Janet Holmes a'Court

Biography

Janet Holmes a’Court is a leading patron of the arts in Australia. The Holmes a’Court Gallery houses a collection of 4,000 artworks with a programme of lending to galleries around Australia. Holmes a’Court was awarded a Companion of the Order of Australia in 2007 for services to business, the advancement of Western Australia’s musical and theatre culture, to the visual arts, and to the community. She has been a strong promoter of public ethics in corporate life, her own philanthropy inspiring other business people to invest in the arts. She has been Chair of the Australian Children’s Television Foundation since 1986 and the Western Australia Symphony Orchestra since 1998. Holmes a’Court is also a patron and board member of a wide range of cultural and arts organisations in Australia with interests ranging across theatre, art, music, and urban design and architecture.

Janet Holmes a’Court was Pro-chancellor at the University of Western Australia (1990-94) and a Senate member at both Murdoch University and the University of Western Australia. She holds honorary doctorates from three Australian universities. In 2003 she developed the Perth ‘Day of Ideas’, now run in collaboration with the Institute of Advanced Studies at University of Western Australia and with Manning Clarke House where she also a patron. This has allowed exploration of a number of socially progressive themes (such as ‘living in a time of fear’, ‘beyond sorry’ and ‘refuge’) and demonstrates Holmes a’Court’s hands-on, practical and involved approach to numerous intellectual and creative projects.