Tim Fairfax AC (b. 1946), company director, grazier and philanthropist, is a founding benefactor of the National Portrait Gallery. A great-great-grandson of Fairfax media founder John Fairfax, he has made exceptional gifts to community-based arts, music and educational projects through his Brisbane-based Tim Fairfax Family Foundation; and is a former chairman of the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation, which has given more than $150 million for the public good. A keen art collector, he is president of the Queensland Art Gallery Foundation, was a long-time member of the council of the National Gallery of Australia, and has contributed to the collections of many public galleries both by donating artworks and providing funds for acquisitions. During his role as chancellor of Queensland University of Technology, he was dedicated to providing opportunities for young people, funding many scholarships, programs and initiatives including Musica Viva in Schools.
Russell Shakespeare is a Walkley Award-winning photographer who has regularly been in contention for prizes such as the Moran Contemporary Photographic prize, the Olive Cotton Award, and the NPPP. This work is one of a group commissioned by the Gallery for its 20th birthday in 2018. 'I wanted to keep the portrait very simple and honest,' Shakespeare said, 'reflecting the man of the land but very connected to home and family.'
Commissioned with funds provided by The Calvert-Jones Foundation 2018
© Russell Shakespeare
The Calvert-Jones Foundation (4 portraits supported)
Drop into the Gallery this Spring for free creative activities inspired by our vibrant exhibition Joan Ross: Those trees came back to me in my dreams.
Do we have a treat for the smaller humans in your life! Little Faces is for babies and toddlers (with their grown up) to play, sing and have fun discovering a portrait together.
On one level The Companion talks about the most famous and frontline Australians, but on another it tells us about ourselves.
