Yarra City Arts

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Arts and Culture in Yarra. Yarra is the home of diverse and vibrant arts, cultures and communities.

27/10/2026

In times of boredom, will we consume, or will we create?

'Flop Time' by interdisciplinary artist Isabella Kottek investigates the tension between consumption and creation, exploring how online and offline experiences shape attention and creativity.

Through paintings that depict familiar online moments with humour and layered metaphors, Kottek highlights the deep entanglement of life with the internet. Instead of attempting to resolve this tension, the artist creates space for reflection, suggesting that where mindless scrolling dominates, curiosity can still lead to unexpected discoveries.

🗓️Exhibition open from 29 October 2026 to 24 January 2027 at Fitzroy Library.

Isabella Kottek will be delivering a drawing workshop and guided exhibition walkthrough on Saturday 28 November 11am at Fitzroy Library; free, register via the link below.

Image: Courtesy of the artist.

25/10/2026

Coming up at Bargoonga Ngajin – North Fitzroy Library, 'COOL: How We Did It' presents a speculative future where community-owned renewable energy cooperatives displaced the fossil fuel industry.

Through an evolving, science and social research driven project, the CLIMARTE exhibition showcases creative blueprints and roadmaps for community-focused economies, anchored by First Nations Caring for Country principles.

Against the backdrop of the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference COP31, 'COOL' is a timely conversation of how local communities already have capacities to realise the zero-emissions energy transition that is a key solution to effectively address the climate emergency.

Participating artists: Daniella Conser, Lichen Kelp, Grace Lipson, Climate Guardians+Julian Meehan, Bridget Nicholson, Ata Tara and Giselle Wilkinson.

Exhibition open from 29 October 2026 to 24 January 2027 at Bargoonga Nganjin - North Fitzroy Library. Join the artists for opening night celebrations on Wed 11 November 6-8pm.

Image credits:

Top: Ata Tara, ‘Energy Mixity’ 2026. Image courtesy of the artist.

Bottom: Climate Guardians, from ‘Ushering in Symbiosis, a climate performance’. Photograph by Julian Meehan.

20/10/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined Yarra 2026 exhibiting artist Martin George for his first ever workshop at Bargoonga Nganjin - North Fitzroy Library! 'Collage & Watercolour' explored texts from the library collection, working with drawings, words and found imagery. 🌊

If you can't get enough of collaging, Richmond Library also runs free Collage Club on the last Tuesday of every month, and casual pop-in collage sessions EVERY TUESDAY!

Don't miss your chance to catch Martin's exhibition 'Crescent Stack, Colour Block, Mosaic Sketch' at Bargoonga Nganjin, closing this Sunday 25 October.

Photos: Courtesy of the artist.

19/10/2026

💡 Got an event idea for Fairfield Amphitheatre? We want to hear it!
Expressions of Interest are now open for Fairfield in Feb 2027.

For more than 25 years, the Fairfield in Feb event series has celebrated live music, diverse local talent and community in a unique outdoor setting along the River Birrarung.

There is $30,000 funding available for a creative producer, arts organisation or event management team to curate and deliver two music-focused events for Fairfield in Feb 2027. The successful applicant would build on the legacy of the event series while bringing their own creative vision to the 2027 program.

Could your idea be next?

👉 Apply via link in bio. EOI submissions close midnight 11th November 2026.

Video captured at Fairfield in Feb 2026 by Damian Vincenzi for Quiet Riot Creative.
Edit by Yarra Arts Festival and Events.

Alt Text: Crowd of people dancing and others sitting watching music in an outdoor amphitheater at sunset. Text in boxes read "Fairfield in Feb is back in 2027, EOI open now, Apply now, Link in bio".

13/10/2026

Don't miss your chance to submit a proposal for our 2027 Exhibition Program at Fitzroy Library, Bargoonga Nganjin - North Fitzroy Library and Carlton Library Light Boxes! EOIs close this Sun 18 Oct 11.59pm.

The library exhibition program offers opportunities for artists to make creative use of Council venues and spaces. It also provides library users and the wider community an opportunity to enjoy arts and culture as an everyday experience.

For 2027, two exhibitions of 12 weeks (Feb-Apr, Aug-Oct) are programmed at Fitzroy Library and Bargoonga Nganjin; and two outdoor displays of 25 weeks (Feb-Jul, Aug-Jan 2028) are programmed at Carlton Library Light Boxes.

