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Australian Tapestry Workshop

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Australian Tapestry Workshop

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Established in 1976, the Australian Tapestry Workshop (ATW) is a centre of textile excellence. We welcome enquiries regarding tapestry commissions and sales.

Over 45 years this commitment to a collaborative approach has been skilfully developed by the ATW to the highest professional level and is maintained as a constantly evolving creative process. ATW tapestries are known for their vibrancy and technical accomplishment, as well as their innovative experimental interpretations. Today the ATW thrives on working with contemporary artists who seek to challenge the ATW's weavers and dyer by providing tapestry designs in various mediums including photography, painting, watercolour and digital images.

19/10/2026

We were delighted to recently welcome the Consulate-General of the People’s Republic of China in Melbourne to ATW, where they met our Artists in Residence, George Cooley and Emma Buswell, and had the opportunity to go behind the scenes of Australasia’s only tapestry workshop.

16/10/2026

TALK | Tales from The Archive

As part of ATW’s 50th anniversary celebrations, join researcher and art historian Dr Bree Di Mattina in conversation with ATW Co-Director Sophie Travers for Tales from The Archive, exploring significant works and stories from our five decades of tapestry production.

Drawing on Bree’s extensive archive research, they will share the stories behind some of ATW’s significant tapestries and consider what they reveal about the changing landscape of Australian art and textile practice.

▪️ Tales from The Archive
🗓 Saturday 24 October
🕑 2pm - 3pm
🎟 Free
📍 Australian Tapestry Workshop
🔗 Book your spot at the link in bio

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Tales from The Archive is made possible with the support of the Gordon Darling Foundation. Bree Sophie Travers

Pictured: Grevillea (1981), designed by Lesley Dumbrell, woven by Cresside Collette, Carol Dunbar and Iain Young.

09/10/2026

LAST CHANCE | 2027 Artist in Residence Program

Have you got your application in yet? 👀 There’s still time to apply for ATW’s 2027 Artist in Residence Program, but applications close this coming Monday, 12 October!

Open to mid-career artists, the program offers dedicated studio space and specialist support, enabling you to extend your practice through immersive access to ATW’s unique facilities and expertise.

❗️Applications close Monday 12 October, 5pm AEST
🔗 Apply at: www.austapestry.com.au/2027AIR

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Pictured: Kate Beynon 2026 ATW Artist in Residence. Photo by ATW.

07/10/2026

TAPESTRY ANNOUNCEMENT | Anne Zahalka

One of Australia’s most highly regarded photo-media artists, Anne Zahalka, is collaborating with ATW to realise her first-ever tapestry, ‘Detail (from ‘The Dutch Painter’)’, 1991. The tapestry will be handwoven by ATW weaver Tim Gresham over four months.

The project brings Zahalka’s ongoing exploration of photographic reproduction and digital image-making into dialogue with tapestry, where the pixelated logic of the photograph is reconfigured through thread, colour and the physical structure of the weave. The collaboration opens up new material and visual possibilities for Zahalka’s work through the medium of tapestry.

We can’t wait to share more of this tapestry as it progresses. Swipe through to see ATW weaver Tim Gresham translating the artwork into tapestry, including an early exploratory sample.

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Pictured:
Anne Zahalka at the Jewish Museum of Australia, 2026. Photo: Ben Dowd.
Anne Zahalka, Detail (from ‘The Dutch Painter’), 1991.
Anne Zahalka and ATW weaver Tim Gresham with the tapestry design. Photo: ATW.
Exploratory sample woven by Tim Gresham. Photo: ATW.
Tim Gresham creating the cartoon. Photo: ATW.

Anne Zahalka is represented by ARC ONE Gallery, Melbourne, and Dominik Mersch Gallery, Sydney.

30/09/2026

✨ Missed out on the first session? We’ve added a second date! ✨

Join artist Emma Buswell for a practical, hands-on introduction to bead weaving.

In this beginner friendly workshop Emma will share the fundamentals of bead weaving, including how to make a simple loom from recycled materials, and how to create patterned designs. You’ll put these techniques into practice to create your own beaded piece during the workshop.

Participants will also receive a pattern for a miniature design inspired by Emma’s much-loved roast chicken bag, which can be made into a beaded coin purse or card holder. Take your new skills home and create your own mini version of Emma’s iconic design.

No previous experience is required and all materials are supplied.

▪ Bead Weaving with Emma Buswell
️🗓 Saturday 24 October
🕑 1pm - 4pm
🎟️ Adult: $130 | ATW Friends / Concession: $120
📍 Australian Tapestry Workshop
🔗 Book your spot at: https://events.humanitix.com/bead-weaving-with-emma-buswell-saturday-24-october

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Images:
1. Emma Buswell 'The Sometimes Luxury Handbag and Other Suburban Fables', 2022
2. Detail from Bead Weaving Workshop
3. Emma Buswell, artist portrait by Ezra Alcantara

29/09/2026

WORKSHOP | Natural Indigo Dyeing

Explore the art of indigo dyeing in this beginner-friendly workshop led by ATW’s botanical dye specialist Heather Thomas. Learn simple shibori techniques (Arashi, Ne Maki, and Itajime) and experiment with folding, binding, and wrapping to create patterned textile samples, a hand-dyed silk scarf, and a set of napkins. Perfect for anyone trying natural indigo or resist dyeing for the first time.

🗓 Date: Saturday 10 October
🕑 Time: 1pm - 4pm
📍 Australian Tapestry Workshop
🎟️ Cost: Adult: $170 | Concession/ATW Friends: $155
❗ Update: Tickets are now Sold Out

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Photography by ATW

24/09/2026

ANNOUNCING | 2026 Kate Derum + Irene Davies Awards Finalists

This year, we received applications from artists across 22 countries, reflecting the breadth of contemporary tapestry today. The 2026 finalists offer a snapshot of the ideas, materials and approaches shaping the medium, from emerging perspectives to established practices.

Congratulations to all the shortlisted artists. We can’t wait to share these works, made slowly, by hand, and with an extraordinary range of perspectives on contemporary tapestry.

The 2026 judges are Rachel Arndt, Director of Wangaratta Art Gallery; Beck Jobson, GM/Head of Studio at ATW; Ema Shin, 2026 Biennale of Sydney artist; and Anna Dunnill, winner of the 2024 Kate Derum Award.

❗ Award Announcement: 28 October
🗓 Exhibition: 29 October 2026 – 16 January 2027
📍 Australian Tapestry Workshop
👟 262 - 266 Park St, South Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

22/09/2026

What’s it like being an Artist in Residence at ATW? Jackson Farley shares his experience.

Thinking about applying for the 2027 Residency Program? Jackson says why wouldn’t you!

Find out more at www.austapestry.com.au/2027AIR

Applications close Monday 12 October, 5pm AEST.

Address

262-266 Park Street
South Melbourne, VIC
3205

Opening Hours

Thursday	10am - 5pm
Friday	10am - 5pm
Saturday	10am - 5pm

Website

http://www.austapestry.com.au/

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