Franchesca Cubillo

Franchesca Cubillo is a Yanuwa, Larrakia, Bardi and Wardaman woman from the Northern Territory with more than 30 years' experience in the museum and art gallery sector. Born in Darwin, Cubillo's family moved to Adelaide after Cyclone Tracy in 1974. Cubillo completed a Bachelor of Arts in Aboriginal Affairs with Honours in Anthropology from the University of Adelaide. She then worked as a curator at the South Australian Museum, followed by the National Museum of Australia, the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, and the National Gallery of Australia. She is a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellow, has held numerous board and committee positions, and has published extensively. Cubillo is currently the Executive Director, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts at the Australia Council, chair of the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation and the co-chair of the National Aboriginal Art Gallery, Alice Springs.

Penny Tweedie spent a year travelling around Australia in 2000 photographing and interviewing successful young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, which resulted in her 2001 book Indigenous Australia: Standing Strong. A curator at the South Australian Museum in Adelaide at the time, Cubillo is holding a tin mask from the Pilbara region in Western Australia.

Gift of the artist 2004
© Estate of Penny Tweedie