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Tuesday 11am - 5pm Wednesday 11am - 5pm Thursday 11am - 5pm Friday 11am - 5pm Saturday 11am - 5pm

Canberra Contemporary

Name: Canberra Contemporary
Address: 44 Queen Elizabeth Terrace, Parkes, ACT, 2600, AU
Telephone: +61262470188
Price range: Not applicable

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Canberra Contemporary

ON NGUNNAWAL AND NGAMBRI COUNTRY. CANBERRA’S CENTRE FOR INNOVATION, NEW IDEAS AND DIRECTIONS IN CONTEMPORARY VISUAL ARTS

31/07/2026

ARTIST PROFILE: TAMARA HENDERSON

Tamara Henderson is a pioneering artist of international significance. Her process of creation develops its own mythology out of an ongoing practice of writing, drawing, and making notations of everyday objects. Henderson’s expansive environments encompass a vast vocabulary of art and craft practices and materials, including film, painting, textile, sculptures in glass, ceramic and bronze, drawing, sound, and performance.

Henderson’s recent national and international exhibitions include New Museum (2026), Potter Museum of Art (2026), Helsinki Biennial (2025), Rivoli in Turin (2024), Artspace, Sydney (2024), Camden Art Centre (2023), and Tate Modern London (2020). Tamara Henderson is represented by PALAS, Sydney and Sylvia Kouvali, London.

Visit ‘The Gardener’s Bar’ by Tamara Henderson at Canberra Contemporary now. 🪱🐸

Tamara Henderson

Check out our upcoming public programed events via the link in our bio 🌸

This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through Creative Australia (Creative Australia), its principle arts investment and advisory body, and supported by the ACT government through artsACT (artsACT), the Canada Council for the Arts (Canada Council for the Arts) and Canberra Glassworks (Canberra Glassworks).

Tamara Henderson, ‘The Gardener’s Bar’, 2026. Fused bullseye and soda lime glass, sand, bronze, brass, recycled garden hose, aluminium, electrical cabling. 239x260x196cm. Photograph by Brenton McGeachie.

Tamara Henderson, ‘The Gardener’s Body Fountain’, 2026 (detail). Blown glass, nickel, pump, tubing, water, brass, aluminium. Dimensions variable. Photograph by Cassia Abraham cassie abraham

Tamara Henderson, ‘Country Worm and City Worm Costumes’, 2024. Mud dyed cloth, clay buttons, three. Dimensions variable. Photography by Brenton McGeachie.

Tamara Henderson, ‘Floral Lamp’, 2025. Blown glass, electrical cabling. 50x33x22cm. Photograph by Cassia Abraham cassie abraham

Tamara Henderson, ‘Green in the Grooves.’ 2023. 16mm film transferred to digital, colour, sound. 26 minutes, 46 seconds. Music: Dan Riley, editing: Oliver Bancroft. Commissioned by Camden Art Centre, London.

30/07/2026

Morning Tea at The Gardener's Bar: in conversation with Tamara Henderson 🍄

Join us for a special partnership event, inviting Members of Canberra Contemporary, Friends of Drill Hall Gallery and the public to step inside The Gardener's Bar by Tamara Henderson.

During this special exhibition tour, hear from Henderson in conversation with Hester Lyon (Curator + Program Manager, Canberra Contemporary) and Tony Oates (Director, Drill Hall Gallery), as they explore the ideas and processes behind her latest exhibition.

Connecting the exhibition with Henderson's studio at Strathnairn Arts, this event is catered by Stepping Stone (). Following the artist talk, a vegetarian morning tea will feature produce grown as part of Stepping Stone's new Urban Farm project, a ‘seeds to harvest’ market garden initiative.

Saturday 15 August
9:30am – 11:30am
Canberra Contemporary
Tickets: $20 for Members & Friends, $30 for Non-Members
Catering: A vegetarian morning tea with vegan and gluten free options, tea and coffee.

⚡Register here: https://events.humanitix.com/morning-tea-at-the-gardener-s-bar-artist-tamara-henderson-in-conversation-with-curators-hester-lyon-and-tony-oates

Image: Visitors at the exhibition opening of 'The Gardener's Bar' by Tamara Henderson. Photography by Cassie Abraham

29/07/2026

Introducing our prize judge for the 2026 Canberra Contemporary Members Show, Yvette Dal Pozzo. 💥

Yvette has been the Director of Goulburn Regional Art Gallery since 2021. Under her leadership the Gallery is a leading centre of contemporary art. She is skilled in the management and capacity building of arts organisations and delivers bold creative outcomes for artists and audiences.

Yvette is currently President of Regional and Public Galleries NSW Association, a peer panel member with Museums & Galleries NSW, contributes regularly as a guest speaker and arts writer and has judged several awards and prizes.

