It's the biggest single donation in the National Gallery of Australia's history, but it didn't take much convincing.
When director Nick Mitzevich asked Kerry Stokes to contribute to one of its most ambitious projects, the media mogul saw parts of his own life come full circle.
He's donating $15 million towards the renewal of the gallery's Sculpture Garden, a project that will be funded entirely through philanthropy.
He said the main reason he had decided to donate was that "Nick asked me, and he's very persuasive".
But he also has vivid memories of the gallery's earliest days, and the barely planted garden surrounding a stark concrete building that, at the time, had few fans.
"I was at the original opening of the gallery, and watched it when there were no trees - it was bare. It was criticised for its brutal architecture, and now, having seen the evolution of it and been involved in its acquisition, it's time for it to take the next step," he said.
"Bringing indoor and outdoor together is just such a wonderful opportunity that no other gallery in Australia can achieve. Canberra can do it because it's got the space, and for once, it can be the jewel in the country that no one else can copy."
The gallery is hoping to raise $60 million to fund the massive project, which will be designed and constructed by CO-AP Holdings, a collective made up of architects, landscape designers, structural engineers, heritage specialists and First Nations and arts consultants, among others.
Announcing the Stokes family donation at a recent gala event, Dr Mitzevich said it led the $35 million raised to date.
There have also been donations from The Australian Financial Review Rich Lister and iron ore scion Alexandra Burt, investment banker Tony Berg, and Fairfax dynasty member Tim Fairfax, as well as the Packer family foundation.
Mr Stokes said he was particularly keen to be a part of the project because of his early days as a media owner in the capital, where he owned this masthead from 1989 to 1998.
"Canberra has always been very important to me, from 1980 when I first arrived here with Channel Seven, and then to own The Canberra Times," he said.
"To be involved in the gallery, to see the opportunity to actually help them fulfil the dream of seeing its full potential is really exciting. That's why I'm committed."
He also played a role in the National Capital Planning Committee, an earlier iteration of the National Capital Authority, in the 1980s.
"It was a subcommittee that actually determined what was appropriate to be planted in the Parliamentary Triangle," he said.
"So for me, it's coming around full circle and saying we now make sure that what we approved back then for the Parliamentary Triangle comes into effect for the public benefit, not just for public servants.
"This now is the public benefit: 24 hours a day to have a natural garden in Canberra - pretty speccy!"
Dr Mitzevich said he had asked the Stokes family to be a part of the project - and to put their names to it - as a way of encouraging other donors.
"I twisted their arms and asked them to put their names on it, because I thought that would be an asset to help others, encourage others to be confident about the project," he said.
"You only get these projects once in a decade, and the bringing together of sculpture, a collection and a unique native garden, they're very rare, and we don't have a showcase native garden that's open to the public 24/7."
He said there were plans for a large portion of the Stokes donation to go towards the polished stainless-steel pavilion that forms the centrepiece of the winning Sculpture Garden design.
"It will be there to show sculpture, to be there for education and learning programs throughout the year, and it'll really improve the way that people move around the gallery and really interact with the lake, the gallery and the garden," he said.
Mr Stokes said he didn't usually like to attach his name to a donation, but had made an exception.
"We've never given money on a condition of using our name, I'm very strongly opposed to that," he said.
"Nick knows that, but he convinced me that on this occasion, it would help him get to $60 million. And now I know he's going to get to $60 million because I've got to do whatever it takes to help him."
The gallery is now in the process of finessing the garden design, and, depending on how it goes raising funds, will start construction in 2026.
