NorthSite Contemporary Arts

NorthSite Contemporary Arts A Contemporary Arts company situated within Bulmba-ja Arts Centre in Cairns, Far North Queensland.
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Located in the cultural hub of the central business district of Cairns, NorthSite Contemporary Arts is a key destination for local and tourist visitors alike who wish to experience the vibrant contemporary visual culture of Tropical North Queensland. Established in 1992 as an artists' collective, KickArts developed into a not for profit organisation dedicated to facilitating, presenting and promot

ing contemporary arts and extending the experience and cultural life of northern Australians and previously more than 2.2 million annual visitors to Cairns. Delivering a dynamic and diverse exhibition program of exhibitions and programs each year NorthSite (formerly KickArts) highlights the work of local, national and international artists. The NorthSite Store represents leading art, craft and design by local artists and from the surrounding art centres of Far North Queensland providing clientele with access to high quality and ethical works of art from the region.

Thank you to everyone who joined us this weekend to celebrate the opening of our two new exhibitions, bringing together ...
24/08/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us this weekend to celebrate the opening of our two new exhibitions, bringing together three artists who explore our relationship with place, culture, community and the changing world around us.

An amazing turnout for a casual afternoon featuring artist talks by Tia Adoberg, Melissa Waters and Georgina Hutchinson, and special opening words with Kristian Šantić (CRC Cairns Festival Lead).

Traces Written by Nature // SNEAK PEEK // Georgina Hutchison - 'Nature’s Dialogue – Shifting Views'In her new exhibition...
21/08/2026

Traces Written by Nature // SNEAK PEEK // Georgina Hutchison - 'Nature’s Dialogue – Shifting Views'

In her new exhibition with Melissa Waters, Georgina's featured works reflect her ‘slow’ art practice, emphasising self-expression and aesthetics rooted in her environment. ‘Scorched Escarpment – Nature’s Fire Diary’ uses torn paper fragments to depict the fragile resilience of Australian bush, symbolising seasonal fire cycles and climate change impacts. Fire offers both regeneration and destruction, with hypnotic flames symbolising change and end cycles.

This process embodies listening, responding to, and respecting fire’s dual role. Her art reflects the profound, often chaotic dialogue between nature’s forces and human perception.

Join us at NorthSite Contemporary Arts TOMORROW Saturday 22 August to celebrate the opening of our two new exhibitions, bringing together three artists who explore our relationship with place, culture, community and the changing world around us.

For more information and to RSVP, visit northsite.org.au/participate

INK IN ACTION // Fine Art Print Production Program // NorthSite Art StudiosThis week at NorthSite Art Studios, participa...
21/08/2026

INK IN ACTION // Fine Art Print Production Program // NorthSite Art Studios

This week at NorthSite Art Studios, participants in our new Fine Art Print Production Program are getting hands-on with screenprinting, guided by artist and printmaker Sam Tupou.

Across seven weeks, artists Kassandra Savage, Lynelle Flinders, Tommy Pau, Glen Mackie and Harriet Mills will explore a different area of printmaking each week, building practical skills, expanding their creative practice and gaining experience in fine art print production.

Designed as a new professional development opportunity for First Nations artists in Gimuy/Cairns, the program supports participants to develop specialist printmaking skills while opening pathways towards sustainable creative careers.

Here’s a glimpse inside the studio as this week’s screenprints start to take shape!

Nature’s Living Language // SNEAK PEEK // Melissa Waters - 'Nature’s Dialogue – Shifting Views'Install week continues wi...
19/08/2026

Nature’s Living Language // SNEAK PEEK // Melissa Waters - 'Nature’s Dialogue – Shifting Views'

Install week continues with Melissa Waters' array of pieces for her upcoming exhibition with Georgina Hutchinson. Their exhibition explores the Australian landscape as a living archive, where fragments, textures, scars and patterns created by natural events become a kind of visual language. Through aerial perspectives, the artists examine the marks left by bushfires, floods, growth and decay, inviting us to consider how nature records memory and communicates through the land.

"Play is an important part in the use of materials and production of my art and I find the materials I use are generally whatever I feel responds to the concepts I’m trying to convey. I might use brushes, twigs, earth and any other media to create layers and textures because it is during experimenting that interesting effects often emerge." - Melissa Waters

Join us at NorthSite Contemporary Arts THIS Saturday to celebrate the opening of our two new exhibitions, bringing together three artists who explore our relationship with place, culture, community and the changing world around us.

