}}</ref> a position based in the Art History Program in the School of Culture and Communication.<ref>{{cite web | title=Dr Lisa Slade announced as Hugh Ramsay Chair in Australian Art History | website=Australian Arts Review | date=15 June 2024 | url=https://artsreview.com.au/dr-lisa-slade-announced-as-hugh-ramsay-chair-in-australian-art-history/ | access-date=16 June 2024}}</ref>

In February 2025 Jason Smith, former director of the Geelong Gallery, Heide Museum of Modern Art, and Monash Gallery of Art, began his term as director of AGSA.<ref name=Smith>{{Cite press release |title=New director appointed to lead Art Gallery of South Australia |date=26 November 2024 |publisher=Andrea Michaels MP, Minister for Arts |url=https://agsa-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/media/dd/files/MEDIA_RELEASE_New_director_appointed_for_AGSA.ad5e699.pdf |access-date=3 April 2025}}</ref>

On 13 June 2025, the Governor of South Australia, Frances Adamson, and her husband Rod Bunten were named as the inaugural patrons of the gallery. Their main role will be "advocacy on a national and international scale".<ref name=patrons2025>{{cite web | title=Art Gallery SA names inaugural patrons|first= Genevieve| last=Meegan | website=InDaily | date=13 June 2025 | url=https://www.indailysa.com.au/salife/people-and-places/2025/06/13/art-gallery-sa-names-inaugural-patrons | access-date=13 June 2025}}</ref>

==Collection== [[File:AGSA director Nick Mitzevich.JPG|thumb|AGSA director Nick Mitzevich addressing Museums Australia conference delegates, 2012]]

{{as of|May 2019}}, the AGSA collection comprises almost 45,000 works of art.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.artgallery.sa.gov.au/agsa/home/About/visit.html|title=Visit|website= Art Gallery of South Australia|access-date=9 May 2019}}</ref> Of the state galleries, only the National Gallery of Victoria is larger.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.archmedia.com.au/aa/aaissue.php?issueid=199605&article=1&typeon=1&highlight=Adelaide|title=Adelaide: Art Gallery of SA Extensions|journal=Architecture Australia|date=May–June 1996|access-date=19 May 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928094545/http://www.archmedia.com.au/aa/aaissue.php?issueid=199605&article=1&typeon=1&highlight=Adelaide|archive-date=28 September 2007}}</ref> It attracts about 512,000 visitors each year.<ref name=power2019/>

Lindy Lee's {{convert|6|m|adj=on}} sculpture "The Life of Stars" is mounted on the forecourt of the gallery, after being presented for the 2018 Biennial, ''Divided Worlds''.<ref>{{cite web | title=Lindy Lee: The Life of Stars | website=AGSA - The Art Gallery of South Australia | date=22 March 2018 | url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/lindy-lee-life-stars/ | access-date=11 October 2020}}</ref> Created in Shanghai in 2015, the sculpture's polished stainless steel surface reflects its surroundings during the day<ref name="AGSA - Online Collection">{{cite web | title=The Life of Stars | website=AGSA - Online Collection | url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/collection-publications/collection/works/the-life-of-stars/37074/ | access-date=11 October 2020}}</ref> and radiates light at night. Over 30,000 perforated holes individually placed by Lee<ref name="Stranger 2017">{{cite web | last=Stranger | first=Lucy | title=Lindy Lee | website=Artist Profile | date=26 September 2017 | url=https://www.artistprofile.com.au/lindy-lee/ | access-date=11 October 2020}}</ref> resemble a map of our galaxy when lit from within. The sculpture was bought by the gallery as a farewell "gift" for and tribute to departing director Nick Mitzevich in April 2018.<ref>{{cite web | last=McDonald | first=Patrick | title=Stellar farewell for gallery director | website=Adelaide Now | date=27 April 2018 | url=https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/entertainment/arts/art-gallery-of-sa-director-nick-mitzevich-to-shine-on-in-sculpture-tribute-on-adelaides-north-terrace/news-story/f64c9ac09b1bbc9178a68ba6b431ee5b | access-date=11 October 2020}}</ref>

===Australian art=== [[File:Tom Roberts - A break away! - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|Tom Roberts, ''A break away!'', 1891]] The gallery is renowned for its collections of Australian art, including Indigenous Australian and colonial art, from about 1800 onwards. The collection is strong in nineteenth-century works (including silverware and furniture) and in particular Australian Impressionist (often referred to as Heidelberg School) paintings. Its twentieth-century Modernist art collection includes the work of many female artists, and there is a large collection of South Australian art, which includes 2,000 drawings by Hans Heysen and a large collection of photographs.<ref name=AGSAcoll>{{cite web|url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/collection-publications/about/|website=AGSA|title=About the collection|access-date=10 May 2019}}</ref><ref name= AGSA/>

