Western Plains Cultural Centre is home to two unique collections, The Dubbo Regional Gallery Art Collection established in 1989 and the Dubbo Regional
Museum Heritage Collection established in 1954.
The Dubbo Regional Museum Collection was established in 1954 by Andy Graham, who began collecting objects in his backyard shed in Wingewarra Street. The collection has developed to reflect the many different roles that Dubbo has played over its almost 170 year history. From objects of agricultural or technological development, those belonging to pioneers and entrepreneurs, to the prized possessions of people who were born and bred in Dubbo, raised families, ran businesses and became part of its invisible fabric.
Dubbo Regional Gallery’s prime collecting theme is The Animal in Art. Inspired by the Gallery’s rural location and proximity to Taronga Western Plains Zoo, the Animal in Art seeks to examine issues surrounding the representation of animals in the Visual Arts. The Animal has been used extensively as a symbol, trophy, object and metaphor. The collection tackles some of the wider possibilities of this rationale through works that use the animal as a means of expression whether in a literal or metaphoric way. Dubbo Regional Gallery also collects works by artists from the Orana Region.
