Click here to view all 2014 IMAGinE winners and highly commended organisations!

WINNER – REBECCA PINCHIN: REGIONAL SERVICES, POWERHOUSE MUSEUM

Rebecca Pinchin was Regional Services Manager at the Powerhouse Museum (PHM) for 13 years. In this capacity she incorporated regional services into the PHM’s strategic plan, and worked at a senior level with the Director, managers, curators and other staff across the museum. Her tireless campaigning for regional and community museums resulted in small museums gaining acccess to a wide range of in-house Powerhouse skills and services including, conservation services, strategic planning, exhibition design, and marketing.

Under Rebecca’s guidance, Regional Services has had significant impact on museums across NSW, as well as on PHM staff who, in working with small museums have increased their knowledge and developed genuine appreciation of local and regional collections and their importance.

Rebecca led the team that developed the award-winning Australian Dress Register which documented the history and significance of hundreds of garments in museums and family collections providing an important repository of information, capturing vulnerable histories, and making little known collections accessible on-line.

The initiation and nurture of the annual Regional Stakeholders Day was pioneered by Rebecca and her team. This event continues to forge productive networks between the city and the bush, and between volunteers and paid museum staff.

Rebecca was instrumental in reinventing regional outreach, advocating for a service centred, collaborative, and collection focused approach. The regional services program had many strings in its bow including, the highly sought after internships and mentorships, the Movable Heritage Fellowship program for young graduates and range of regional workshops. Noteably, she implemented a set of protocols for lending objects to small museums, a program which has seen the revitalisation of many exhibitons and displays in remote and regional institutions.

Innovation and excellence have long been the hallmarks of the programs and projects which Rebecca led, initiated, supported and delivered. Highlights include: her collaboration with the wildly successul Hunter Valley Steamfest and the Migration Heritage Centre, which brokered and supported new research, exhibitions and collection projects on migration heritage across NSW.

NIKKI AKBAR: CASULA POWERHOUSE ARTS CENTRE

Nikki Akbar has been the Venue and Events Producer at Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre for three and half years.

Nikki’s versatility to work across both organisational and creative roles has been extremely beneficial to Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre and Liverpool City Council. Nikki has generated consistent streams of income through venue hire and maintained significant relationships with local businesses and community members. She has also contributed to an engaging and unique program as a Creative Producer that has seen audience growth rise markedly. 

She takes a hands-on approach and is undaunted in organising and managing large-scale events. She has been instrumental in the delivery of over ten major events in the past year.

Nikki has engaged the community in her role by providing opportunities for the community through creative programs and access to the Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre building through venue hire. Born and raised in south-west Sydney, Nikki was and has a great passion for the community and her ability to develop and maintain community relationships is highly valued and sought after.

Nikki has directly engaged communities through culturally and linguistically diverse programs for Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre and Liverpool City Council such as the Afro-Latino Festival, Pacifica Festival, Way Out West Festival, Starry Sari Night, Sweet As (Good Food Month), Liverpool City Council Night Markets, Australia Day and New Year’s Eve. Nikki assisted in the delivery and event management of major projects such as C3West: Sleepers Awake with internationally acclaimed artists, Ivan and Heather Morison.