New England Regional Art Museum

Term 1 2026 | Studio Art Group
2026-01-29 10:00 (Australia/Sydney)
A weekly, self-directed, painting and drawing group for experienced artists. Meeting once a week in Packsaddle Studio (located at the rear of the NERAM building) this is an opportunity to come work alongside other experienced artists, network, learn and be inspired. This class does not have a regular tutor but each week, the session finishes with a group critique to review the day’s efforts and give and receive feedback.
Dates | Thursday 29 January – 2 April (10 weeks)
Time | 10am – 3pm
Venue | Packsaddle Studio, located at the back of NERAM. External access only.
Cost | $130
Materials | BYO
Min 8/Max 19

For more information please email foh@neram.dev.nucleoserver.com

Terms and Conditions

All bookings for events, art classes and workshops require payment in full at the time of booking
A minimum number of 8 students required for classes to proceed, please book and pay to ensure classes go ahead.
Please be aware that once bookings close, we are unable to offer a refund.
If the class does not proceed, you will be refunded any cash amount.
NERAM events have a limited capacity and use a ticketing system. Bookings are essential.
Student contact details may be passed on to facilitators for communication purposes.

Term 1 2026 | Wednesday Art Class with Kerry Gulliver
2026-01-28 10:00
Enjoy the stimulus of doing art in a group.
While individual guidance comprises the main bulk of the class, I will also be doing regular demonstrations on anything related to painting and drawing, such as collage, paint transfer, frottage, sgraffito, dry brushing, stencilling, and more. If you are new to art I can help you get started on the basics, such as looking at line, colour, perspective.
You are welcome to join the class no matter what your skill levels are. If you are unsure of the how to begin, just turn up on the first day and I can help determine the best approach for you.
The class is quite casual, with many of the ongoing students working on their own projects, taking guidance as needed.
Kerry Gulliver is a skilled artist and educator who has exhibited regularly in Armidale, Sydney, and Tamworth. She has trained in visual arts, animation, colour theory, and graphic design; she works regularly with community and other groups to run a range of art courses.
Dates | Wednesday January 28 – Wednesday April 1 (10 weeks)

Time | 10:00am – 3:00pm
Venue | Packsaddle Studio (located at the rear of NERAM )
Cost | Friends of NERAM/Culture Club Members – $329, General – $362
Materials | BYO – please see below for a list of recommended supplies
Min 10/Max 18

For more information please email foh@neram.dev.nucleoserver.com
Image | Courtesy of Kerry Gulliver

Materials required for class:

Bring any reference material that inspires you, whether photographic, or of other artwork. It’s a good way to get started. I have on display art books for referencing also. If you like to draw bring Cartridge paper (A3 or A4 size), pencils in a range of hardness (but more in the soft range), rubbers, crayons, coloured pencils and any other materials that you like to work with.
For painting, acrylic paint is the most practical (some people are using oils or watercolours). You will also need brushes, canvas or paper. Heavier papers are better to paint on, such as 180gsm or higher. I like the medium or rough textured paper. Cheaper paper is OK for experimentation.
Terms and Conditions

All bookings for events, art classes and workshops require payment in full at the time of booking
A minimum number of 10 students required for classes to proceed, please book and pay by Thursday 22nd January to ensure classes go ahead
Please be aware that once bookings close, we are unable to offer a refund
If the class does not proceed, you will be refunded any cash amount
NERAM events have a limited capacity and use a ticketing system. Bookings are essential
Student contact details may be passed on to facilitators for communication purposes

Art in Black Gully | Summer Holiday Workshop
2026-01-21 09:00 - 22:15
Immerse yourself in the landscape of the Black Gully reserve near NERAM these school holidays. Explore the wonderful world of en plein air – painting or drawing in the natural light – to capture the colours, light, shapes and special features found in nature.
Kate from Three Pees Creations will lead kids of all ages in this fun workshop. Materials will be supplied but you are welcome to bring your favourite art materials along if you prefer!
Make sure to wear a hat, bring a water bottle and your curiosity!
DATE: Wednesday 21 January 2026
TIME: 9.00am – 10.15am
VENUE: The Black Gully, outside Packsaddle Studio NERAM
AGES: 6+
COST: General Price $33, FoN/CC member Price $30

Terms and Conditions

All bookings for events, art classes and workshops require payment in full at the time of booking
A minimum number of 8 students required for classes to proceed
Please be aware that once bookings close, we are unable to offer a refund
If the class does not proceed, you will be refunded any cash amount
NERAM events have a limited capacity and use a ticketing system. Bookings are essential
Student contact details may be passed on to facilitators for communication purposes

