Search extended for Aboriginal Cultures Centre leader
Three months after it shelved plans to hire a director to head its $200 million Aboriginal Art and Cultures Centre at Lot Fourteen, the State Government is now readvertising to fill the “integral” assistant director role.
The latest concept design of the Aboriginal Art and Cultures Centre by Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Woods Bagot.
A government spokesperson confirmed to InDaily that a second recruitment round was underway for a “Program and Strategy Assistant Director” to oversee the construction and operation of the Aboriginal Art and Cultures Centre (AACC) at the old Royal Adelaide Hospital site.
The spokesperson said the decision to readvertise the position was prompted by a request from the selection panel “to enable further Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to have the opportunity to apply”.
It comes after the government announced in February that it had decided to prematurely end its search for the centre’s inaugural director, following a months-long recruitment process beginning in September.
The three-year role was only open to qualified Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people and came with an annual salary of up to $216,626.
At the time, a spokesperson said the decision to end the search was prompted by a “reconsideration” of the AACC’s short-term staffing needs.
The Government in February began searching for an assistant director, to be paid between $167,239 and $200,000 each year, but after three months of searching it was unable to find a suitable candidate.
According to the job description, the assistant director position is only open to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people who have a tertiary qualification in the creative industries, arts, fine arts or related discipline.
In a statement to InDaily yesterday, a government spokesperson said the assistant director role was “integral to delivering the creative planning, programming, and curatorial strategy for the Aboriginal Art and Cultures Centre to ensure that the AACC becomes a world-class cultural facility”.
“While the recruitment process remains ongoing for this role, it will not be appropriate for us to disclose the number of applications received at this time,” the spokesperson said.
The successful candidate is expected to work closely with architects Woods Bagot and Diller Scofidio + Renfro, who in February revealed the preliminary design for the $200 million state and federal government-funded building.
Candidates have just under two weeks to apply, with nominations closing on May 23.
Construction on the centre is due to begin later this year ahead of its slated opening in 2025.
The Government says it will publicly release a business case outlining the centre’s viability “in due course”.
