Anna Waldmann has been appointed as the director of visual arts/craft.

For the past 20 years, Ms Waldmann has worked with international, national and state art museums, galleries, craft organisations, contemporary art spaces and funding agencies on policy and program development, exhibition management, research and publications.

Ms Waldmann has been a member of numerous art and cultural committees; judged competitions; lectured to postgraduate students; and has published many books, catalogues and articles on Australian and European art, such as The Archibald Prize Retrospective, Salvatore Zofrea, Desiderius Orban and Selected Students, Women’s Imprint, Salon and AcadÈmie, Hidden Treasures – Art in Corporate Collections. She has an MA in Fine Arts from The University of Sydney.

She joined the Australia Council in 1995 as manager of the visual arts/craft board. Before joining the Australia Council, Ms Waldmann worked as a curator at the Art Gallery of NSW and as program manager (Visual Arts and Crafts and Museums and Galleries) at the NSW Ministry for the Arts.

The Australia Council’s new artform directors will hold primary authority over the grants process and key organisations in their area, but funding decisions remain with the boards. They will have a role in setting strategic priorities for the entire Council and in representing their artform area across all areas of Australia Council activity.