Supporting students and teachers to engage with Craft’s exhibitions, in 2024 we will be offering free 30-minute educational tours for each of our exhibitions during the academic year.
Tours are led by one of our curatorial or programs staff and will provide students and educators with a deeper insight into the exhibitions, works, artists and techniques on display. With sufficient prior notice (min. 2 weeks), we are happy to tailor the walkthroughs to aspects relevant to course content, including exhibition works, concepts/themes, curation, and exhibition design.
On request, we are also happy to discuss arranging for one of the exhibiting artists/guest curators to give a private talk to the group; however, speaker fees will apply for such engagements. Please get in touch to discuss further.
Tours are available to be scheduled between Mon-Fri 10am-4pm with allocated weeks and last-day to book in outlined below.
To book in a tour or discuss further, please email Program and Engagement Coordinator, Anni Hagberg anni@craft.org.au.
Fresh!
Celebrating the next wave of Victorian graduates in contemporary craft and design. Presented annually since 1993, ‘Fresh!’ showcases the energy, skill and innovation of some of the best graduating students from craft, design and fine art disciplines throughout the state. ‘Fresh!’ provides an important opportunity for graduates beginning their career as makers. The exhibition fosters the potential of graduating students and provides an insight into new directions of contemporary craft.
Tours available: March 4-8, 2024, Mon-Fri 10am-4pm
Last day to book: Feb 19, 2024
Pet Shop / Animals deserve good design too.
‘Pet Shop’ is an exhibition exploring the paraphernalia and accoutrement dedicated to pet animals, wild-life, and animal husbandry. The exhibition considers our coexistence with animals and how we have adapted our living spaces to accommodate their needs and habits in objects of craft and design. Wild, domesticated, or agricultural, we live in proximity with animals in one way or another. This exhibition includes works from the practical to the ridiculous and indulgent, because… animals deserve good design too.
Tours available: April 15-19, 2024, Mon-Fri 10am-4pm
Last day to book: Apr 1, 2024
‘All In Aluminium’ is a single material exploration. Six artists, makers and designers respond to the allure, practicality, and ethics of aluminium and showcase the versatile applications of this metal within contemporary material practice. Exhibitors use exclusively recycled aluminium to produce sculptural and practical objects of design as expressions of the material’s capabilities. The exhibition brings attention to the complexities of aluminium use, particularly within craft and design and encourages the broader design industries to follow suit and be more mindful of material provenance.
Tours available: May 13-17, 2024, Mon-Fri 10am-4pm
Last day to book: Apr 29, 2024
The First Peoples-led exhibition series is an initiative established by Craft in 2020 to support the development of contemporary First Nations curatorial practice within craft and design. The annual program engages a curator, collective and/or practicing artist of Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander descent to develop and curate an exhibition within Craft's main gallery. The invited curator is selected through consultation with an advisory panel of First Nations artists and/or industry professionals to ensure the program is First Nations-led and is representative of cultural practices and protocols. Kait James is the curator of the 2024 First Peoples-led exhibition, Moombarra.
Tours available: July 29-August 2, 2024, Mon-Fri 10am-4pm
Last day to book: Jul 15, 2024
‘Luminosity’ presents the work of four artists engaging with light through material practice. This exhibition explores light as relational; perceived through its interactions with objects and space. Surface, texture and form are as much directors of light as they are subjects. Drawing from a specialist understanding of their craft and deep material knowledge, each artist creates works that anticipate the behaviour of light, manipulating its unique properties and spectral effects. Works play with transmittance, refraction and reflection, capturing light's emotive and sensory possibilities.
Tours available: September 16-20, 2024, Mon-Fri 10am-4pm
Last day to book: Sept 2, 2024
Masters of Material (working title)
Masters of Material celebrates the work, skill and achievements of exceptional craft-based practitioners. The exhibition will showcase three masters working within a singular materiality.
Tours available: October 7-11, 2024, Mon-Fri 10am-4pm
Last day to book: Sept 23, 2024
Image credit: Bernard Wright