We are delighted to have Yvette judge and award the following prizes on opening night:
1st Prize: $400 cash prize supported by Into Tomorrow Accounting
2nd Prize: $300 voucher from
3rd Prize: $200 voucher from

Enter an artwork now to be included in this exhibition. Entries close Sunday 16 August, 6pm. https://www.canberracontemporary.com.au/2026-members-show-apply

Not a member? Link in bio to join or renew.

Image: Headshot Yvette Dal Pozzo. Photographer: Karlee Holland.

28/07/2026

Tickets now live! Join us on Saturday 1 August from 1.30 – 3.30pm at Canberra Glassworks for a glass fusing workshop led by artist Tamara Henderson to coincide with her current exhibition ‘The Gardener’s Bar’ at Canberra Contemporary. 🌻

This workshop offers a rare and exciting opportunity to create and take home your own glass fused hanging pendant, inspired by Henderson’s aesthetic language and interest in the form, structure and colour of flowers. You’ll work alongside the artist to learn cutting and composition techniques, as well as the technicalities of kiln forming.

Tickets $220 – purchase via the link in our bio. https://canberraglassworks.com/short-courses/
Minimum participation age is 16 years old.

10% discount is offered for Canberra Contemporary members, DM us for the code.

This workshop is generously supported by and presented in partnership with Canberra Glassworks

Image: Tamara Henderson, 'The Gardener's Bar', studio view at Strathnairn Arts, 2026. Photograph by Tess Burk, courtesy Canberra Glassworks.

27/07/2026

Lunch Time Deep Dive 🪱🐸

Join Hester Lyon, Canberra Contemporary's Curator + Program Manager, for a lunchtime deep dive into the world of Tamara Henderson's 'The Gardener's Bar'.

Wednesday 5 August + Thursday 27 August
12:00pm – 12:45pm
Canberra Contemporary
Free, all welcome

In this walk through, Hester will discuss the rhythms that underpin Henderson's practice. You will explore the artist's process of spending time with a subject to the point of ritualisation. In ‘The Gardener’s Bar,’ that subject is compost: a process, symbol and intellectual ground from which this work emerges in a world of glass, sculpture, painting, film, sound and text.

This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through Creative Australia (.australia), its principle arts investment and advisory body, and supported by the ACT government through artsACT (), the Canada Council for the Arts (.council) and Canberra Glassworks ().

Image: Tamara Henderson, 'The Gardener's Bar', 2026, installation view. Photography by Brenton McGeachie.

26/07/2026

Thank you for joining us this week at Platform for the exhibition opening for ‘Distant blues, from a little closer’ by Olivia Gates.

This is Gates’ first solo exhibition. The works navigate experiences of losing, loss and being lost, while tracing moments of great love and joy that weave through them.

Visit the show at Platform now ⭐️

Exhibition dates: 24 July - 16 August 2026
Gallery Hours: 11am - 5pm, Friday to Sunday

Olivia Gates is the current Artist in residence at the M16 Artspace Environmental Artist Residency program, made possible through the generous sponsorship of Canberra philanthropist Thomas Boulton. Gates’s residency is further supported by Canberra Glassworks and Megalo Print Studio.

23/07/2026

Are you a junior arts worker, visual artist, recent graduate or student seeking gallery experience? Canberra Contemporary is looking for Casual Gallery Attendants to help us bring to life a plethora of ‘public facing’ events and programs throughout the year.

“I've been working at Canberra Contemporary for nearly 2 years now. It’s nice to work in a small, friendly, art-driven team who genuinely love what they do.” – Lily Austin, Casual Gallery Attendant.

Applications close Thursday 6 August, 11.59pm

Find out more and apply for this role via the link in our bio!

Image: Canberra Contemporary 'Blaze' opening. Photograph by Cassie Abraham.

22/07/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us at the exhibition opening of ‘The Gardener’s Bar’ by Tamara Henderson.

Special thanks to Beatrice Gralton, Senior Curator, Brett Whiteley Studio at the Art Gallery of NSW for formally opening this exhibition, and to Aimee Frodsham, Director of Canberra Glassworks for her remarks.

Continue exploring Henderson’s artistic language and process with a glass fusing workshop at Canberra Glassworks. Tickets for The Gardener’s Workshop are available via the link in our bio! 🌻
https://canberraglassworks.com/short-courses

Exhibition dates: 11 July – 29 August 2026

As always, thank you to our event partners Lerida Estate Winery and Bentspoke.

This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its principal arts investment and advisory body, and supported by Canberra Glassworks, the ACT Government through artsACT, and the Canada Council for the Arts.

Images: Exhibition opening of ‘The Gardener’s Bar’ by Tamara Henderson. Photography by Cassie Abraham

Address

44 Queen Elizabeth Terrace
Parkes, ACT
2600

Opening Hours

Tuesday	11am - 5pm
Wednesday	11am - 5pm
Thursday	11am - 5pm
Friday	11am - 5pm
Saturday	11am - 5pm

Telephone

+61262470188

Website

https://www.canberracontemporary.com.au/

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