It remains to be seen if the Gunner govt can turn the tide on the NAAG

Throughout history, big projects have faced resistance, but it remains to be seen if the National Aboriginal Art Gallery will become the iconic landmark the Red Centre deserves.

A CONVICT and architect named Francis Greenway is believed to be the first person to have proposed a bridge connecting Sydney’s northern and southern harbour shores.

That was in 1815.

It took more than a century – and countless hurdles, bungles and oversights – for his vision of a Sydney harbour bridge to be realised.

The problems arguably began in 1900, when a competition to design the bridge became mired in controversy, and continued over the decades with dozens of reviews, bills, inquiries and arguments over what kind of bridge would best serve the growing city.

Even on the day of its opening in 1932, the bridge could not escape controversy.

As the NSW premier was about to sever the ribbon stretched across the entrance, a man rode in on his horse, cut the ribbon with his sword, and shouted: “I declare the bridge open in the name of the people of New South Wales!”

Chief Minister Michael Gunner, with four cabinet ministers in Alice Springs, announcing the Anzac Oval site was in the final stages of being forcibly acquired from the town council. Picture: Lee Robinson.

The National Aboriginal Art Gallery (NAAG) is slated to open in Alice Springs at the Anzac Oval site by the end of 2025, after it was first proposed by the Gunner-led Labor government as a key election promise in 2017.

And while the scale and significance of the two projects should not be compared, it’s worth remembering the words of Winston Churchill: “History is a great teacher. Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”

The grand gallery proposal was first sold as a way to bring together Indigenous cultures from across Australia, but a loss of support from key traditional owners has left a bad taste in the mouths of many.

In 2018, the NT government went as far as to commission an expert report to be written by a hand-picked steering committee to help determine the future gallery’s location. But when the committee recommended it be built in the Desert Park precinct, the government simply chose to ignore it, presumably because it envisioned something closer to the centre of town.

Anzac Oval and surrounding areas, the site of the future National Aboriginal Art Gallery. Picture: Supplied.

Later, Michael Gunner’s ministers were dragged before the disputes tribunal and censured for failing to adequately consult with traditional owners about the NAAG being built on the Anzac Oval site.

The ministers responsible say they have now met with traditional owners, but acknowledge the decisions made were “not always unanimous”.

Making matters worse, while Territorians were arguing about the location, South Australians were getting to work on their own ­National Gallery for Aboriginal Art and Cultures, and secured $85m in federal funding in 2019.

Despite its history, anyone cruising along the Sydney Harbour Bridge today will likely agree it is an iconic landmark worthy of praise.

The Gunner government’s challenge now will be changing attitudes and continuing to consult with those traditional owners willing to discuss design plans before the gallery is built.

And if Mr Gunner’s promise of a truck-tonne more tourists and investment in Alice Springs comes to fruition, perhaps we’ll look back on this time as a mere speed bump in the process of creating the truly iconic gallery the Red Centre deserves.