On in Manningham Art Gallery's Curio display window, this small exhibition of works by Anni Hagberg and Rhys Cousins extends the artists' recent exhibitions in the gallery, exploring and playing with materials in innovative and exciting ways.

The display pairs silk prints of finely detailed photographs of non-descript textures by Cousins with a collection of amorphous ceramic and mixed media objects created through experimental firings by Hagberg.

Together, the items speak to the artists' shared interest in everyday, discarded or otherwise forgotten materials and surfaces of modern urban environments and how they interact in myriad ways.

Curio is accessible at the south-eastern corner of Manningham City Square (MC Square), 687 Doncaster Road, Doncaster VIC 3108.

Join award winning visual artist Bridget Hillebrand and Sonja Ross from BirdLife Melbourne as they share their knowledge and passion for the ecology of the Birraung (Yarra River).

Bridget will reveal insights into the creation of her immersive, site specific installation ‘River’. Sonja will discuss some of the ways we can best support the habitat and needs of Australia’s native birds.

Spaces are limited, please register via Eventbrite.

The Yaluk Langa Community Day at Heide Museum of Modern Art will celebrate the continuing creative culture and traditions of the Wurundjeri Woiwurrung people , Heide's traditional owners.

Bring your picnic for this free community day, and learn about the Indigenous history of the local landscape and the role everyone can plan in caring for Country.

Wurundjeri Elders will share stories around the cultural practice behind the recent tree scarring and shield projects, funded by Manningham Council, and lead art making activities and the planting of native grasses in Yaluk Langa.

Photograph credit: Clytie Meredith 

kose karu kin is a special project led by Manningham resident, Grace Dlabik. Connecting indigenous women and non-binary folk through clay making using memory, embodiment, nurture, nourishment, and connection. kose karu kin invites you to view the cyclical nature of the materials used in this project, from raw clay, and traditional practices, to shared experiences within community.

kose karu kin (detail view). Photo by Dan Elborne. Image courtesy of Grace Dlabik.

Our introduction to wheelwork class is a hands on experience where you'll learn the art of making on the pottery wheel.

Our experienced teacher Tracey will guide you through the process of learning the basic skills to begin throwing on the wheel to create pottery. 

Your pieces will then be trimmed, fired, glazed, and will be ready to collect a few weeks after the workshop. We offer a safe and fun environment where you can let your creativity blossom.

When: Tuesday 15 April, 2025

Time: 6.00pm to 8.30pm

An exhibition exploring works by several exceptional emerging artists, whose practices examine our natural environment from an aerial perspective, homing in on materials and subjects often overlooked.

These artists push, capture, map and rework the everyday. Through this process, pieces of refinement and polished simplicity form, like Rhys Cousins’ Plank and Brick. Or waste materials transform into rough jewel like sculptures as seen across Anni Hagberg’s works.

A highlight of the exhibition is Wurundjeri Artist Ash Firebrace’s Possum Skin Cloak he produced in collaboration with his sister Michelle Mills.

Interwoven throughout our space, are ceramic pieces from the Manningham Art Collection. A revisiting of works old and new.

Matthew Dunne is an artist and writer living and working in Melbourne, Australia.

The Killing Sink is a response to the deliberate killing of Wedge-Tailed Eagles in Victoria. Using the trial of Murray James Silvester, who pleaded guilty to killing over 400 eagles, as a starting point, the project traces the history of the practice, the animals killed and the geography of the crimes.

The Killing Sink acts as both a public celebration of eagles and a eulogy for what’s been taken, focusing on how we relate to the nature around us. Part true crime and part psychogeography, The Killing Sink asks what has been lost and how far have we really come?

Installation View, Manningham Art Gallery, February 2022. Photo by Matthew Dunne. 

Between the Details: Video Art from the ACMI Collection presents Bayi Gardiya - Singing Desert by Dr Christian Thompson AO

In this 360-degree video experience, Christian Thompson invites audiences to walk through the landscape of his childhood. Here they will witness a simple yet profound aesthetic gesture of the artist singing in his traditional Bidjara language, a recognised lost language. 

“If I sing even one word of our language, which is considered an extinct or lost language, then it can’t be described as such, because it is being presented as a living language within the art context” - Christian Thompson

See the full program at Between the Details: Video Art from the ACMI Collection. 

For further information contact Manningham Art Gallery, gallery@manningham.vic.gov.au or call 9840 9367. 

Photo caption: Bayi Gardiya (Singing Desert), 2019 (video still). Photo credit: Christian Thompson 

An ACMI touring exhibition
The works in this exhibition are commissioned by ACMI, Artbank, Bundanon Trust, Carriageworks, City of Melbourne, Melbourne Art Foundation, Professor Cav. Simon Mordant AO and Catriona Mordant AM, John Allsopp (Web Directions) and assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts.

Artist Soyoun Kim interplays the approximate sound of words, 'tongues' and 'tongs', drawn from her experience and perspective as a Korean-Australian immigrant whose mother tongue is not English.

Through a multisensory display of works of various mediums, including sound, video, scented tongue candles, porcelain, terracotta, bronze, and screen print, the exhibition aims to evoke the emotional effects of the lost translation of language and culture.

Image courtesy of the Artist.

Join award winning visual artist Bridget Hillebrand and Charlotte Sterrett from Yarra Riverkeeper Association as they share their knowledge and passion to promote river connection and care.

Bridget will reveal insights into the creation of her immersive, site-specific installation ‘River’ and Charlotte will discuss ways in which we can all help achieve a healthy, protected and loved Birrarung (Yarra River).

