S. H. Ervin Gallery

The gallery building, designed by Henry Robertson, was constructed in 1856. It provided classrooms for the Fort Street School. The site is now the home for the S. H. Ervin Gallery. The co-educational Fort Street High School is now located in Petersham, New South Wales. In the early 1970s S H Ervin, philanthropist and collector, offered a bequest for the establishment of a public art gallery for the display of Australian art. The National Trust of Australia secured a lease of the then Fort Street Girls' School building from the New South Wales Department of Public works. The buildings were restored and the gallery opened May 1978, with an exhibition by Conrad Martens. == Gallery activities ==

The gallery has presented of many artists, including, Clarice Beckett, Albert Tucker (artist), Violet Teague, Kathleen O'Connor (painter), Margo Lewers, Jean Bellette, William Robinson (painter), John Coburn (painter), Cressida Campbell, Nicholas Harding, Euan Macleod and Wendy Sharpe. In early 2020 the exhibition "Margaret's Gift" acknowledged and celebrated the legacy of artist Margaret Olley. == References ==