The best art exhibitions in Melbourne this weekend

Arrive at the corner of Flinders Lane and Hosier Lane on pretty much any day of the week and you’ll run into a throng of tourists jostling to get ‘the shot’ of Melbourne’s ever-evolving street art hotspot. No two visits to this spray can alley are ever the same, but from December 12 there’ll be another more stable artistic delight to enjoy on the famous corner. To those in the know, Sandra Powell and Andrew King have become shining lights of the Aussie street art scene, known for supporting up-and-coming artists through acquisitions for their extensive private collection 15 years in the making.  Street art legend Rone says the pair, often known as ‘Sandrew’, have been “champions of Melbourne’s street art community for over a decade”. Now, they’re drawing on their personal collection to create a ripper of a free exhibition, running from December 12 until May 2025 at 167 Flinders Lane (right on the aforementioned iconic corner).  The Outsiders Melbourne will feature more than 100 works from Sandrew’s collection, including art never before displayed in public. Expect gems from local names like Rone, Adnate, Sofles, Vexta, Fintan Magee, Meggs, Kaff-eine and more.  On the international side, feast your eyes on art from Barry McGee, Vhils, Swoon, Invader, Shepard Fairey, Ron English, Elle and an entire room dedicated to Banksy himself. Fans of the mystery artist will be pleased to know that this exhibition will also see his new work ‘Firework’ on display in Australia for the...

Melburnians, it’s time to get dotty, because NGV International is playing host to the largest collection of Yayoi Kusama’s work ever seen in Australia. The exhibition (aptly named Yayoi Kusama) will take over the entire ground floor of the gallery, with works from the artist best known for her unique use of dots. Opening on December 15, this world-premiere exhibition will feature more than 180 works, including an NGV-specific piece transforming the iconic Waterwall and an installation of giant balloons in the Great Hall called 'Dots Obsession'. Many of the works coming to Melbourne for this impressive exhibition have never been seen locally before, including the Australian debut of 'Dancing Pumpkin', a towering five-metre-tall bronze sculpture that visitors can view by walking underneath. As if five metres wasn’t tall enough, Melbourne will also score the Aussie premiere of Kusama’s six-metre-tall tentacle-esque sculpture, named 'The Hope of the Polkadots Buried in Infinity Will Eternally Cover the Universe'.  We’re particularly excited about the global premiere of a brand new Yayoi Kusama infinity room work, which will be part of a collection of immersive spaces included in the exhibition. Kusama’s infinity rooms employ the clever use of mirrors to create an illusion of never-ending space, making for a fun and mind-bending experience for visitors of all ages. Lucky for us, the artist has created a new room just for Melbourne!  Even more fortunately for Melburnians, it...

Melbourne’s cutting edge digital art gallery, the Lume, is bringing back its beloved opening exhibition for a summer season. Van Gogh will have an encore run starting on Boxing Day, after breaking attendance records in 2021. Last time, the immersive experience attracted a whopping 1.8 million visitors between Australia and New Zealand, making it the region’s most visited ticketed cultural event.  Van Gogh made kaleidoscopic waves through the city when it served as the first-ever exhibition at the digital gallery, re-shaping the way Melburnians experience art. The experience reimagines the now-famous painter's works as projections that completely ensconce you in an 11-metre tall gallery, allowing you to feel like you're in van Gogh's bedroom or under that famous starry night. A mirrored infinity room filled with countless sunflowers also features, which is particularly Instagrammable.  For the return season, the Lume is adding a brand-new virtual reality experience called Finding Vincent. Slip on a headset and learn more about van Gogh’s life, alongside friends or companions.  Within the Lume, visitors can experience art all around them. Instead of looking at paintings on walls or sculptures on plinths, art is projected onto the walls to make you feel like you've stepped inside the paintings themselves. Scents and sounds are also pumped into the gallery to add to the experience.  If you get peckish you can also drop into Terrace Café 1888 where you can snack on delights...