Registration for this event is not required.

Photo by Charlie Kinross. 

Flux is a showcase of Anni Hagberg’s research into the use of unpredictable and fluid combinations of materials in art making and the implications it has on understandings of authorial control. In her ceramic practice, Hagberg fires clay and a range of ‘waste’ materials such as broken glass, discarded steel and dried out glaze to encourage a range of dynamic and unexpected results.

On the one hand, the abstract forms Hagberg produces through this process imitate rubble or decaying architectural features, thereby betraying the secrets of their composition. On the other, they are as familiar and beguiling as any decorative art object, bearing flourishes of colour and captivating textures and patterns.

By approaching materials and processes as co-contributors, Flux seeks to question the idea of individual creative genius, highlighting the gulf that can lie between what an artist intends or imagines their work will look like and what it ends up being. As well, by elevating materials that are otherwise valueless to the status of desirable or contemplative object, it contributes to a broader cultural conversation around excessive consumption, waste and equity of access to resources.

Exhibition opening

Featuring opening remarks from Manningham Mayor Cr. Andrew Conlon, as well as Anni Hagberg in conversation with Manningham Art Gallery curator, Davey Warnock, and concurrent exhibitor Rhys Cousins.

When: Saturday 28 August 2.00pm to 3.30pm.
Cost: This is a free event but places are limited.

Ceramics Masterclass: Making Art From Waste

Join ceramic artist Anni Hagberg to discover a whole new world of ceramics. This two-session workshop for adults will encourage the participants to play and experiment with techniques of combining clay with discarded materials and 'waste' to create unique ceramic art.

Workshop Dates:

Saturday 11 September, 2.00pm to 4.00pm

Saturday 18 September, 2.00pm to 4.00pm

Price: $40 full / $32 concession. 

All visitors to Manningham Art Gallery will be required to register their attendance via QR Code upon arrival and comply with current COVID-19 guidelines, including social distancing and the wearing of face masks when social distancing cannot be practiced.

For more information, contact Arts Manningham on 03 9840 9382 or via gallery@manningham.vic.gov.au

Images: Anni Hagberg, Flux XI (detail), 2021, porcelain, raku, steel, glass, stain, fibreglass, glaze, 21 x 23 x 25cm and Reciprocity, 2021, Raku, glass, steel wool, glaze. Photos by Janelle Low.

More Information

Manningham Art Gallery

Located at the entrance to MC Square, Manningham Art Gallery presents a diverse range of contemporary art exhibitions and related public programs throughout the year. See all upcoming exhibitions.

Play with optical filters, colour and light to create a blossom that will delight.  

Join the creative team Skunk Control for a fun workshop to create small flower sculptures. You will use optical filters that cast colour shadows in sunlight and create a flower about to bloom. 

In 2023, Skunk Control will be creating a public artwork for a new park in Hepburn Road Doncaster. As part of this project, they are engaging with the community to create these flowers.  

The flowers will be displayed at MC Square and planted for a time at the new park as part of the public artwork.  

Ages: Suitable for those aged 10+

As part of Australian Heritage Festival 2024, Doncaster Templestowe Historical Society presents an exhibition of kitchen implements, tools and appliances used from the mid-1800s through to the early part of the 20th Century.

Ramak Bamzar, a Melbourne-based Iranian photographer, blends art historical influences with a meticulous focus on colour, texture, and lighting. Her work explores themes of gender identity, geographical determinism, culture, and environment, all characterised by thoughtful compositions.

In these striking works, the Moustachioed Women and Rhinoplastic Girls from Bamzar’s 2022 series burst out of their imprisoning frames to capture a moment in the ongoing struggle, intertwining with the essence of Iranian culture and heritage. Through the integration of poetic motifs, epic themes, and historical allusions, the images go beyond mere documentation, offering a profound insight into the resilience and determination of Iranian women.

The Vigil – Crying for a Man I Never Met, 2022. Ramak Bamzar. Image courtesy of the Artist.

A one-off workshop exploring the use of mixed-media in painting, driven by Gidley's passion for vibrancy and colour in art. Suitable for painters of all ages and abilities.

Presented by the Doncaster Templestowe Artists Society.

Supported by Manningham Council's Community Grants Program.

Come on down to the Doncaster Playhouse over the September/October school holidays for Playhouse Pantomimes’ original musical adaptation of Jack and the Beanstalk. 

There will be songs, audience participation and lots of laughs for the whole family.

Presented by Playhouse Pantomimes.

The Warrandyte Historical Society invite you to come and learn about the discovery of gold in Warrandyte and how it shaped the township and community.

Warrandyte is justifiably proud of its place in the gold history of Victoria. Gold was first discovered at Anderson's Creek in June 1851. It was the first officially published goldfield, named the 'Victoria Field', in honour of the new Colony. It was also the first place in the Colony to issue gold mining licences.

This exhibit celebrates the 170th anniversary of the first discovery by Louis John Michel and his team. You'll find interesting and colourful banners on display inside and outside the Museum, showcasing
 the discovery of gold and how this has shaped the township and community. They share the lure of gold and excitement around the discovery that continues today. 

You can visit to see the outside banners placed on the fence-line of the Museum at any time during the Heritage Festival. To access the banners inside the Museum, please see the exhibition times.

This exhibition is open from 18 April to 22 May 2022.
The indoor exhibition inside the Museum, is open on Sundays, from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm.

There is both on-street parking, and off-road car parks available on Yarra Street.