Wama Foundation

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Halls Gap, VIC
Wama Foundation

National art and environment precinct set on the foothills of the Grampians/Gariwerd National Park.

National Centre for Environmental Art & Gariwerd/Grampians Gardens - Opening mid-winter 2025.

29/08/2026

🌿 EXHIBITION CHANGEOVER AT WAMA

We’re getting ready to launch our new exhibition “Garden Sanctuary: Visions of Australian Flora” this Saturday 5th of September, meaning a few changes to our opening hours this week.

THURSDAY 3rd SEPTEMBER
🔒 WAMA Precinct CLOSED
Our team will be busy preparing the gallery for the new exhibition.

FRIDAY 4 SEPTEMBER
Café & Gardens OPEN
Main Gallery CLOSED

SATURDAY 5 SEPTEMBER
🌿 GARDEN SANCTUARY: VISIONS OF AUSTRALIAN FLORA 🌿 - OPENING & LAUNCH
Join us as we unveil this beautiful new exhibition celebrating Australian flora through the work of four artists: Dolores Skowronski-Malloni, Mark Dober, Samuel Mulcahy and Qun Zhang.

SUNDAY 6 SEPTEMBER
OPEN - regular opening hours resume.
From Sunday onwards, WAMA will return to its usual opening hours:
Thursday–Sunday | 10am–4pm

Thank you for your patience while we make the changeover, and we can’t wait to welcome you into our Garden Sanctuary.

27/08/2026

Victorian landscape artist Mark Dober is presenting a relaxed outdoor watercolour workshop set among the gardens and over flowing wetlands at WAMA Foundation.

This one’s for everyone; absolute beginners through to experienced painters. Mark will guide you through the fundamentals of observation, colour and composition, working directly from the landscape in a small, supportive group.

📅 Sunday 6 September, 10am–1pm
📍 WAMA Foundation, Halls Gap (meet in the MPR room)
🎨 All materials supplied
☕ Includes tea, coffee and entry to Garden Sanctuary plus the botanic gardens
👥 Just 15 places, $93.50 (inc. GST)

Book your place via the link at wama.au.

—

Barkers Creek, Castlemaine, 2026. Gouache.

17/08/2026

Outdoor Watercolour Painting Workshop with Mark Dober

Join renowned Victorian landscape artist Mark Dober for a hands-on outdoor painting workshop set within the rich surrounds of WAMA’s grounds and gardens. This session explores the fundamentals of plein air watercolour painting — observation, colour, and composition — in direct response to the natural landscape. Whether you’re looking to build confidence painting outdoors or want to explore fresh techniques, mediums, and creative processes, this workshop offers something for painters at different stages.

The workshop offers personal, hands-on guidance in a relaxed and creative setting, with quality materials supplied. Participants will also enjoy complimentary access to WAMA’s exhibition Garden Sanctuary: Visions of Australian Flora, featuring new large-scale works by Mark Dober, along with entry to the botanic gardens and free tea and coffee.

When: Sunday 6 September, 10am – 1pm
Where: WAMA Foundation — please meet in WAMA’s MPR room 10 minutes prior to the start
Cost: $93.50 (inc. GST)
Places: Limited to 15 participants

Book your place via https://events.humanitix.com/plein-air-watercolour-workshop-with-mark-dober

For more information see the What’s On page on our website- wama.au

Mark Dober, The Cascades - Coliban River, 2026, Gouache.

Mark Dober, Lake Joanna - Castlemaine, 2026, Watercolour.

12/08/2026

Garden Sanctuary: Visions of Australian Flora brings together contemporary responses to the richness and significance of native plant life. Presented by WAMA Foundation at the National Centre for Environmental Art in Halls Gap/Budja Budja, this exhibition opens on Saturday 5 September 2026, featuring the work of Dolores Skowronski-Malloni, Mark Dober, Samuel Mulcahy, and Qun Zhang. Each artist offers a distinctive vision across cultivated, wild, suburban, and imagined landscapes, inviting audiences to encounter flora as living systems, sources of renewal, and fragile presences.

Deeply rooted in the landscapes of Gariwerd/Grampians and western Victoria, the exhibition illuminates the rare and unique plants of the region and celebrates the arrival of the spring season. Garden Sanctuary foregrounds the restorative power of flora as a vital means of ecological connection at a time of profound environmental transformation.