Whack on something dazzling and dust off your dancing shoes as the much-loved NGV Friday Nights returns this summer. The popular event returns for 18 weeks during the Yayoi Kusama exhibition at NGV International.  This world-premiere exhibition features more than 180 works, including an NGV-specific piece transforming the iconic Waterwall and an installation of giant balloons in the Great Hall called 'Dots Obsession'. The blockbuster showing has taken over the entire ground floor of the gallery, filling it with works from the artist best known for her unique use of dots. From December 20 until April 18, you can take an after-hours journey through immersive installations, including Kusama’s beloved infinity rooms. Grab a tipple from one of the multiple bars (including the Moët and Chandon Champagne Bar and the Four Pillars Gin Bar), or enjoy a set menu at the NGV Garden Restaurant from acclaimed Aussie chef Martin Benn. If a snack is more your vibe, head to the Great Hall or Gallery Kitchen for a Japanese-inspired menu. The trendy tunes are another key drawcard of NGV Friday nights, with DJs performing in the Great Hall every night. These musicians have been chosen to compliment the energy of Kusama’s work with upbeat J-pop and electro rhythms. The stacked line-up includes Small Fry, Jnett, Aqueerius, Rainbow Chan and takeovers from both Midsumma and Asia TOPA.  NGV Friday Nights runs from December 20 until April 18. For further information and to book tickets visit the NGV...

Make space in your January or February plans to head to the Koorie Art Show, and take in technical mastery, experimentation and storytelling from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders, senior artists and young creatives. This uplifting and joyful showcase is the perfect way to celebrate the rich and unique identities of First Peoples in Victoria, and kick off some creative inspiration for the new year. Koorie Heritage Trust is holding the Koorie Art Show in its Fed Square gallery space until February 16. Entry is free, and you’ll be treated to a diverse and enthralling mix of media, from digital art, video and sound to hand-dyed linen and ceramics. After a state-wide call for entries, judges Belinda Briggs (Yorta Yorta, Wamba Wamba), Kate Ten Buuren (Taungurung), and Jefa Greenaway (Wailwan, Kamilaroi and D’harawal) gathered to choose eight Koorie Art Show award recipients. The judges found themselves “drawn to works that were not only poignant and reflective of the complex social, political, and cultural landscapes of today but also embodied powerful truth-telling – speaking to overcoming, survival, and hope.” See the entries that inspired their words, and be sure to check out the next generation of artistic talent at the Koorie Art Show Young Mob while you’re there, featuring the work of Koorie artists aged 5 to 16 years. The Koorie Art Show is open now and runs until February 16 in the Birrarung Building at Fed Square. Entry is free. Feeling arty? Check out the...

Traversing time and space, Wurrdha Marra is an ongoing exhibition celebrating the diversity of First Nations art and design. Since late 2023, the ground floor and foyer of the Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia has become home to a dynamic and ever-changing exhibition space that displays masterpieces and never-before-shown works from the NGV’s First Nations collection. Translating to ‘many mobs’ in the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung language, Wurrdha Marra showcases pieces from emerging and established artists from across Australia, including Tony Abert, Treahna Hamn, Kent Morris, Marlene Gilson, Rover Thomas, Christian Thompson, Gary Lee, Nicole Monks, Gali Yalkarriwuy, Dhambit Mungunggurr, Nonggirrnga Marawili and more.  Highlights of the free exhibition include a large-scale installation of fish traps produced by Burrara women from Maningrida – the objects have been crafted over weeks using vines from the bush. Also on display is a new collection of contemporary resin boomerangs by Keemon Williams, a First Nations queer artist hailing from Meanjin/Brisbane. Another unseen work is titled History Repeats by Girramay/Yidinji/Kuku Yalanji contemporary artist Tony Albert, who has used mass-produced objects – from tea towels to ashtrays – to reframe Indigenous histories.  More recently, the exhibition has been updated to include the largest-ever display of the NGV's expansive collection of bark paintings. Bark Salon subverts the traditional European salons of the 18th and 19th...