An exhibition fee of $1600 (excl. GST) will be paid to selected artists for Fitzroy Library and Bargoonga Nganjin. An exhibition fee of $2000 (excl. GST) will be paid to selected artists for Carlton Library Light Boxes.

Image: Past exhibitions at top: Bargoonga Nganjin, Elena Larriba Andaluz; middle: Fitzroy Library, Juliet Rowe (left) and Jo Kirazis (right); and bottom: Carlton Library Light Boxes, Kate Beynon. Photo: J. Forsyth and Andrew Curtis.

Alt text: Photographic collage of different exhibition displays featuring ceramics, works on paper in glass display cabinets and duratrans in lightboxes. Red textbox displaying 'LAST WEEK TO APPLY! 2027 Yarra Exhibition Program'.

01/10/2026

EOIs for Yarra's 2027 Exhibitions Program are now open with the return of Carlton Library Light Boxes! Get to know the space ⬇️

A modern building among the late Victorian architecture that surrounds it, Carlton Library sits on picturesque Rathdowne Street. The library's redevelopment and design was featured in Monument: Architecture and Design magazine in the early 2000s, celebrated for its peaceful vibe and ample natural light.

The light boxes at Carlton Library are located on the exterior brick wall on Newry Street, and are an unmissable showcase of contemporary art day and night. Exhibitions comprise a series of four images, printed on photographic Duratrans and exhibited for six months.

Carlton Library Light Boxes are one of Yarra's most sought-after exhibition spaces in the annual program. Artists are encouraged to consider suitability to the illuminated medium, as well as core audiences including users of the library, residents, pedestrians, nearby business patrons and commuters.

To apply to exhibit at Carlton Library Light Boxes, head to Yarra's 2027 Exhibition Program EOIs page via our link in bio and tick 'Carlton Library Light Boxes' in your Smarty Grants application.

Images:
1. Top: Carlton Library (street view from Rathdowne Street). Bottom: TudoFAM (Kate & Rali Beynon, Michael Pablo), 'The Mask Spirit Hour' 25 September 2024 – 24 March 2025. Photo by Andrew Curtis.

2. Savina Hopkins, 'Screen/Time' 22 March – 21 September 2022. Photo by J. Forsyth.

3. Top: Steven Rhall, 'Kulin Project: Return to Country' 22 September 2020 – 22 March 2021. Photo by J. Forsyth. Bottom: Kirsten Lyttle, 'Te Ao Moemoea/The Land of Dreaming' 21 March – 23 September 2019. Photo by J. Forsyth.

4. Top: Honey Long and Prue Stent, 'Touching Pool' (detail) 22 September 2022 – 20 March 2023. Photo by Andrew Curtis. Bottom: Pia Johnson, 'I said goodbye to each room, as if saying goodbye to you' (detail) 22 March – 21 September 2021. Photo by J. Forsyth.

28/09/2026

Yarra's 2027 Exhibition EOIs are now open! Get to know our exhibition spaces – Bargoonga Nganjin, North Fitzroy Library (for Fitzroy Library, head to our page and see part 1).

Open since 2017, Bargoonga Nganjin (pronounced Bar-goon-ga Narn-yin) is a three-storey community hub on a prominent triangular-shaped site in North Fitzroy. The name speaks true to its purpose, meaning 'Gather Everybody' in Woiwurrung, the lanuage of the Wurundjeri people.

From newborns to seniors, the hub is a space for intergenerational users, and one of the first things that visitors encounter is the 8-metre exhibition wall that has hosted a myriad of artworks and installations for nearly a decade.

Located in the busy ground floor foyer area, the exhibition space is part of the bustling epicenter of Bargoonga Nganjin. It's where people linger, waiting to meet their friend; where hungry students sit for a snack break; and where parents and guardians prepare their little ones for storytime.

The space comes with hanging tracks and a projector, and is suitable for framed works, 2D installations, murals, drawings and small sculpture objects. Glass doors leading into the children's library also serve as transparent display cases that can house suspended 2D works, jewellery, small sculpture objects and more.

To apply to exhibit at Bargoonga Nganjin, head to Yarra's 2027 Exhibition Program EOIs page via our link in bio and tick 'Bargoonga Nganjin North Fitzroy Library' in your Smarty Grants application.