For more information and to RSVP, visit northsite.org.au/participate

Step into an extraordinary story of survival and return. 'The Ghosts of Lani Mulgrave Blair' follows the story and endur...
19/08/2026

Step into an extraordinary story of survival and return.

'The Ghosts of Lani Mulgrave Blair' follows the story and enduring legacy of Lani Mulgrave Blair (1883–1900), a Yidinji boy taken from the Mulgrave River amid a period of violent frontier conflict and massacres. He was subsequently transported to Melbourne, where Dr and Mrs Blair raised him within colonial society.

Through historical materials, intergenerational oral histories, and new works by Yidinji artist Paul B**g alongside other artists, this important exhibition brings Lani’s story back to Yidinji Country and into the national consciousness.

Don't miss 'The Ghosts of Lani Mulgrave Blair' ON NOW until 19 September.

Pictured: 1. Carl Kahler, 'The Derby Day at Flemington' (detail), 1886, oil on canvas, glass and wooden gilded frame, 1950 x 2910 mm, on loan courtesy of Victoria Racing Club Collection // 2. Historical images, 'Lani' and 'Lani and Mrs Blair', source unknown.

Bold Blak Expression // FLASH BLAK JEWELLERY NEW DROP IN-STOREMake a statement with these handmade earrings and brooches...
18/08/2026

Bold Blak Expression // FLASH BLAK JEWELLERY NEW DROP IN-STORE

Make a statement with these handmade earrings and brooches from FLASH BLAK, crafted from recycled, melted plastics and transformed with alcohol ink before being coated in resin. Each pair is unique, celebrating bold colour, individuality and the creative possibilities of giving discarded materials a new life. Even the handmade backing cards are made by the artist from recycled egg cartons.

Growing up second-hand shopping in Gimuy/Cairns with her mum and aunty, Kerry Klimm developed a lifelong passion for styling, repurposing and transforming everyday objects. Her jewellery brings together recycled plastics, repurposed jewellery and powerful words and phrases, grounded in a deep love for family, community, storytelling, black love and joy.

Each piece is a celebration of creativity, connection and conscious making - available now in the NorthSite store or online 24/7 at shop.northsite.org.au

Shifting, Shimmering, Slipping // SNEAK PEEK // Tia Adoberg – ‘The Slipping World’ It's been a busy start to install wee...
18/08/2026

Shifting, Shimmering, Slipping // SNEAK PEEK // Tia Adoberg – ‘The Slipping World’

It's been a busy start to install week hanging Tia Adoberg’s vibrant oil paintings, capturing fleeting moments of youth, movement and connection — finding light, energy and release amid the chaos of everyday life.

'The Slipping World' explores resilience, uncertainty and our instinct to keep gathering, dancing and finding joy through turbulent times.

Join us at NorthSite Contemporary Arts this Saturday to celebrate the opening of our two new exhibitions, bringing together three artists who explore our relationship with place, culture, community and the changing world around us.

For more information and to RSVP, visit northsite.org.au/participate

Turtles take over Bulmba-Ja // Elverina Johnson Digital Animation // NOW LIVEElverina Johnson’s vibrant artwork comes to...
10/08/2026

Turtles take over Bulmba-Ja // Elverina Johnson Digital Animation // NOW LIVE

Elverina Johnson’s vibrant artwork comes to life across the façade of Bulmba-ja Arts Centre in 'Growing Up on Country' — a joyful digital animation of sea turtles gliding through bright colours and memories of Yarrabah.

Inspired by Johnson’s childhood by the sea, the animation celebrates family, Country and culture, capturing the freedom, happiness and deep connection to the ocean that continue to shape her artistic practice. Look up, slow down and watch the turtles swim.

For more on Elverina's current exhibition visit northsite.org.au/exhibitions/growing-up-on-country/

Pictured: Elverina Johnson, 'Growing Up on Country', Installation view, 2026, moving digital animation for the Bulmba-Ja Digital Facade.

Address

Bulmba-ja Arts Centre, 96 Abbott Street
Cairns, QLD
4870

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 5pm
Tuesday 10am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 11am - 2pm

Telephone

+61740509494

Website

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