Arts minister role The role of an "arts" minister, overseeing the management and support for all cultural activities in New South Wales, before the early 1970s was an unheard of concept in politics. However, by the early 1970s, various governments in Australia recognised the need for a steering authority for state support for the arts. In response, premier
Bob Askin appointed
George Freudenstein as the first Minister for Cultural Activities on 11 March 1971. On his appointment Freudenstein requested the establishment of an organisation to enable him to carry out his responsibilities and the Premier agreed. On 13 May 1971 the Ministry of Cultural Activities was established, taking over responsibility for various legislation and bodies that had previously been under the purview of the
Department of Education, including the
Archives Office of New South Wales,
Art Gallery of New South Wales,
State Library of New South Wales,
Australian Museum,
Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences,
Sydney Observatory, the Advisory Committee on Cultural Grants,
NSW Film Council, and the
Sydney Opera House Trust. In the case of the opera house, the Ministry had responsibility for its completion and final official opening on 20 October 1973. With Freudenstein's departure on 3 January 1975, a new Minister for Culture, Sport and Recreation was appointed and on 6 January 1975, the Ministry of Cultural Activities was replaced by the new Department of Culture, Sport and Recreation. This arrangement lasted until 14 May 1976 when the new Labor Government of
Neville Wran transferred the responsibility for cultural activities to the
Premier's Department. This became the Cultural Activities Division under the administration of the Premier himself. On 15 June 1988 a Ministry for the Arts independent of the Premier's Department was established.
2006: Arts NSW created This Ministry for the Arts was abolished on 3 March 2006 and its responsibilities were moved to the new
Department of the Arts, Sport and Recreation. Arts NSW became the new dedicated division for the Minister, and it transferred to "Communities NSW" in July 2009 and then the
Department of Trade and Investment, Regional Infrastructure and Services from 4 April 2011. From the appointment of
Troy Grant as the Minister in 2014, Arts NSW fell within the Department of Justice. Between 2014 and 2020, the organisation was shuffled through four departments.
2017: Create NSW Create NSW was created via an amalgamation of Arts NSW and Screen NSW on 1 April 2017. The Screen NSW banner was removed, CEO Courtney Gibson left the role, and Michael Brealey, then acting executive director of Arts NSW, became CEO of the new agency. In April 2017, an arm of Create NSW was established (Create Infrastructure) dedicated to the planning and delivery of cultural infrastructure. As a result of a government restructure in April 2019 after a state election, Create NSW was moved to the
Minister for the Public Service and Employee Relations, Aboriginal Affairs, and the Arts, then held by
Don Harwin and administered through the Community Engagement portfolio headed by Deputy Secretary, Community Engagement, Clare Foy. On 28 June 2019, Harwin announced a revamp to the process of application, assessment and delivery of NSW arts funding. The main differences, largely driven by the findings of the 2018 NSW Arts Summit,
Arts 2025, were: In September 2019, a restructuring of the leadership team of Create NSW led to the resurrection of the Screen NSW brand, and Grainne Brunsdon appointed head of that team, which remained part of Create NSW. and in 2026 became a standalone division in the Department of Creative Industries, Hospitality, Tourism and Sport. ==Structure, role and activities==