Heidelberg school works include Tom Roberts' ''A break away!'', Charles Conder's ''A holiday at Mentone'', and Arthur Streeton's ''Road to Templestowe''.<ref name= C&M/> The mid-twentieth century is represented by works by Russell Drysdale, Arthur Boyd, Margaret Preston, Bessie Davidson, and Sidney Nolan, and South Australian art includes works by James Ashton and Jeffrey Smart.{{citation needed|date=May 2019}}

The gallery became the first Australian gallery to acquire a work by an Indigenous artist in 1939, although systematic acquisition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art was not realised until the mid-1950s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/about/our-history/|title=Our History|website=Art Gallery of South Australia}}</ref> The Gallery and now holds a large and diverse collection of older and contemporary works, including the ''Kulata Tjuta'' collaboration created by Aṉangu artists working in the north of SA.<ref name=AGSAcoll/>

In May 2026 the gallery acquired a rare landscape painting by Dorrit Black, titled ''Sicilian mountain'', to add to its collection of around 70 works by this Adelaide-born artist.<ref>{{cite web | title=Art Gallery lands 'modernist masterpiece' after $675,000 bidding war | website=InDaily|first= Walter| last=Marsh | date=7 May 2026 | url=https://www.indailysa.com.au/inreview/visual-art/2026/05/07/art-gallery-lands-modernist-masterpiece-after-675000-bidding-war | access-date=24 May 2026}}</ref>

===International=== European landscape paintings include works by Jacob Isaakszoon van Ruisdael, Salomon van Ruysdael, Joseph Wright of Derby,<ref name= AGSA/> and Camille Pissarro.<ref>{{cite news|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation News|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-08-22/art-gallery-of-sa-acquires-four-million-dollar-painting/5690804?section=sa|title= Art Gallery of South Australia acquires $4.5 million French Impressionist painting|date= 22 August 2014|access-date=5 February 2018}}</ref> Other European works include paintings by Goya, Francesco Guardi, Pompeo Batoni and Camille Corot.<ref name=AGSA/>

There is a large collection of British art, including many Pre-Raphaelite works, by artists Edward Burne-Jones, William Holman Hunt, Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Morris & Co. Other works include John William Waterhouse's ''Circe Invidiosa'' (1892) and ''The Favourites of the Emperor Honorius'' (c.1883); William Holman Hunt's ''Christ and the Two Marys'' (1847) and ''The Risen Christ with the Two Marys in the Garden Of Joseph of Aramathea'' (1897); and John Collier's ''Priestess of Delphi'' (1891). Works by British portrait painters include Robert Peake, Anthony van Dyck, Peter Lely and Thomas Gainsborough.<ref name= AGSA/>

Sculpture includes works by Rodin, Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth, Jacob Epstein<ref name =AGSA>{{cite web|url=http://www.artgallery.sa.gov.au/agsa/home/Collection/|title=Art Gallery of South Australia :: Collection|website=www.artgallery.sa.gov.au}}</ref> and Thomas Hirschhorn.<ref name=AGSAcoll/>

The Asian art collection, begun in 1904, includes work from the whole region, with focuses on the pre-modern Japanese art, art of Southeast Asia, India and the Middle East. The Gallery holds Australia's only permanent display of Islamic art.<ref name=AGSAcoll/>

{{Wide image|Battle scenes from the Tale of Heike (Heike Monogatari) - Google Art Project.jpg|700px|''The Tale of the Heike'', c. 1700}}

==Exhibitions and collaborations==

As well as its permanent collection, AGSA hosts the '''Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art''',<ref name=bf>{{cite web|website= Biennial Foundation|url=http://www.biennialfoundation.org/biennials/adelaide-biennial-of-australian-art-australia/|title=Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art|access-date=6 September 2019}}</ref> displays a number of visiting exhibitions each year<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.artgallery.sa.gov.au/agsa/home/Exhibitions/|title=Art Gallery of South Australia: Exhibitions: Past Exhibitions|website=www.artgallery.sa.gov.au}}</ref> and contributes travelling exhibitions to regional galleries.<ref>[http://www.artgallery.sa.gov.au/agsa/home/Exhibitions/touring_exhibitions.html AGSA Touring Exhibitions 2011] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111103171644/http://www.artgallery.sa.gov.au/agsa/home/Exhibitions/touring_exhibitions.html |date=3 November 2011 }}</ref>

