Tim Sullivan appointed as Head of the Memorial’s National Collection

Dr Brendan Nelson, Director of the Australian War Memorial, has announced that Mr Tim Sullivan has been appointed to the position of Assistant Director and Head of National Collection Branch.

“I am very pleased to welcome Tim to the Memorial. His experience managing a significant museum collection will be invaluable as will his understanding of and respect for the Memorial, especially in the lead-up to the century of the First World War,” said Dr Nelson.

Mr Sullivan said, “I am honoured to have the opportunity to work at the Australian War Memorial. It has always been of special personal significance to me because of the service of members of my family in two world wars.

“I have admired the outstanding quality of the work done in the exhibition redevelopments in recent years, and the effort in creating access for all Australians to its collections, research and archival information. There are great plans for commemorating the outbreak of First World War and the centenary of Anzac, and I look forward to being a part of that work.”

Sullivan is currently the Deputy CEO and Museums Director at Sovereign Hill Museums Association in Victoria and brings 20 years of experience in the museum sector and all aspects of museum business.

Internationally renowned as one of the world’s most exemplary open air museums, Sovereign Hill has a collection of more than 100,000 items, and has been one of the principal drivers of research and education on the significance of the gold rushes in Australia’s history.

At the Memorial Sullivan will manage the branch that maintains the National Collection, founded by Charles Bean and John Treloar, who began collecting records and relics during the First World War. Today the collection incorporates art, photographs, film, sound recordings, official and private records, and items of military heraldry and technology.

Sullivan has also been a Visiting Scholar at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington in 1999–2000, and is currently a Senior Visiting Fellow at the University of Ballarat, a member of the (Commonwealth) National Cultural Heritage Committee, and Member of the Museums Board of Victoria. 

Tim Sullivan will commence his role at the Memorial in May this year.