Barrington appointed chair of arts festival

The University of Western Australia has appointed John Barrington as the chair of the Perth International Arts Festival, following the retirement of Margaret Seares who served in the role since 2012.

“With 13 years in the information technology industry and 20 years in strategic consulting, Mr Barrington brings different ways of thinking to the board,” UWA said in a statement.

“He is currently chairman of Anglicare WA, which employs 400 people to deliver services to 38,000 clients.

“Since joining the Anglicare board in 2009, Mr Barrington has overseen the development of a five-year strategy to refocus the organisation to better meet community needs,” the university said.

Mr Barrington is managing director of Barrington Consulting Group, and has previously held board and/or executive positions at Automotive Holdings Group, Base Resources, BHP Billiton, iiNet, RAC Holdings, Rio Tinto and others.

Mr Barrington said he was delighted to be named chair of the board at an exciting time in the festival’s history.

“Our focus will be to build on the festival’s incredible success in ways that will benefit the broader community by following our mission to bring international quality art to the people of Western Australia,” Mr Barrington said.

The Perth International Arts Festival was established by UWA’s Fred Alexander in 1953 and is Australia’s longest running international arts festival.