==={{anchor|Biennial}}Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art===

The Adelaide Biennial is "the only major biennial dedicated solely to presenting contemporary Australian art",<ref name=bf/> and also the longest-running exhibition featuring contemporary Australian art. It is supported by the Australia Council and other sponsors.<ref name=agsabi>{{cite web|website=AGSA|url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/adelaide-biennial-of-australian-art/|title=Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art|access-date=6 September 2019}}</ref> It is presented in association with the Adelaide Festival and staged by AGSA and partner gallery the Samstag Museum, as well as other venues such as the Adelaide Botanic Garden, Mercury Cinema and JamFactory.<ref>{{cite web|website=Biennial Foundation|url=http://adelaidebiennial.com.au/2018/venues/|title=Venues|access-date=6 September 2019|archive-date=17 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210317221538/https://adelaidebiennial.com.au/2018/venues/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The Adelaide Biennial was established in 1990, planned to coincide with Artist's Week, which had commenced in 1982 to help counter the poor coverage of visual art in the Adelaide Festival of Arts programme at that time. The Art Gallery of New South Wales introduced an exhibition of Australian art called Australian Perspecta in 1981, which ran in alternate years with the international Biennale of Sydney, in response for the need for more forums focussing on Australian art.<ref name=arbi2020>{{cite journal|journal=The Adelaide Review|url=https://www.adelaidereview.com.au/arts/visual-arts/2019/11/15/looking-back-on-30-years-of-the-adelaide-biennial/|title=Looking back on 30 years of the Adelaide Biennial|date=15 November 2019|first=Jane|last=Llewellyn|access-date=16 November 2019}}</ref> In its first iteration in 1990, The Adelaide Biennale set out to emulate the Whitney Biennial of American art in New York City, and was intended to complement the Sydney Biennale and the Australian Perspecta exhibitions.<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Artlink|url=https://www.artlink.com.au/articles/937/a-critical-evaluation-of-the-first-adelaide-bienni/|title=A Critical Evaluation of the First Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art|first=Ian|last=North|volume=10|issue=4|date=December 1990|access-date=6 September 2019}}</ref> Then director Daniel Thomas said that they had introduced the Biennial to keep Australia up to date: the Festival attracts international and interstate visitors and it was a good time to introduce contemporary Australian art to this audience. Artists such as Fiona Hall, whose work is now in the National Gallery of Art, were showcased at the first Biennial. The exhibition today still projects Thomas' vision, with the most noticeable difference being that the current version has a theme and a catchy title.<ref name=arbi2020/>

====Selected events==== The 2014 Biennial was titled "Dark Heart", an examination of changing national sensibilities, mounted by director Nick Mitzevitch, with 28 artists exhibiting.<ref>{{cite web|website=The Conversation|title=The 2014 Adelaide Biennial: 'contemporary art as it was meant to be'|date=4 March 2014|url=http://theconversation.com/the-2014-adelaide-biennial-contemporary-art-as-it-was-meant-to-be-23033|first=Joanna|last=Mendelssohn|access-date=6 September 2019}}</ref>

In 2016, the gallery participated in the large "Biennial 2016" art festival with its "Magic Object" exhibitions.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://adelaidereview.com.au/arts/visual-arts/biennial-2016-a-thread-runs-through-it/|title=Biennial 2016: A Thread Runs Through It"|journal=Adelaide Review|date=10 May 2016|first=Annie |last=Van der Walt|access-date=9 May 2019}}</ref>

In 2018, the title was "Divided Worlds", which aimed "...to describe the divide between ideas and ideologies, between geographies and localities, between communities and nations, and the subjective and objective view of experience and reality itself". Venues included the Museum of Economic Botany in the Adelaide Botanic Garden.<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2018/mar/07/adelaide-biennial-of-australian-art-a-contemporary-snapshot-tackling-big-social-issues|title=Adelaide Biennial of Australian art – a contemporary snapshot tackling big social issues|date=7 March 2018|first=Andrew|last= Frost}}</ref> It drew record crowds, with more than 240,000 people over a 93-day season under curator Erica Green.<ref name=Limelight>{{cite web|url=https://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/news/the-2018-adelaide-biennial-draws-record-crowds/|website=Limelight Magazine|title=The 2018 Adelaide Biennial draws record crowds|first= Justine |last=Nguyen|date=5 June 2018|access-date=6 September 2019 }}</ref>

