Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre

05/06/2026

Free Aboriginal Art Workshop - Saturday 20 June.

Join exhibiting Wonnarua artist Jaimie Turner for an introduction to storytelling through contemporary Aboriginal art.

Explore how story, culture and connection continue to shape both traditional and contemporary Aboriginal art practices. Participants will learn about traditional symbolism and contribute to collaborative community artworks to be displayed at the centre during NAIDOC Week.

Bookings are essential

Children's session: 11am – 12pm
(Primary school age)
*This is a stay-and-create session – children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
https://events.humanitix.com/children-s-aboriginal-art-workshop

Youth & Adult session: 12:30pm – 3:30pm
(High school age and above)
https://events.humanitix.com/youth-and-adult-aboriginal-art-workshop

Installation view of Jaimie Turner, 'Cultural and Ceremonial Wear: Traditional and Contemporary Expressions' 2026, mixed media—contemporary and traditional elements including raffia, Lomandra, jute, cotton, linen, emu feathers, bees wax, quandong seeds, kangaroo and possum fur and leather, including photography by Kimberly Starr, Guringai, Wonnarua and Worimi woman.

27/05/2026

Upcoming Exhibitions!

Muscle: Simon Reece
4 June to 1 August 2026

Visuaural: Death Cycle of a Found Piano
4 June to 1 August 2026

Read more about the exhibitions here: https://artgallery.muswellbrook.nsw.gov.au/see/

Exhibition Launch: 4pm Saturday 13 June 2026
Entry is Free! Exhibition Launch Kindly Sponsored by Small Forest Wines.

Images: Simon Reece 'big wheel studio shot' 2026, A1 print, Muswellbrook clay, ceramic and glaze; Simon Reece, 'Alathyria' - studio shot, 2026, A1 print, 'Muswellbrook Clay and freshwater mussel'.

22/05/2026

Call out for artworks: 2026 NAIDOC Week Art Exhibition

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander artists of all ages who live on, or are connected to, Wonnarua Culture and/or Country are invited to submit artwork responding to the 2026 NAIDOC theme, 50 Years of Deadly.

Presented in collaboration with Wonnarua artist Jaimie Turner, and shown alongside her exhibition When the Ground Shifts, this exhibition celebrates culture, community, creativity and connection to Country.

Entry is free.
Submissions close 20 June 2026.
Exhibition: 4 July – 1 August 2026.
Launch: 2–4pm Saturday 4 July 2026.

Follow the link for more information on how to enter:
https://artgallery.muswellbrook.nsw.gov.au/see/ -section-7

Images: Installation view of When the Ground Shifts: Jaimie Turner, 2026.

21/05/2026

Final days to visit!

The 2026 Muswellbrook Art Prize closes this Saturday 23 May. Don’t miss your last chance to experience this year’s finalist exhibition before it ends.

Images: Installation views of the 2026 Muswellbrook Art Prize.

08/05/2026

Free Intermediate Weaving Workshop with Jaimie Turner

📅 Saturday 16 May 2026
🕦 11:30am – 3:30pm

Continue building your weaving skills in this hands-on workshop designed for participants with some prior experience.

Follow on from the Introduction to Weaving workshop or expand your existing knowledge while sharing stories and techniques in a relaxed, collaborative environment. Participants will explore more advanced weaving methods, along with sourcing and preparing natural materials.

All materials provided
Free event
Youth (ages 13–17) and Adult session only

Bookings essential – follow the link.

Free weaving workshop

07/05/2026

When the Ground Shifts: Jaimie Turner
19 March to 1 August 2026

Cultural and Ceremonial Wear: Traditional and Contemporary Expressions by Jaimie Turner

'These works represent cultural, dance, ceremonial and corroboree wear carried on the body.

Grounded in traditional fibre practices, they also reflect contemporary interpretation and personal expression. Through weaving, binding and layered natural materials, each piece carries inherited knowledge alongside lived experience.

These adornments are worn for ceremony, corroboree, special events and Welcome or Acknowledgement of Country. They include pieces worn by Wonnarua women, items gifted to graduating and initiated women, and contemporary designs created for cultural display.

Cultural wear is not costume. It is identity and continuity. Through worn adornment grounded in history, our culture continues to evolve, remain visible and stay strong.' - Jaimie Turner

Installation view of Jaimie Turner, 'Cultural and Ceremonial Wear: Traditional and Contemporary Expressions' 2026, mixed media—contemporary and traditional elements including raffia, Lomandra, jute, cotton, linen, emu feathers, bees wax, quandong seeds, kangaroo and possum fur and leather, including photography by Kimberly Starr, Guringai, Wonnarua and Worimi woman.

Miikal Photography

05/05/2026

Our 2026/27 Artist in Residence program brings together artists working across visual art and sound, inviting audiences into the act of making.

From live, sound-responsive painting in the gallery to sound-generated photographic portraits at the Hunter Regional Conservatorium, the program invites audiences into the process of making.

Learn more about the program: https://artgallery.muswellbrook.nsw.gov.au/2026-27-artist-in-residence-program/

The 2026/27 Artist in Residence Project is made possible by the Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre in partnership with Arts Upper Hunter and the Hunter Regional Conservatorium.

Images: Ben Kenning and Rully Zakaria working in the Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre during the 2026/27 Artist in Residence program.

28/04/2026

2026 Muswellbrook Art Prize
On Exhibition 19 March to 23 May

Winner - Ceramics
'Errol Gulden and I Near Damn, Hawk Spotting at Yarra Bay' by Ryan Hancock

'In my approach to the ancient Maiolica ceramic painting technique this work mixes mythology, popular culture, personal narrative and obscure internet humour. This reflects the increasingly chaotic and surreal society we find ourselves in the era of fake news, the climate crisis, billionaire space tourism and clandestine tropical islands. This vessel strives to achieve a level of complexity and sophistication in its painted motifs which allude to bizarre, yet pertinent allegories' - Ryan Hancock

Image: Ryan Hancock, 'Errol Gulden and I Near Damn, Hawk Spotting at Yarra Bay' 2025, Maiolica, tin-glazed earthenware, 65 x 45 x 45cm, Muswellbrook Shire Art Collection, Winner, Muswellbrook Art Prize 2026, Ceramics.

22/04/2026

Become a Sponsor and Support the Arts in Muswellbrook!

Sponsors play a vital role in bringing exhibitions and programs to life at Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre. We are now seeking Expressions of Interest from individuals and businesses interested in becoming annual sponsors across a range of exciting events and initiatives.

Learn more about how you can support the gallery:
https://artgallery.muswellbrook.nsw.gov.au/support

Image: 2026 Muswellbrook Art Prize Opening Night

20/04/2026

2026 Muswellbrook Art Prize
19 March – 23 May 2026

The 2026 Muswellbrook Art Prize brings together contemporary painting, works on paper and ceramics from across Australia.

This year’s finalists reflect a deep engagement with place. From lived landscapes and connections to Country, to interiors shaped by memory and migration. The exhibition invites us to pause, reflect, and consider our shared present.

🔗 View the Gallery of Finalists: https://www.artgalleria.com/view-room/42264
Images: Install views of 2026 Muswellbrook Art Prize Opening Night.