WAMA Foundation acknowledges the support of the Botanical Art Society of Australia who provided Grants to assist in the framing of works and the commissioning of the Endemic Grevillea Collection by Dolores Skowronski-Malloni.

Exhibition: Garden Sanctuary: Visions of Australian Flora
Artists: Dolores Skowronski-Malloni, Mark Dober, Samuel Mulcahy and Qun Zhang
Venue: National Centre for Environmental Art, WAMA Foundation, Halls Gap/Budja Budja, Victoria
Dates: 5 September – 6 December 2026
Opening: 5 September 2026, 2pm MPR Room – Free event RSVP at Garden Sanctuary: Visions of Australian Flora Exhibition Opening on the What’s On Page at wama.au

Tickets: $20 (full price), $15 (concession), $10 (students), Children (free)

Further Information: See our What’s On page at wama.au, Garden Sanctuary: Visions of Australian Flora.
Phone: (03) 9996 9810
Email: [email protected]

01/08/2026

Calling all young nature artists! 🌿🎨
The Wild At Art competition by the Australian Conservation Foundation is now open to children aged 5–12 across Australia. Kids are invited to create an artwork of a threatened native species and share a short written reflection about why it matters.
It’s a wonderful way to inspire creativity, curiosity, and care for our environment.
Resources for teachers and parents are available through Australian Conservation Foundation
Submit entries before August 10.

06/07/2026

Join local photographer John Tiddy for a hands-on macro photography masterclass at WAMA Foundation, Halls Gap, and learn how to capture striking close-up images of nature like those featured in this post.
Perfect for photographers with some experience, this workshop will introduce participants to a range of creative and technical approaches to macro and close-up lens photography, including meet-your-neighbour style shooting, outdoor studio techniques, and focus stacking.

When: Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 of July from 10am to 12pm
Where: WAMA Foundation (MPR Room)
Cost: $30 per person (Includes entry to our gallery and gardens)
Bring: Your own DSLR camera with changeable settings

All images by John Tiddy captured at WAMA Foundation, Halls Gap. Featured images: 1. White-plumed Honeyeater 2. Common Spadefoot Toad 3. Holly Grevillea 4. Orb spider 5. Rabbit’s Ears Orchid 6. Ghost fungi

For bookings or further information visit our “What’s On” page at wama.au, navigate to the Photography Masterclass, and follow the links for tickets. This workshop is part of the GLOW Festival 2026 - Bringing Light to Halls Gap.

30/06/2026

Please join us at WAMA Foundation on Friday the 10th of July for the official opening of The Money Tree by local artist Micheal Moerkerk. The work was originally commissioned by Greening Australia and Bank Australia as part of Greening Australia’s 40th anniversary celebrations and has now found a new home at WAMA. Come celebrate this extraordinary work and learn about the symbolism and environmental initiative that defined its creation. Special thanks to Greening Australia for their generous donation.

Event to take place at WAMA Foundation 4000 Ararat-Halls Gap Rd, Halls Gap at 2pm on Friday the 10th of July. Please RSVP via the link on the Money Tree Launch event on our What’s On page.

A selection of platters and w**e will be available for guests.

28/06/2026

Make the most of the winter school holidays at WAMA with creative workshops, nature-based adventures and family-friendly activities. Visit our Multi-Purpose Room for soil-inspired projects, a cosy children’s reading corner and kids’ colouring-in, then head outdoors for a scavenger hunt across the grounds. Families can also create their own collage in the café as part of the creative activity ReMaking Home.

19/06/2026

There’s something magical happening across the WAMA site this winter. With all this rain, our grounds are bursting with fungi. Tiny coral forms, glowing oranges, delicate parasols and strange little structures that look like they’ve stepped out of another world. We’ve been spotting an incredible variety, and we are excited to share some of our favourites with you.

What fascinating fungi have you found lately? Share your discoveries with us; we love seeing what’s popping up across the Grampians and beyond.

And if you’re keen to take your fungi‑spotting further, join us for the Great Aussie Fungi Hunt at WAMA this July. Sunday 12 July, 12:30pm–3pm
Learn how to use the iNaturalist app, then head out across the WAMA site to help document the amazing fungal biodiversity of our region.
Free event | 35 places | Meet in the MPR Room
Bring your phone (with space for the app) and dress for outdoor exploring.
Be part of a nationwide citizen‑science project and help map Australia’s fungi.

Address

4000 Ararat-Halls Gap Road
Halls Gap, VIC
3380

Website

http://wamafoundation.com.au/

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