Collections

These collections are not on display, however they are available for viewing for study and research purposes by appointment and are exhibited at the Museum from time to time.

 

The Burnie Regional Art Gallery (BRAG) opened to the public on August 12, 1978. By May 1980, an acquisition policy was adopted to acquire the finest examples available in the fields of drawing, printmaking, photography, watercolour and gouache painting. Today, and from that visionary policy, BRAG houses a nationally significant permanent art collection with a focus on paper in recognition of the region’s history of papermaking.


The Museum’s original collection was purchased from Peter Mercer (OAM, AMAA) by the Burnie City Council in 1970. Peter had been amassing his private collection since 1942, from the age of 7 years old. He was an avid collector of objects from across the North-West region and his collection forms the basis of the Federation Street exhibition, Australia’s first indoor historic streetscape.

Since the Museum became a public institution in 1971, the collection has grown considerably and now represents much more than what is on display in the Federation Street, which accounts for a mere 20% of the collection.