Saturday 29 October, 10am – 4pm
Immerse yourself in experimenting with a simple and effective screen printing technique using paper stencils. Nicola will teach the basics of screen printing on fabric and give you the skills and knowledge to set up your own fabric printing studio. All materials are provided but if you have some special fabric you’d like to print on, feel free to bring it along.
→ No experience is necessary
→ Suitable for age 14 and over
→ 8 places available
Please scroll down to book ↓
Nicola Cerini is a Ballarat-based Textile Designer.
Nicola’s early childhood immersed in nature is one of the key inspirations for her design practice. Capturing the beauty of the natural world as an innovator of textiles and product design led Nicola to establish design studio soon after graduating from RMIT in 1991.
Her distinctive brand quickly evolved and now focusses on creating nature-inspired, biophilic design for products, interiors, urban and public spaces, aiming to connect people with nature.
Nicola collaborates with designers, clients and companies applying her imagery to a broad range of products, from bags to floor rugs to building facades.
Thursday 30 June, 10am – 12pm and 1.30pm – 3.30pm
Join us for a two-hour workshop with Early Childhood Educator and First Nations Artist Emma Stenhouse.
This workshop will delight the senses, inspire creativity and allow us to explore the Icons used to create traditional Indigenous Iconography. Kids will create a transient artwork with elements of nature and then have the opportunity to create their own storytelling artwork using watercolours.
Suitable for age 7 and over.
Materials provided.
Free entry, bookings essential. Please scroll down to book ↓
On Thursday 23 June we are teaming up with our neighbours, Ararat Town Hall, for a special after-hours viewing of our exhibitions! Meander through the gallery, grab a drink at the Town Hall bar and make yourself comfortable for some beautiful post-classical music by ARIA-nominated artists Luke Howard and Nat Bartsch. Doors open 6.30pm.
Click here to book →
In 1998 during a reconnaissance tour whilst researching potential art works for inclusion in the “13th Tamworth Fibre Textile Biennial”, curator Gillian McCracken met with Utopia artists in Central Australia. She was immediately smitten by the batik works.
Subsequently three silk batiks were selected for inclusion in the Many Voices Touring Exhibition and were later acquired into the Tamworth Regional Gallery’s Fibre Textile Collection. Thus began a cultural collaboration between Utopia batik artists and the gallery that has culminated in the presentation of a significant body of archival artwork known as the Utopia Collection Bequest to Tamworth Regional Gallery.
Tamworth Regional Gallery specialises in contemporary textiles. The Utopia Collection Bequest is made up of a core group of Aboriginal textile artworks complemented by works in other media that were designated as important archival pieces in the evolution of art production on the Utopia Homelands. Utopia is a region covering approximately 5000 square kilometres of land northeast of Alice Springs and is home to around 2000 Aboriginal people. The pieces came from the archives of the now defunct Utopia Cultural Centre. The tribal elders on the governing body of that Centre presented the Utopia Collection Bequest to Tamworth with the intention that the archive be kept intact as an aesthetic, cultural, historical and educational reference for posterity.
The Utopia Collection Bequest, received in 1999 consists of 13 batik silks, four acrylic paintings on paper, five silk screen prints, six etchings and aquatints, and six carved wooden ceremonial figures.
Named by German settlers in the early 1920s, much of the region loosely termed ‘Utopia’ is Aboriginal-owned land called Urapuntja. Utopia comprises several large and small communities.
Aboriginal artists were already long-time masters of the tjanting (tulis) batik technique. Their characteristic style of working is to combine tjanting work with hand-painted motifs focusing around bush tucker themes and the flora and fauna of the outback.
‘…her source was entirely different – her work was rooted deeply in her culture and deep in Australia’s desert.’
Margo Neale, Indigenous Art Curator and Historian
For this showcase of the TAMA Collection, we chose a medium that makes a rare appearance in our exhibition program: prints and drawings. The artworks here span the Gallery’s 50-year history. Some of these little-known and seldom seen works in our storeroom founded the Collection, such as the Ludwig Hirschfeld Mack prints donated in 1968 by his widow, Olive Hirschfeld.
Artists known predominantly for their textile-based artwork also work on paper, either for love of the medium, or to develop concepts for their textile practice.
Established in 1968, Ararat Gallery TAMA (Textile Art Museum Australia) holds a distinctive place amongst Australia’s public galleries through its longstanding celebration of textile and fibre art. Ararat’s historical association with fine merino wool production, increasing recognition of craft as an important art form, and significant funding from state and federal governments in the 1970s secured the establishment of the Gallery’s now highly valued fibre art collection.
