The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū Trust
The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū Trust, formerly known as The Bishop Suter Trust, is a charitable trust that operates The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū in Nelson, New Zealand. The gallery was founded by Anglican Bishop Andrew Burn Suter and his wife, Amelia, who donated a piece of land for the purpose of building an art gallery for the city in 1895. The Bishop Suter Art Gallery Trust was formed by a private Act of Parliament in 1896, with Bishop Mules as its first chairman.
The trust board continued to administer the affairs of the Bishop Suter Art Gallery throughout the 20th century. After extensive consultation with the community, The Nelson City Council agreed in October 2006 to begin the process of making the gallery a Council Controlled Organisation. In 2008 the original Act of Parliament establishing the Suter was overturned. It was replaced with the Bishop Suter Art Gallery Governance Restructuring Act, placing the gallery under Nelson City Council governance, managed by the newly formed Bishop Suter Trust.
In 2024, the trust changed its name to The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū Trust. This charitable trust, incorporated in New Zealand under the Charitable Trusts Act 2005, has the primary objective to provide the people of Nelson and visitors to the region access to our cultural heritage and to the many forms of contemporary cultural expression.
The six trustees are:
Steve Green: Trust Chairperson; Chair Collections Committee; Chair HR & Remuneration Committee
Margaret Soderberg: Audit & Risk Committee; Marketing & Revenue Committee; HR & Remuneration Committee
Rebecca Mason: Chair Audit & Risk Committee
Jane du Feu: Ko Te Pouaranga appointee; Collections Committee
Bruno Simpson: Marketing & Revenue Committee; Audit & Risk Committee
Nic Foster: Chair Marketing & Revenue Committee; Collections Committee
Also:
Pieter Swanepoel: Ex-officio member (non-voting); President of the Nelson Suter Art Society
The Bishop suter trustees (missing - nic foster, Bruno simpson. Includes - former chair craig potton, Judy finn)
