Skinner Galleries
Rose Skinner MBE | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 30, 1900 Perth, Western Australia, Australia |
| Died | September 17, 1979 (aged 78) Subiaco, Western Australia, Australia |
| Occupation(s) | Art dealer, gallery owner |
| Known for | Founder of Skinner Galleries |
Rose Skinner MBE (, 30 December 1900 – 17 September 1979) was a pioneering Australian art dealer who established Skinner Galleries in West Perth, Western Australia, recognized as one of the earliest successful commercial art galleries in the area.
Personal life
Skinner was born in Perth, Western Australia, as one of five siblings to Mary (née Coyle) and Samuel Dvoretsky. Her father, a Jewish immigrant from what is now Belarus, arrived in Australia during the 1890s. He acquired farmland at Kwinana Beach and served as chairman of the Rockingham Road Board.
Her education was completed at Methodist Ladies' College, Perth. In 1924, she married Herbert Varley, a businessman, but their marriage ended in divorce six years later. Skinner remarried in 1934 to John Wastell Harrison, an Australian tea planter based in Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka). By 1939, she had returned to Perth and worked as a censor throughout World War II. After divorcing Harrison in 1945, she wed Josiah Skinner—an English-born builder, real estate agent, and art collector—whom she met via the Workers' Art Guild.
Following prolonged health challenges, Skinner passed away in Subiaco on 17 September 1979 at the age of 78. She was cremated according to Anglican traditions.
Skinner Galleries
In 1955, Skinner and her husband acquired a two-storey residence in West Perth, originally constructed for Edith Cowan. Persuading her husband to add an art gallery to the property, they created an "attractive, exposed brick and glass edifice" that reflected his passion for modern architectural design. The gallery featured a spacious interior with wooden flooring and overlooked a sculpture garden. It stands as one of Australia's first galleries purpose-built for exhibiting art. The site was officially listed on the State Register of Heritage Places in 2017.
The Skinner Galleries opened its doors on 14 October 1958 and hosted a total of 214 exhibitions before closing in 1976 due to Skinner suffering a major stroke. Operating primarily on commission, Skinner preferred the title of artist’s agent over dealer and championed artists’ entitlement to receive droit de suite payments from subsequent sales of their work.
She was instrumental in promoting Western Australian artists including Robert Juniper, Brian McKay, Howard Taylor, and George Haynes. Skinner was an early advocate for the Perth Group—a collective initiated by Juniper, Guy Grey-Smith, and others—although she eventually had a falling out with Grey-Smith. The gallery also featured nationally acclaimed artists such as Sid Nolan, Arthur Boyd, Fred Williams, Albert Tucker, and Hal Missingham. During the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, she organized an exhibition of Nolan’s work that was inaugurated by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Multiple portraits of Skinner were entered into the prestigious Archibald Prize by artists including Robert Juniper.
Skinner and her gallery were at the center of debates surrounding modernist art. In 1965, a nude painting by Jon Molvig was removed due to obscenity concerns. Later, in 1971, she openly criticized the Perth City Council for declining to exhibit Sid Nolan’s paintings inspired by Western Australian wildflowers, denouncing the councillors’ "misjudgments" and "uninstructed prejudices" against an internationally recognized artist.
Legacy and honours
Together with her husband, Skinner played a pivotal role as a prominent influencer and advocate within the Australian art community. They donated the majority of their art collection—comprising 68 pieces—to the University of Western Australia. In 2007, the Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery showcased this collection, highlighting numerous works by artists such as Sidney Nolan, Fred Williams, and Ian Fairweather.
In recognition of her "services to art," Skinner was named a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1972. Although she initially contemplated returning the distinction, anticipating a higher honour and perceiving it as "an insult to the art medium," she eventually chose to retain the award.