Curator for the 2020 Biennial, which was scheduled to run from 29 February to 8 June 2020, was Leigh Robb, inaugural Curator of Contemporary Art appointed in 2016.<ref name=Limelight/> The title was "Monster Theatres", examining "our relationships with each other, the environment and technology" and featured a lot of live art. Paintings, photography, sculpture, textiles, film, video, sound art, installation, and performance art by 23 artists were featured, including work by Abdul Abdullah, Stelarc, David Noonan, Garry Stewart and Australian Dance Theatre,<ref>{{cite news|publisher=InDaily|url=https://indaily.com.au/arts-and-culture/2019/09/06/monster-2020-adelaide-biennial-set-to-create-a-buzz/|title=Monster 2020 Adelaide Biennial set to create a buzz|first=Suzie|last=Keen|date=6 September 2019|access-date=6 September 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.adelaidereview.com.au/arts/visual-arts/adelaide-biennial-2020-monster-theatres/|title=Monster Theatres: 2020 Adelaide Biennial artists revealed|journal=The Adelaide Review|date=6 September 2019|first=Walter |last=Marsh|access-date=7 September 2019}}</ref> Megan Cope, Karla Dickens, Julia Robinson, performance artist Mike Parr, Polly Borland, Willoh S. Weiland, Yhonnie Scarce (whose work ''In the Dead House'' was installed in the old Adelaide Lunatic Asylum morgue building in the Botanic Garden<ref name=adelaidepediamorgue>{{cite web | title=Adelaide Botanic Garden - former Lunatic Asylum Morgue | website=Adelaidepedia | date=9 April 2020 | url=https://adelaidepedia.com.au/wiki/Adelaide_Botanic_Garden_-_former_Lunatic_Asylum_Morgue | access-date=14 June 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Clark|first=Maddee|date=6 June 2020|title=Yhonnie Scarce's art of glass|url=https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/culture/art/2020/06/06/yhonnie-scarces-art-glass/15913656009940|access-date=14 June 2020|website=The Saturday Paper}}</ref>) and others.<ref name=jefferson>{{cite web | first=Dee|last =Jefferson | title=The monsters under the bed: Exhibition reveals our worst nightmares are those closest to home | website=ABC News | date=5 April 2020 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-05/adelaide-biennial-monster-theatres-australian-art-taps-into-fear/12118986 | access-date=5 April 2020}}</ref> However, AGSA had to temporarily close from 25 March 2020 owing to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, so some of the exhibits were shown online, along with virtual tours of the exhibition.<ref name=agsaclose>{{cite web | title=AGSA temporarily closes its doors to the public alongside SA cultural institutions | website=AGSA - The Art Gallery of South Australia | date=28 February 2020 | url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/visit/agsas-response-covid-19/ | access-date=4 April 2020}}</ref> When the gallery reopened on 8 June, it was announced that the exhibition period would be extended to 2 August 2020.<ref>{{cite web | title=2020 Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art: Monster Theatres | website=AGSA | date=27 February 2020 | url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/2020-adelaide-biennial-australian-art-monster-theatres/ | access-date=14 June 2020}}</ref>

The 2022 event was called ''Free/State'', and among others featured the work of Hossein Valamanesh, who died in February, and his wife Angela Valamanesh. It ran from 4 March<ref name=noble2022>{{cite web | last=Noble | first=Kelly | title=Hossein Valamanesh remembered as a powerful and poetic international artist| website=Glam Adelaide | date=18 January 2022 | url=https://glamadelaide.com.au/hossein-valamanesh-remembered-as-a-powerful-and-poetic-international-artist/ | access-date=10 February 2022}}</ref> to 5 June, and was curated by Sydney-based Burramattagal man Sebastian Goldspink. The theme was inspired by the history of South Australia as a "free colony", and also had resonances with states of being and psychology, and contrasting ideas of freedom. Other artists featured include Shaun Gladwell, JD Reformer, Tom Polo, Rhoda Tjitayi, Stanislava Pinchuk, and collaborators James Tylor and Rebecca Selleck.<ref>{{cite web | last=Jefferson | first=Dee | title=Art Gallery of South Australia's Adelaide Biennial exhibition interrogates South Australia's history of slavery, environmental degradation | date=12 April 2022 | website= ABC News| publisher= Australian Broadcasting Corporation| url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-04-13/adelaide-biennial-2022-art-gallery-south-australia-free-state/100982350 | access-date=14 April 2022}}</ref>

