VICTORIAN FIRST PEOPLES ART & DESIGN FAIR SHOWCASE
In 2025 Melbourne Art Fair welcomes the showcase exhibition of the Victorian First Peoples Art and Design Fair, featuring the work of 20 independent Victorian First Peoples artists, along with Baluk Arts, Kaiela Arts, Perridak Arts and The Torch.
An initiative of the Victorian Government’s Creative State strategy and driven by the Creative Victoria First Peoples Directions Circle, the Victorian First Peoples Art and Design Fair aims to promote and build the market for the extraordinary work of Victoria’s First People creatives.
The event will officially launch in 2027 and will be timed to coincide with Melbourne Art Fair.
Discover participating art centres and artists below.
Independent Artists
The Victorian First People’s Art & Design Fair will shine a light on the diverse and rich creative practices and culture of First Peoples throughout Victoria, while engaging the broader Victorian community and delivering economic benefits to First Peoples creatives, enabling the artists and designers to expand their business practices, platform new ideas and bold new works, and strengthen the First Peoples creative industries here in Victoria.
As part of the 2025 exhibition showcase at Melbourne Art Fair, the work of 20 independent First Nations artists will be exhibited. Featured artists will include:
Moorina Bonini (Yorta Yorta, Wurundjeri, Wiradjuri)
Lorraine Brigdale (Yorta Yorta)
Glennys Briggs (Yorta Yorta, Taungurung, Wiradjuri)
Janet Bromley (Yorta Yorta)
Bradley Brown (Gunditjmara, Gunai Kurnai, Bidawal)
Trina Dalton-Oogjes (Wadawurrung/Wathaurung, Gunditjmara)
Talgium Edwards (Taungurong, Yorta Yorta, Muthi Muthi, Boonwerung and Palawa)
Deanne Gilson (Wadawurrung)
Tammy Gilson (Wadawurrung)
ENOKi (Dja Dja Wurrung, Yorta Yorta)
Gail Harradine (Wotjobaluk, Djubagalk, Jadawadjali)
Kelly Koumalatsos (Wergaia, Wamba Wamba)
Glenda Nicholls (Waddi Waddi, Ngarrindjeri, Yorta Yorta)
Ray Thomas (Gunnai)
Aunty Zeta Thomson (Wurundjeri, Yorta Yorta, Wemba Wemba, Wuradjeri)
Aunty Kim Wandin (Wurundjeri)
Lewis Wandin-Bursill (Wurundjeri)
Peter Waples-Crowe (Ngarigo)
Lisa Waup (Gunditjmara, Torres Strait)
Walter Saunders (Dhauwurd Wurrung)
Kellie Frankland-Saunders (Dhauwurd Wurrung)
Christine Pearce (Dhauwurd Wurrung)
All Kilcarer and Gilga Gunditj (Dhauwurd Wurrung)
Gunditjmara Original Custodians
VFPADF COMMISSION
Mitch Mahoney (Boonwurrung, Barkandji)
Deanne Gilson, Kunuwarra Ngarrimili (Me, Dancing the Black Swan Dance at Murrup Laarr, our stone circle gathering place), 2022, yellow and red ochre, charcoal and acrylic on linen, 65 x 65cm. Photo by Andrew Wilson. Art Gallery of Ballarat. Art Centres
BALUK ARTS
Baluk Arts is an Aboriginal owned and led community arts centre and gallery, the only of its kind in the southeast of the state. Based in Mount Eliza, the gateway to the captivating Mornington Peninsula, Baluk Arts supports artistic, career and audience development for Aboriginal artist members from the southeast and wider Australia. Artworks reflect themes of identity in a contemporary cultural context. Baluk Arts encourages artistic excellence, community development, leadership, participation and interaction through innovative arts practices. Baluk Arts programs foster a deeper understanding of Aboriginal arts.
At the showcase, they will present works by Adam Magennis (Bunurong) and Iluka Sax-Williams (Taungurung).
KAIELA ARTS
Established in 2006, Kaiela Arts is an Aboriginal art centre located in Shepparton on the traditional lands of the Yorta Yorta Nation. The centre’s work drives important outcomes for both the artists and the broader Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal community. Kaiela Arts provides an accessible studio and social space for local Aboriginal artists to connect, create and share art with everyone. Kaiela Arts is a welcoming environment in which to connect and learn about local Aboriginal culture and acquire Aboriginal artwork.
At the showcase, the centre will present works by Jack Anselmi (Yorta Yorta), Ally Knight (Yorta Yorta, Dja Dja Wurrung, Kamilaroi), Norm Yakaduna Stewart (Kwat Kwat, Wurundjeri, Yalaba Yalaba, Moira) along with a ceramics presentation by Cynthia Hardie, Laurel Robinson, Amy Briggs, Rochelle Patten, Lyn Thorpe, and Melinda Solomon
PERRIDAK ARTS
Perridak Arts was established in 2023 by the Ballarat & District Aboriginal Cooperative (BADAC), after a need was identified for local First Nations artists to develop a venue to sell and display their art. BADAC provides programs and supports to First Nation’s people in the local area and employ over 200 staff and continues to be an important provider of employment and support to the local First Nation’s community. BADAC is proud that Perridak Arts is another step forward on the path to self-determination for all First Nation’s people.
