'Sausage series No.2' (1994) by Guan Wei, one of the pieces in the Monash University Collection.

If ever you consider viewing the entire Monash University Collection - all 1256 works of art - here's some advice: take a cut lunch, a map and a compass. Maybe even a guide.

The $6 million collection is spread across the university's six Victorian campuses, hanging on walls, set in windows and suspended from ceilings.

Monash is, in effect, a gallery. A very large gallery: at least 75 per cent of the collection is on show at any one time.

From small beginnings in 1961, when it was set up with a grant of £500 and a directive from then vice-chancellor Sir Louis Matheson to "embellish" the new buildings on Clayton campus, the collection has achieved national prominence for its focus on contemporary Australian art.

"It's a very brave collection that truly reflects what is going on in Australian art," says the collection manager at the Monash University Gallery, Ms Katarina Paseta. "You can see the history of Australian art in this collection."

Most of the artists collected in those early days were unknown. Over time, however, both they and the university have grown in stature. Today the collection boasts names such as Robert Hunter, Ian Burn, Susan Norrie and Howard Arkley, as well as artists of an earlier era, including William Dobell, Sir Russell Drysdale and Lloyd Rees.

The collection's purpose is twofold, Ms Paseta says. "A university - national or international - can't claim to be a serious university without a commitment to cultural heritage and the arts."

Teaching and research

The collection, which apart from paintings comprises sculpture, ephemeral art and video, also supports teaching and research in the Department of Visual Culture, on Clayton campus.

Ms Katarina Paseta: "The Monash University Collection reflects movements in Australian art."

And there is another, less prescribed, aim: to enhance the experience of working and studying at Monash.

A loans system allows departments and administrative units to borrow pieces from the collection. Demand for works is always high, Ms Paseta says. "We almost can't keep up. We're particularly surprised by how many people enjoy the more challenging works. People grow to love them."

Responsibility for purchasing a piece lies with a special advisory committee, which acts on proposals by the curatorial staff of the Monash University Gallery. The works are bought with money from the Monash Art Foundation and an embellishment fund (0.1 per cent of new capital works at the university). All pieces have to meet guidelines set by the university's acquisitions policy.

"It's not just about buying works to decorate walls," says the director of the Monash University Gallery, Ms Jenepher Duncan. "It is important to maintain the coherence and quality of the collection. We have been selective in purchasing the works of highly significant artists across their careers and younger emerging artists."

		For more information about the Monash University Collection or forthcoming exhibitions at the Monash University Gallery, contact Ms Katarina Paseta on +61 3 9905 4355 or email katarina.paseta@adm.monash.edu.au