In 2026, ''Yield Strength'', curated by Ellie Buttrose, featured the work of 24 artists from around Australia, including Archie Moore, Erika Scott, Lauren Burrow, Nathan Beard, and Josina Pumani. The works were displayed in AGSA, the Samstag Museum of Art, and the Adelaide Botanic Garden.<ref>{{cite web | last=Story | first=Hannah | title=Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art sees how 24 artists working across the country Yield Strength | website=ABC News | date=21 April 2026 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-04-22/adelaide-biennial-of-australian-art-archie-moore-ellie-buttrose/106569532 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260507015811/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-04-22/adelaide-biennial-of-australian-art-archie-moore-ellie-buttrose/106569532 | archive-date=7 May 2026 | url-status=live | access-date=24 May 2026}}</ref>

===Tarnanthi=== {{main|Tarnanthi}} Since 2015, AGSA has hosted and supported events connected with Tarnanthi (pronounced tar-nan-dee), the Festival of Contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art. The 2015 exhibition was said to be the "most ambitious exhibition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art in its 134-year history".<ref name=2015Tarn>{{cite web|url=http://www.2015.tarnanthi.com.au/about/about-the-festival/index.html|website=2015 Tarnanthi|title=About the Festival|access-date=26 April 2019}}</ref> In association with the Government of South Australia and BHP, an expansive city-wide festival is staged biennially (in odd-numbered years), alternating with a focus exhibition at the gallery in the years in between.<ref name=AGSATarn>{{cite web|website=Art Gallery of South Australia|url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/tarnanthi/|title=TARNANTHI: Our annual national celebration of contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art|access-date=26 April 2019}}</ref>

===Other notable exhibitions===

====1906: ''The Light of the World''====

In 1906, when William Holman Hunt's ''The Light of the World'' was on display, 18,168 visitors crammed through the gallery in less than two weeks to see it.<ref name=Adelaidia/>

==Sponsorship and prizes== Diana Ramsay (7 May 1926 – 2017) and her husband James Ramsay (1923–1996) were art-lovers who gave generously to the art gallery. {{as of |2021}} the gallery had acquired over 100 artworks thanks to their generosity, including paintings by Vanessa Bell, Clarice Beckett, Angelica Kauffmann and Camille Pissarro. Diana launched the Ramsay Art Prize in 2016, a year before her death, and the couple's legacy lives on in the James & Diana Ramsay Foundation,<ref>{{cite web | title=Art lover Diana Ramsay's everlasting gift|first=Rhana |last=Devenport | website=InDaily|series=In Review | date=17 May 2021 | url=https://indaily.com.au/inreview/visual-art/2021/05/17/art-lover-diana-ramsays-everlasting-gift/ | access-date=30 May 2021}}</ref> established in 2008. The bequest was established by James' will in 1994, and upon Diana's death in 2017, James' entire estate and part of Diana's was bequeathed to it. The Foundation supports the children and family programs, whereby more than 300,000 children and families have visited AGSA since the creation of the programs in 2013. In November 2019 it was announced that the couple had made a bequest of {{AUD|38 million}}} to AGSA, to be used for the purchase of major works. This was one of the largest bequests ever made to an art gallery in Australia. The family's wealth had accrued mainly thanks to James’ uncle William, who was responsible for developing Kiwi boot polish, and his artist brother Hugh Ramsay influenced the family's love of the visual arts. James' father was Sir John Ramsay, noted surgeon.<ref name=phil1>{{cite web | title=The Ramsay's legacy | website=Philanthropy Australia | url=https://www.philanthropy.org.au/stories-Ramsay-bequest/ | access-date=30 May 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Remarkable bequest from arts patrons in Adelaide inspired by legendary philanthropy| website=Philanthropy Australia | date=23 November 2019 | url=https://www.philanthropy.org.au/tools-resources/news/remarkable-bequest-from-arts-patrons-in-adelaide-inspired-by-legendary/ | access-date=30 May 2021}}</ref>

==={{anchor|ramsay}}Ramsay Art Prize=== In 2016, a new national $100,000 acquisitive art prize for artists, open to Australian artists under 40 working in any medium, was announced by the Premier of South Australia, Jay Weatherill. Supported by the James & Diana Ramsay Foundation (and launched by Diana on her 90th birthday<ref name=phil1/>), it is the country's richest art prize, awarded biennially. Chosen by an international judging panel, all finalists are exhibited in a major exhibition over the winter months at the Gallery.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jdrfoundation.com.au/assets/Uploads/Ramsay-Art-Prize-annoucement-2016.pdf|title=Ramsay Art Prize: Media release|date=2016|access-date=15 June 2019|archive-date=9 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309055801/http://www.jdrfoundation.com.au/assets/Uploads/Ramsay-Art-Prize-annoucement-2016.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> There is also a non-acquisitive Lipman Karas People's Choice Prize based on public vote, worth $15,000.<ref name=AR2017/><ref>{{cite web|website=AGSA|url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/ramsay-art-prize/|title=Ramsay Art Prize|access-date=15 June 2019}}</ref>