The Immigration Museum on Flinders Street is getting its first major exhibition in several years and it’s all about leaning into what makes us happy. The exhibition, called Joy, will run through until August 29, 2025. Joy features seven brand new commissioned installations from leading Victorian-based creatives, each expressing the artists’ own personal joy. You can expect an emotive adventure where colour and storytelling combine, and big happy moments that sit alongside more reflective ones. Experience the vibrant power of joy as you walk amongst room-sized interactive artworks, or contribute your own joy with the collaborative ‘share your joy’ wall. Venezuelan-born Australian artist Nadia Hernández has filled the Immigration Museum’s hallway with bold collage works, ‘future positive’ fashion designer Nixi Killick has created a ‘joy generator’ and queer artist Spencer Harrison has created a runway where you can strut your stuff. Jazz Money, a Wiradjuri poet and artist, has fused sculpture, audio and mural for a work reflecting the history of the museum site, while local artist Beci Orpin has taken over a room with a giant toy rabbit made to be hugged. Afghanistan-Australian visual artist and poet Elyas Alavi and Sher Ali have also created a large-scale mural illustrating a Persian myth.  Lastly, much-loved pop artist and designer Callum Preston has constructed a full-scale replica of a nineties video store, a joy he never thought he would miss until he realised it was...

Do you have golden retriever energy, or are you more of a black cat kind of person? Felines and canines form an important part of the everyday lives, pop culture and mythology of humans, and the latest exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria celebrates the role of these animals.  Cats and Dogs is now showing at the NGV’s Ian Potter Centre until July 2025. The exhibition will feature more than 250 works of art, design and fashion spanning diverse periods and media, all drawn from the NGV’s own collection.  One side of the exhibition is dedicated to all things dogs, with the other side to our feline friends. The cross-cultural and transhistorical collection of artworks spotlights the cultural symbolism of cats and dogs, from their significance in religion, spirituality and the occult, to their appearances in pop culture.  The multifaceted line-up of artists includes Pierre Bonnard, Rembrandt van Rijn, David Hockney and Jeff Koons, as well as local talents Atong Atem, Grace Cossington Smith and Trevor Turbo Brown. In terms of fashion, there are also impressive pieces from Romance Was Born and Alexander McQueen. Find out more about Cats and Dogs including ticket information over here. Feeling arty? Check out the best art and exhibitions happening in Melbourne this month.

Screen culture is so often where our ideas of the future are formed, which is why ACMI is hosting an entire exhibition dedicated to the topic. The Future and Other Fictions is a collection of sets, props, artworks, scripts, costumes and more, all underpinned by their shared exploration of a fictional tomorrow. With more than 180 items on display spanning Black Panther to Björk, this one’s sure to stimulate your imagination and spark reflection in equal measure. The exhibition is now showing and you’ll have the chance to immerse yourself in future worlds through to April 27 2025. Music-lovers can see Björk’s famous pleated dress from the music video for ‘The Gate’ (in all its iridescent, custom Gucci glory), while cinephiles can feast their eyes on detailed costumes from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and miniature sets from Blade Runner 2049.  ACMI has also commissioned two forward-looking moving image works for the exhibition. Check out Birth of Dawn by Hannah Brontë, which is all about the cyclical nature of life. For a glimpse at a hopeful future where fossil fuels are banned, don’t miss After the End – designed and directed by Liam Young, and written and performed by Natash Wanganeen.  The museum will also host a program of screenings, talks and workshops to complement the exhibition. Tickets to The Future and Other Fictions cost between $10-22.50 and you can grab yours via the ACMI website.  Got a thirst for knowledge? Check out the best art and exhibitions happening...

Māori storyteller Irihipeti Waretini has created a new exhibition of photography, multimedia art and film centred around the Māori matriarchy. Māreikura - Ka rere te rongoā (the medicine flows) is happening now at the CBD’s Immigration Museum, until late February 2025.  The exhibition, which is Waretini’s first solo showing, features 15 striking photographic portraits of Māori women, all of whom have moko kauae – aka traditional chin tattoos. Also included is an intricately carved pou (pillar).  ‘Māreikura’ is a te reo Māori term meaning matriarch or noble-born woman, such as those seen in the portraits. According to Waretini, “moko kauae has direct systemic healing mechanisms for Māori and anyone who beholds us wearing it.  “So naturally, it would be a key part of my first solo exhibition”, she says. “When the missionaries and early settlers arrived in Aotearoa, they brought with them their culturally specific understandings of the role and status of women, which was and is very demeaning to the importance and status of the Māori Matriarchy within Māori society. “Every opportunity we take to centre our Māreikura, we are returning to the ways in which we acknowledge the natural order of the universe, the interrelationship or whanaungatanga of all living things to one another and to the environment, and the overarching principle of balance, and securing an Indigenous future.” Māreikura is free to attend for members and children. Tickets for adults are $15, or $10 for...