As part of the VFPADF showcase, the centre will feature works by Donna Blackall (Yorta Yorta, Taungurung) and Adrian Rigney (Wotjobaluk, Ngarrindjeri);
THE TORCH
Since June 2011 The Torch has been providing art, cultural and arts industry support to Indigenous offenders and ex-offenders in Victoria through its Indigenous Arts in Prisons and Community program. The Torch supports Indigenous men and women both in prisons and post-release in Victoria to explore their Indigenous culture and identity through practising art. The Torch’s major annual exhibitions are Confined and Future Dreaming. Exhibitions provide opportunities for participants in The Torch program to redefine themselves as artists and to generate income through selling artwork.
As part of the showcase, The Torch will present works by Alfred Carter (Gunaikurnai), Stacey Edwards (Taungurung, Boon Wurrung), Ash Thomas (Yorta Yorta, Wiradjuri) and Robby Wirramanda (Wergaia, Wotjobaluk).
VFPADF Commission
The inaugural VFPADF Commission has been awarded to Mitch Mahoney (Boon Wurrung, Barkindji) and will premiere at Melbourne Art Fair.
Mitch Mahoney
Born 1997 on Ladji Ladji Country in Mildura VIC
Lives and works on Wonnarua Country in Hunter Valley NSW
Born in North-West Victoria along the banks of the Murray River, Mitch Mahoney is a Boonwurrung/Barkindji artist who grew up in Mildura and the Hunter Valley. He currently splits his time between Melbourne and regional NSW. As a multidisciplinary artist, Mitch focuses on the revitalisation of South-Eastern Aboriginal practices, creating cultural items such as possum skin cloaks, traditional stringy bark and red gum canoes, and kangaroo tooth necklaces. He also specialises in line drawings and South-Eastern Aboriginal design. His art reflects his Country and the natural connection he feels to all that it supports, creates and provides, and the ever-changing influence it has on him.
Gurnbak (Goodoo, Mulloway, Long tail), 2024-25
This work speaks to three distinct fish and their importance on Country, Goodoo the Murray Cod (freshwater), Mulloway (estuary), and Longtail Tuna (saltwater). These fish, as apex predators in their respective ecosystems, are vital indicators of environmental health and carry cultural and ecological significance. The methods of acquisition emphasize diverse human interactions with fishing: the Murray Cod, sourced from a fish farm, talks about the importance of conserving wild populations; the Longtail Tuna, caught personally, reflects time spent on Country, learning about the waterways and seasons; and the Mulloway, purchased from commercial fisheries, highlights the complexities of large-scale operations. Each method brings unique insights and challenges, sparking conversations about ethical fishing, sustainable resource management, and the ways we connect with Country. The work ultimately underscores the interconnectedness of Country, ecological balance, and human responsibility.
VIDEO Program
Moorina Bonini (Wurundjeri, Yorta Yorta)
Gowidja (After), 2021
video, 7:30 minutes
Courtesy the artist.
Jarra Karalinar Steel (Boon Wurrung, Wemba Wemba, Trawlwoolway)
Baanyabeel (Allambee biik baany), Tidal Volume – call and response, 2021
Single channel digital video, 2:02 minutes
Commissioned by Footscray Community Arts Centre.
Courtesy the artist.
WARREENY, Tidal Volume – call and response, 2021
Single channel digital video, 2:05 minutes
Commissioned by Footscray Community Arts Centre.
Courtesy the artist.
Yaluk-ut Weelam, Tidal Volume – call and response, 2021
Single channel digital video, 2:08 minutes
Commissioned by Footscray Community Arts Centre.
Courtesy the artist.
ENOKi (Dja Dja Wurrung, Yorta Yorta) and Bby J (Ngiyampaa)
Blak Neon Future, 2023
digital 3D animation, 2 minutes
Commissioned by Yirramboi.
Courtesy the artists.
Djirri Djirri Wurundjeri Women’s Dance Group (Wurundjeri Country)
Wominjeka / Welcome Video, 2018-20
single channel video, 2:26 minutes
Videography: Ryan Tews
Courtesy the artists.
Steven Rhall (Taungurung)
Better Call Rhall Artist Services, 2024
MP4, 1080p, stereo sound, 0:58 minutes
Courtesy the artist.
Rhall as Chris Burden Commercials, 2020
MP4, 480p, stereo sound, 1:52 minutes
Courtesy the artist.
Peter Waples-Crowe (Ngarigo) and Rhian Hinkley
NGAYA (I AM), 2022
Single channel video, 5:04 minutes
Commissioned by Australian Centre of the Moving Image
Courtesy the artist.
@melbourneartfair