====2017==== In its inaugural year, over 450 young artists submitted entries. From the 21 finalists selected for the exhibition, Perth-born artist Sarah Contos, now based in Sydney, won the prize for her entry entitled ''Sarah Contos Presents: The Long Kiss Goodbye''.<ref name=AR2017>{{cite journal|journal=Adelaide Review|url=https://www.adelaidereview.com.au/arts/visual-arts/sarah-contos-wins-inaugural-ramsay-art-prize/|title=Sarah Contos Wins Inaugural Ramsay Art Prize|first=John|last=Dexter|date=26 May 2017|access-date=15 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|website=ABC News|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-26/ramsay-art-prize-won-by-sarah-contos/8561426|title=Ramsay Art Prize won by artist Sarah Contos for quilt 'celebrating women in all their glory'|first=Michael|last=Coggan|date=26 May 2017|access-date=15 June 2019}}</ref> Julie Fragar's 2016 painting ''Goose Chase: All of Us Together Here and Nowhere'', which explores the story of Antonio de Fraga, her first paternal ancestor to emigrate to Australia in the 19th century, won the People's Choice Award.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://ramsay.artgallery.sa.gov.au/artist/julie-fragar/|title=Julie Fragar - Ramsay Art Prize|work=Ramsay Art Prize|access-date=11 March 2018|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311061236/https://ramsay.artgallery.sa.gov.au/artist/julie-fragar/|archive-date=11 March 2018|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

====2019==== In 2019, 23 finalists were chosen from a field of 350 submissions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jdrfoundation.com.au/assets/Uploads/Finalists-Announced-Ramsay-Art-Prize-2019.pdf|title=$100,000 Ramsay Art Prize finalists announced for 2019|date=2019|publisher=AGSA|access-date=15 June 2019|archive-date=9 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309055852/http://www.jdrfoundation.com.au/assets/Uploads/Finalists-Announced-Ramsay-Art-Prize-2019.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=AR2019final>{{cite journal|journal=Adelaide Review|url=https://www.adelaidereview.com.au/arts/visual-arts/ramsay-art-prize-2019-finalists/|title=Ramsay Art Prize 2019 finalists revealed|first=Walter|last=Marsh|date=30 April 2019|access-date=15 June 2019}}</ref> Vincent Namatjira won the main prize with his work ''Close Contact, 2018'', a double-sided full-body representation of a man, in acrylic paint on plywood.<ref>{{cite web|website=AGSA|url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/ramsay-art-prize/|title=Ramsay Art Prize 2019|access-date=15 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|website=ABC News|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-24/ramsay-art-prize-winner-announced-in-adelaide/11145064|title=Indigenous artist Vincent Namatjira wins the $100,000 Ramsay Art Prize|first=Matthew|last=Smith|date=24 May 2019|access-date=15 June 2019}}</ref> Winner of the People's Choice Prize was 24-year-old Zimbabwean man Pierre Mukeba (the youngest finalist) for his {{convert|3|m|ft}} by {{convert|4|m|ft}} painting entitled ''Ride to Church'', inspired by childhood memories of the whole family perched somewhat precariously on a single motorbike to travel to church.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Adelaide Review |url=https://www.adelaidereview.com.au/arts/visual-arts/ramsay-art-prize-peoples-choice-pierre-mukeba/|title=Ramsay Art Prize finalist Pierre Mukeba named the people's favourite|first=Walter|last=Marsh|date=9 August 2019 |access-date=9 August 2019}}</ref>

