National Reference Group
The National Reference Group provides advice and recommendations to the Northern Territory Government on the development and establishment of the ASTIAGA.
The reference group members bring a wealth of high-level expertise across all mediums of contemporary and traditional Aboriginal art, including museum and gallery leadership, curatorial experience and developing fundraising strategies.
Members of the reference group are:
Franchesca Cubillo
Executive Director, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Australia Council for the Arts
Franchesca Cubillo, a Yanuwa, Larrakia, Bardi, and Wardaman woman from the Northern Territory, boasts 30+ years of museum and art gallery experience. With a Bachelor's in Aboriginal Affairs and Anthropology from the University of Adelaide, she has curated at esteemed institutions like the South Australian Museum, National Museum of Australia, and Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory.
Formerly a senior curator at the National Gallery of Australia, Cubillo is currently the executive director of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts at the Australia Council. She also chairs the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation and co-chairs the ATSIAGA.
Dr Gerard Vaughan
Former Director of the National Gallery of Australia and the National Gallery of Victoria
Dr Gerard Vaughan AM is an Australian art historian and museum administrator born in Devonport, Tasmania. He studied at the University of Melbourne and later pursued doctoral research at the University of Oxford.
During his 18 years in England, he held various academic positions and served as private secretary to the vice-chancellor of Oxford University. In 1994, he became the inaugural director of the British Museum Development Trust.
He returned to Australia in 1999 as the director and CEO of the National Gallery of Victoria and in 2014 became the director of the National Gallery of Australia until his retirement in 2018.
He is chair of the Australian Institute of Art History and co-chair of the National Reference Group for the ATSIAGA.
Frank Howarth
Former Director of the Australian Museum
Frank Howarth has had a significant career in the cultural and environmental sectors in New South Wales, with national and international roles in industry bodies.
He was director of the Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust from 1996 to 2004 and director of the Australian Museum from 2004 to 2014. He was the national president of the Australian Museum and Galleries Association from 2013 to 2017. Since leaving as director of the Australian Museum, he formed his own company and has been engaged in various consulting and other roles.
He holds significant chair and non-executive director roles in a range of culture and heritage organisations, being appointed chair of the New South Wales Government’s Heritage Council as chair. He also sits on the ATSIAGA Reference Group.
Dr Greg Lehman
Pro Vice-Chancellor, Aboriginal Leadership University of Tasmania
Professor Greg Lehman, a descendant of the Trawulwuy people of northeast Tasmania, serves as the pro vice chancellor, Aboriginal Leadership at the University of Tasmania. An award-winning curator and writer, a well-known Tasmanian art historian, he frequently comments on Indigenous identity and place.
In 2017, Lehman led the development of the First Tasmanians, the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery's first permanent Indigenous gallery. He co-curated The National Picture: The Art of Tasmania's Black War with Tim Bonyhady, a touring exhibition that received the 2019 Museums and Galleries Australia Award for Travelling Exhibitions.
Lehman was also a member of the National Museum of Australia's Indigenous Reference Group and chaired the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery's Aboriginal Advisory Council. He currently sits on the NATSIAGA Reference Group.
Vicky Lindner
Chairperson of the Antulye Estate Group and a Director of the Lhere Artepe Aboriginal Corporation
Vicki Lidner serves as chairperson of the Antulye Estate Group and as a director of Lhere Artepe Aboriginal Corporation, driving socio-economic progress and community empowerment. Vicki represents the Antulye Estate Group within the National Reference Group.
Chad Creighton
CEO Aboriginal Art Centre Hub of Western Australia
Chad Creighton, a Bardi and Nyul Nyul man from Western Australia's Kimberley region, holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Western Australia and a Post Graduate Diploma in Applied Heritage Studies from Curtin University.
Creighton has been the CEO of the Aboriginal Art Centre Hub of Western Australia since 2018 and was previously the Native Title unit region manager West Kimberley for the Kimberley Land Council. He was responsible for the consultation and development of the Desert River Sea Project delivered by the Art Gallery of Western Australia.
Creighton sits on the boards of the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation, Western Australian Museum Boola Bardip Aboriginal Advisory Committee, Indigenous Art Code Board and Revealed Aboriginal Advisory Committee, as well as the ATSIAGA Reference Group.