Newcastle art critic Jill Stowell, OAM, dies at 93
Jill Stowell OAM, the Newcastle art critic who wrote more than 3000 reviews over four decades, died on 8 October at 93.
Jill Stowell, a respected art critic and medal holder of the Order of Australia, died at home last week after a three-month battle with liver cancer. She was 93.
Born in Melbourne in 1933, she graduated with Honours in History in 1954 at the University of Melbourne. She later studied art at the University of Freiburg in Germany before moving to Newcastle.
There she became a foundation member of the Chamber Music Society and helped establish the conservatorium. In 1985, she began writing art reviews for the Newcastle Herald.
Over four decades she produced more than 3000 reviews, effectively documenting the region's arts landscape. In 1999, she was awarded an OAM for her service to music and the visual arts.
Artists described her as an insightful, constructive critic who never broke an artist's spirit. She was a passionate supporter of some of Newcastle's creative community.
- 3000+
- Reviews written
- 1985 to 2026
- Career span
- 93
- Age at death
- OAM, 1999
- Recognition
Why it mattersStowell's decades of consistent criticism shaped how Newcastle's artists developed and how the public engaged with visual art in the region.
AustraliaNewcastle's arts community loses a four-decade institutional memory and advocate who influenced multiple generations of local artists and cultural organisations.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 h ago
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