====2021==== In 2021, 24 finalists were chosen from more than 350 entries. South Australian finalists included the work of musician and painter Zaachariaha Fielding (of the duo Electric Fields) and ''Yurndu (Sun)'', by Port Augusta artist Juanella McKenzie, while Melbourne-based Iranian photographer Hoda Afshar's series entitled ''Agonistes'' was also selected.<ref>{{cite web | title=2021 Ramsay Art Prize finalists announced |first=Suzie| last=Keen| website=InDaily | date=22 April 2021 | url=https://indaily.com.au/inreview/visual-art/2021/04/23/2021-ramsay-art-prize-finalists-announced/ | access-date=23 April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Hoda Afshar | website=AGSA - The Art Gallery of South Australia | url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/ramsay-art-prize/ramsay-art-prize-2021/hoda-afshar/ | access-date=23 April 2021}}</ref> The prize was won by South Australian artist Kate Bohunnis, for her work entitled ''edge of excess'', a kinetic sculpture,<ref>{{cite web | title=Ramsay Art Prize 2021 | website=AGSA - The Art Gallery of South Australia | date=17 May 2021 | url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/ramsay-art-prize/ramsay-art-prize-2021/ | access-date=22 May 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Marsh | first=Walter | title=Ramsay art prize: Kate Bohunnis wins $100,000 award for steel and silicon sculpture | website=The Guardian | date=21 May 2021 | url=http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2021/may/21/ramsay-art-prize-kate-bohunnis-wins-100000-award-for-edges-of-excess | access-date=22 May 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Bassano | first=Jessica | title=SA 'rising star' wins 2021 Ramsay Art Prize | website=InDaily | date=22 May 2021 | url=https://indaily.com.au/inreview/2021/05/21/sa-rising-star-wins-2021-ramsay-art-prize/ | access-date=22 May 2021}}</ref> while Hoda Afshar won the People's Choice Prize with her photographic work, ''Agonistes''.<ref>{{cite web | title=Ramsay Art Prize 2021 | website=AGSA - The Art Gallery of South Australia | url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/ramsay-art-prize/ramsay-art-prize-2021/ | access-date=16 August 2021}}</ref>

==== 2023 ==== In 2023, 26 finalists were chosen from more than 300 entries. The South Australian artist Ida Sophia won the prize with her video installation ''witness''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2023/may/26/ramsay-art-prize-2023-winner-ida-sophia-wins-100000-for-witness-video |title=Ramsay art prize 2023: Ida Sophia wins $100,000 for 'deeply emotive' video work |last=Sun |first=Michael |date=2023-05-26 |website=The Guardian |access-date=2023-05-26}}</ref> Zaachariaha Fielding won the $15,000 People's Choice prize, with his multi-panel work ''Wonder Drug''.<ref>{{cite web | title=Ramsay Art Prize 2023 | website= Art Gallery of South Australia | date=27 May 2023 | url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/ramsay-art-prize-2023/ | access-date=11 August 2023}}</ref>

====2025==== In 2025, there were 22 finalists, announced in April, with the exhibition to run from 31 May to 31 August 2025.<ref>{{cite web | title=Ramsay Art Prize 2025 | website=AGSA - The Art Gallery of South Australia | url=https://www.agsa.sa.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/ramsay-art-prize-2025/?mc_cid=ed4a4a56f1&mc_eid=487ca1011d | access-date=30 April 2025}}</ref> Perth-born, Sydney-based artist Jack Ball won the prize for his work ''Heavy Grit'', described as "a large-scale mixed media installation partly inspired by historic press coverage of trans and queer lives from the 1950s to the 1970s".<ref>{{cite web | title=Australia's trans histories inspire Ramsay Art Prize-winning work|first=Walter| last=Marsh | website=InDaily | date=30 May 2025 | url=https://www.indailysa.com.au/inreview/visual-art/2025/05/30/restless-kinetic-australias-trans-histories-inspire-ramsay-art-prize-winning-work | access-date=2 June 2025}}</ref>

===Guildhouse Fellowship=== The Guildhouse Fellowship is also supported by the James & Diana Ramsay Foundation, and presented in partnership with AGSA. Inaugurated in 2019, the fellowship is intended for mid-career artists, to support opportunities to expand their research and further explore their creative potential. It offers $35,000 to support research and development, including the creation of new work, which is then acquired by the gallery.<ref name=gf>{{cite web |title=The Guildhouse Fellowship |website=Guildhouse |date=20 September 2023 |url=https://guildhouse.org.au/the-guildhouse-fellowship/ |access-date=21 October 2024}}</ref>

Past recipients of the fellowship include:<ref name=gf/> *2019: Troy-Anthony Baylis *2020: Sera Waters, textile artist *2021: Liam Fleming, glass artist *2022: Tom Phillips, painter *2023: Kyoko Hashimoto, jewellery designer *2024: Michelle Nikou, sculptor<ref name="u380">{{cite web |title=Sculptor Michelle Nikou awarded the 2024 Guildhouse Fellowship |website=InDaily |date=18 December 2024 |url=https://www.indailysa.com.au/inreview/visual-art/2024/12/18/sculptor-michelle-nikou-awarded-the-2024-guildhouse-fellowship|access-date=18 December 2024}}</ref>