Join local artist and author Janette Lucas on Saturday 2 April for an in-depth discussion on how to develop a children’s book, from creating a story and characters, to approaching publishers. Ideal for aspiring writers and illustrators!
Janette Lucas is an artist with decades of experience exhibiting her paintings throughout Australia and Indonesia. Her work is held in public collections, including Museum and Art Galleries of the Northern Territory (MAGNT), Australian Defence Force Palmerston NT, Government House & Parliament House Darwin, along with many private art collections.
After studying and teaching art in Victoria, Lucas moved to Arnhem Land with her family and from then on much of her career as an artist was spent in the Northern Territory. She was founding co-ordinator of Bábbarra Women’s Centre, lectured in drawing at the Darwin University and was head of art at Batchelor College, Rum Jungle, where she taught First Nations students from the education, linguistics, and media faculties.
Having re-discovered a deep affection for children’s books, Lucas wrote her first book Margot and Milligan – Curious as Cats on a road trip south from the green rolling hills near Byron Bay in 2020.
Please bring a notebook, pen and drink bottle.
Free entry, bookings essential. Please scroll down to book ↓
Join local artist and author Janette Lucas on Saturday 2 April for an introduction to watercolour and ink illustration. Janette will guide you through a simple character development exercise. Ideal for absolute beginners or experienced practitioners!
Paint, ink, brushes and paper provided.
Janette Lucas is an artist with decades of experience exhibiting her paintings throughout Australia and Indonesia. Her work is held in public collections, including Museum and Art Galleries of the Northern Territory (MAGNT), Australian Defence Force Palmerston NT, Government House & Parliament House Darwin, along with many private art collections.
After studying and teaching art in Victoria, Lucas moved to Arnhem Land with her family and from then on much of her career as an artist was spent in the Northern Territory. She was founding co-ordinator of Bábbarra Women’s Centre, lectured in drawing at the Darwin University and was head of art at Batchelor College, Rum Jungle, where she taught First Nations students from the education, linguistics, and media faculties.
Having re-discovered a deep affection for children’s books, Lucas wrote her first book Margot and Milligan – Curious as Cats on a road trip south from the green rolling hills near Byron Bay in 2020.
Please bring a notebook, pen and drink bottle. Optional: bring along any ideas or inspiration for characters (stories, photos or sketches) that you would like to develop.
$55/person, bookings essential. Please scroll down to book ↓
Join us for an Artist Talk presented by Catherine O’Leary on Friday 18 March 2022 at 11am.
Catherine O’Leary is an Australian Artist, based in Castlemaine who works primarily in the Textile Arts. With a formal training in Fine Arts, Catherine’s portfolio spans 40 years.
Crafting wool felt by hand is a technique which Catherine has been exploring since the 1990’s. She has mastered the art of feltmaking and utilises it as a vehicle for the creation of three-dimensional forms. These forms consist of wearable garments and innovative sculptures.
Silk fabric and wool fibre are Catherine’s preferred textile mediums. Hand dyed, printed, hand embroidered, and illustration techniques make each piece a unique work of art. Catherine’s garments are constructed from very few pattern pieces. Most of the fabric used has been recycled, making her practice sustainable and environmentally conscious.
Free entry, bookings essential. Please scroll down to book ↓
Join us for the official opening of ‘Pages From a Lockdown Diary’, an exhibition by artists Carole Wilson + Tim Craker, on Saturday 5 March at 2pm.
Opening speeches from 2pm, followed by refreshments served at Foragers Café until 4pm.
Free entry, bookings essential. Please scroll down to book ↓
For everyone’s health and safety we have the following COVIDSafe measures in place – we thank you in anticipation of your support:
→ Please check in with the QR Code provided. If you do not have a smartphone, please speak with staff for assistance
→ Patrons over the age of 18 must present their vaccination status. Acceptable proof of vaccination status includes:
– COVID-19 Digital Certificate via the Service Victoria app
– COVID-19 Digital Certificate saved to smartphone
– Printed copy of COVID-19 Digital Certificate
– Printed copy of Immunisation history statement with evidence of vaccinations
– Printed copy of COVID-19 digital certificate with evidence of medical exemption
→ Please use the hand sanitiser provided
→ Please respect physical distancing
→ If you are unwell, please stay home.
For any enquiries, please call 03 5355 0220. We look forward to seeing you!