Artspace Welcomes New Board Member Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran

Artspace is excited to announce that Sri Lankan born contemporary artist Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran has been appointed to Artspace’s Board of Directors. Nithiyendran’s appointment follows the departure of long-standing Board Member Michael Baldwin after more than a decade of service.

Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran’s work explores global histories and languages of figurative representation. He has specific interests in South Asian forms and imagery as well as politics relating to idolatry, the monument, gender, race and religion. His work has been presented in museums, festivals, multi-art centres and the public domain including the National Gallery of Australia, The Art Gallery of New South Wales, The Dhaka Art Summit, Tramway, Glasgow, Sharjah Art Foundation, UAE and the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, New Delhi. He also holds the position of Lecturer at UNSW’s School of Art & Design.

Nithiyendran said:
‘Artspace played a pivotal role in fostering my career development. As I approach ten years of practice, I recall the significance of being 25 and awarded the 2014 NSW Visual Arts Fellowship (Emerging). Artspace also co-commissioned my installation, Idols, presented at the 2018 Dhaka Art Summit in Bangladesh. This was the first time my work was contextualised within a critical South Asian context.  I look forward to building my engagement with Artspace, whose programming continues to bend regional axes and foster global dialogues, with my new role on the Board of Directors. Artistic and cultural leadership is increasingly important to me. I hope to advocate for our industry by looking towards the immense potential of artists and arts organisations’

Artspace’s Board of Directors also wish to thank outgoing Board Member Michael Baldwin who has been instrumental to Artspace during his 10 year tenure on the Board. Artspace acknowledges Baldwin’s time, dedication, and commitment to shaping a vision for the organisation and wishes him all the best in his future endeavours.

Artspace Chair, Peter Wilson said:
‘I've known Ramesh for many years and watched his career exponentially grow since being awarded the NSW Fellowship in 2014. Artists continue to play an important role in leadership and governance, with three dedicated positions, we are excited to welcome Ramesh to the Board. He will provide a fresh and critical perspective to the organisation and will seek to advocate for diverse voices in Artspace’s program’.

Artspace are looking ahead to announcing an exciting program for 2025 and will celebrate the success of 2024 with a Gala Fundraiser Dinner and Benefit Auction in their galleries in late September, with all funds raised supporting Artspace’s future exhibitions, new commissions and learning and outreach programs and the studio program in the coming year.

Media release