23/09/2026

Thinking about applying for Yarra's 2027 Exhibition Program? This is the first in the series of "Get to know our exhibition spaces" - Fitzroy Library.

Established in 1877, Fitzroy Library is one of Australia's first public libraries, located in the heart of Melbourne's oldest suburb, Fitzroy.

Exposed solid bluestone walls remain an architectural feature of the library, while its collection reflects the suburb's multicultural roots, with English, Chinese, Vietnamese and Spanish language collections, alongside local history and First Nations collections.

The 12 wall-mounted glass cabinets, known as the 'Fitzroy Showcases', are housed in a busy corridor that leads to the library meeting rooms on one end, and the children's reading space on the other. It's a high-traffic passageway frequented by a diverse demographic of library users.

Is your work something that can stop people in their tracks? Does your practice explore or engage with the history of Yarra? Are materials or sites a focus of your creative process? We want to hear from you!

To apply to exhibit at Fitzroy Library, head to Yarra's 2027 Exhibition Program EOIs page via our link in bio and tick 'Fitzroy Library Showcases' in your Smarty Grants application.

What to know more? Visit Fitzroy Library, check out the space, and even borrow a book or two – it's free (and has been for 149 years)!

Images:
1. Top: Signage leading into Fitzroy Library. Bottom: Vivian Qiu, 'What We Are Made Of' (left), 2024, rice, various food powders and 'Mini Pot' (right), 2021, embroidery floss, PVA glue. Part of 'Material Tells Stories' 1 August – 20 October 2024 at Fitzroy Library.

2. Thelma Beeton, 'Takariliya' 17 April – 20 July 2025, installation view at Fitzroy Library.

3. Imi Oliver, 'Even the Rabbits Were There' 30 July – 25 October 2026, installation view at Fitzroy Library.

4. Top: The Australian Brooch Show 2019, installation view at Fitzroy Library. Bottom: Joanna Kiriazis, 'Muscle Cars' 30 October 2025 – 25 January 2026, installation view at Fitzroy Library.

Exhibition photos by J. Forsyth.

18/09/2026

A dive into le***an herstory is opening on 7 October in Melbourne at Sol Gallery, Fitzroy.

'Le****ns Leap from the Archives 1970-2000' is a vivid display of the extraordinary achievements and culture of le***ans and feminists in those 3 decades, from refuges to rock albums, conferences to circus, screenprinting to peace marches.

A culmination of two years of solid grassroots voluntary work, the exhibition documents and celebrates the extraordinary achievements and culture of le***ans 1970-2000.

Exhibition dates : 7 October - 1 November 2026.
Check out the program of events

04/09/2026

Yarra City Council is seeking Expressions of Interest from local contemporary artists to exhibit as part of our 2027 exhibition program at Fitzroy Library, Bargoonga Nganjin – North Fitzroy Library and Carlton Library Light Boxes.

The library exhibition program offers opportunities for artists to make creative use of Council venues and spaces. It also provides library users and the wider community an opportunity to enjoy arts and culture as an everyday experience.

For 2027, two exhibitions of 12 weeks (Feb-Apr, Aug-Oct) are programmed at Fitzroy Library and Bargoonga Nganjin; and two outdoor displays of 25 weeks (Feb-Jul, Aug-Jan 2028) are programmed at Carlton Library Light Boxes.

An exhibition fee of $1600 (excl. GST) will be paid to selected artists for Fitzroy Library and Bargoonga Nganjin. An exhibition fee of $2000 (excl. GST) will be paid to selected artists for Carlton Library Light Boxes.

Image: Past exhibitions at top: Bargoonga Nganjin, Elena Larriba Andaluz; middle: Fitzroy Library, Juliet Rowe (left) and Jo Kirazis (right); and bottom: Carlton Library Light Boxes, Kate Beynon. Photo: J. Forsyth and Andrew Curtis.

Alt text: Photographic collage of different exhibition displays featuring ceramics, works on paper in glass display cabinets and duratrans in lightboxes. Red circle with white text "2027 Exhibition EOIs NOW OPEN", red panel with white text "What's included: Artist fee, installation support, promotion, public programming opportunities."

Address

333 Bridge Road
Richmond, VIC
3121

Telephone

+61392055555

Website

http://arts.yarracity.vic.gov.au/

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