==Gallery== '''Selected Australian works''' <gallery widths="170px" heights="170px" perrow="4"> File:John Glover - A view of the artist's house and garden, in Mills Plains, Van Diemen's Land - Google Art Project.jpg|John Glover, ''A view of the artist's house and garden, in Mills Plains, Van Diemen's Land'', 1835 File:H J. Johnstone - Evening shadows, backwater of the Murray, South Australia - Google Art Project.jpg|H. J. Johnstone, ''Evening shadows, backwater of the Murray, South Australia'', 1880 File:Charles Conder - A holiday at Mentone - Google Art Project.jpg|Charles Conder, ''A holiday at Mentone'', 1888 File:Florence Fuller Mother and Child.jpg|Florence Fuller, ''Mother and Child'', c. 1890 File:John Russell - A clearing in the forest - Google Art Project.jpg|John Russell, ''A clearing in the forest'', 1891 File:Frederick McCubbin - A ti-tree glade - Google Art Project.jpg|Frederick McCubbin, ''A ti-tree glade'', 1897 File:Hugh Ramsay - The four seasons - Google Art Project.jpg|Hugh Ramsay, ''The four seasons'', 1907 File:Motor Lights by Clarice Beckett, 1929.jpg|Clarice Beckett, ''Motor Lights'', 1929 </gallery>

'''Selected international works''' <gallery widths="170px" heights="170px" perrow="4"> File:After Hans HOLBEIN the younger - King Henry VIII - Google Art Project.jpg|Hans Holbein the Younger (after), ''King Henry VIII'', c. 1540 File:Joseph WRIGHT of Derby - A view of Vesuvius from Posillipo, Naples - Google Art Project.jpg|Joseph Wright of Derby, ''A view of Vesuvius from Posillipo, Naples'', c. 1788 File:Théodore Gericault - Head of a Youth - Google Art Project.jpg|Théodore Gericault, ''Head of a Youth'', c. 1821 File:J.M.W. Turner - Alnwick Castle - Google Art Project.jpg|J. M. W. Turner, ''Alnwick Castle'', 1829 File:John William Waterhouse - The Favorites of the Emperor Honorius - 1883.jpg|John William Waterhouse, ''The Favorites of the Emperor Honorius'', 1883 File:Pissarro - Pissarro and Durand-Ruel Snollaerts, 829.png|Camille Pissarro, ''Prairie à Éragny'', 1886 File:Collier-priestess of Delphi.jpg|John Collier, ''Priestess of Delphi'', 1891 File:J. W. Waterhouse - Circe Invidiosa - Google Art Project.jpg|John William Waterhouse, ''Circe Invidiosa'', 1892 </gallery>

==Tram stop==

There is a stop outside the gallery on North Terrace, on the BTANIC line of the Glenelg tram line, that runs to the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.<ref>{{cite web | title=Art Gallery Tram Stop | website=Adelaide Metro | date=23 March 2021 | url=https://www.adelaidemetro.com.au/stops?id=18848 | access-date=11 August 2024}}</ref>

{{Adjacent stations |system=Adelaide |line1=Glenelg|to-left1=Adelaide Entertainment Centre|left1=Adelaide|right1=University|to-right1=Botanic Gardens}}

==Footnotes == {{Notelist}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== *{{cite web|url=https://nma.gov.au/research/understanding-museums/DThomas_2011.html|website=Understanding Museums|title=Art museums in Australia: a personal account|first=Daniel |last=Thomas|date=2011}} - Includes link to PDF of the article "Art museums in Australia: a personal retrospect" (originally published in ''Journal of Art Historiography'', No 4, June 2011).

== External links == * [http://www.artgallery.sa.gov.au/agsa/home Art Gallery Of South Australia] * [http://artabase.net/gallery/143-art-gallery-of-south-australia Art Gallery of South Australia Artabase page] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080407090532/http://artabase.net/gallery/143-art-gallery-of-south-australia |date=7 April 2008}} *[https://artsandculture.google.com/u/0/partner/art-gallery-of-south-australia?hl=en Virtual tour of the Art Gallery of South Australia] provided by Google Arts & Culture *{{commons category-inline}}

Category:1881 establishments in Australia Category:Adelaide Park Lands Category:Art museums and galleries in South Australia Category:Art museums and galleries established in 1881 Category:Arts in Adelaide Category:Museums in Adelaide Category:Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale Category:George V