Open Clay Days | Summer Holiday Workshop
2026-01-20 14:00 - 2026-01-22 15:15
This is a ‘creator led’ workshop, where kids will learn the basics of hand building clay, and be able to create their very own clay creation to take home. From planning the design and building it with the clay, to painting and finally varnishing it, they will learn everything they need to sculpt their masterpiece!
This is a very fun open play class led by Kate from Three Pees Creative, that not only engages but challenges their skills for a rewarding outcome. Run over three consecutive afternoons with all materials included!
DATES: Three afternoon sessions included, Tuesday 20, Wednesday 21 & Thursday 22 January 2026
TIME: 2.00 – 3.15pm
VENUE: Packsaddle Studio at NERAM
AGES: 6+
COST: General Price $75, FoN/CC member Price $68
Min 8 – Max 14 students
Book before Thursday January 15 to ensure the workshop goes ahead.

Terms and Conditions

All bookings for events, art classes and workshops require payment in full at the time of booking
A minimum number of 8 students required for workshop to proceed, please book before 9am Thursday January 15 2026
Please be aware that once bookings close, we are unable to offer a refund
If the workshop does not proceed, you will be refunded any cash amount
NERAM events have a limited capacity and use a ticketing system. Bookings are essential
Student contact details may be passed on to facilitators for communication purposes

Artist Talk: Rowen Matthews
2026-01-17 10:30 - 11:30
Join us for an in-conversation between exhibiting artist Rowen Matthews and NERAM Director Rachael Parsons as they discuss Matthews stunning exhibition Water.
Through his luminous and meditative paintings, Rowen Matthews explores the distinctive landscapes of the New England highlands through the elemental theme of water. Focusing on the region’s many dams—iconic features that shape both ecology and imagination—Matthews reflects on how these bodies of water hold memory, sustain life, and mirror shifting skies. His work captures the delicate interplay between environment, identity and belonging, shaped by more than three decades of living and working in Armidale. Water is both an artistic and personal journey, offering a contemplative view of landscape as a site of renewal, reflection and deep connection.

Image: Rowen Matthews, Water (exhibition view), 2025.

Paper Mâché | Summer Holiday Workshop
2026-01-15 10:30 - 12:00
Workshop activity:
Children will create their own paper mâché fish sculpture, using recycled materials, paper and paste to build a 3D form. They’ll explore shape, texture and pattern while designing a unique sea creature. The focus will be on hands-on making and creative process rather than a finished painted piece, as sculptures will need time to dry before painting. Visual examples and creative prompts will be provided for this activity, however children are welcome to come with an idea in mind if they already have something they’d like to make.
All materials will be supplied
DATES: Thursday 15th January 2026
TIME: 10.30 – 12.00pm
VENUE: Packsaddle Studio at NERAM
AGES: 6+
COST: General Price $28, FoN/CC member Price $25
Min 8 – Max 12 students

Terms and Conditions

All bookings for events, art classes and workshops require payment in full at the time of booking
A minimum number of 8 students required for workshop to proceed, please book before 9am Tuesday January 13 2026
Please be aware that once bookings close, we are unable to offer a refund
If the workshop does not proceed, you will be refunded any cash amount
NERAM events have a limited capacity and use a ticketing system. Bookings are essential
Student contact details may be passed on to facilitators for communication purposes

New Horizons - Emerging Voices in Landscape
2025-12-12 08:00 - 2026-02-02 17:00
APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED: New Horizons – Emerging Voices in Landscape
NERAM is calling for Expressions of Interest from emerging regional NSW artists to take part in New Horizons: Emerging Voices in Landscape, a ten-month mentorship and exhibition program designed to support the next generation of regional creative practitioners.
Developed by the New England Regional Art Museum (NERAM), this unique professional development opportunity will pair up to five emerging artists with acclaimed Australian painter Angus Nivison for an immersive creative mentorship, culminating in a public exhibition presented alongside Nivison’s major retrospective at NERAM in 2026.

About the Program
Over ten months, selected artists will engage in:

A five-day intensive at NERAM and Nivison’s Walcha studio, including a masterclass, guided discussion, and one-on-one mentoring
Ongoing remote mentorship and creative feedback sessions
Curatorial and professional development support from NERAM’s staff—including artist statements, writing, exhibition preparation, and career planning
Opportunities to participate in public programs, an artist panel, education activities, and digital storytelling
A group exhibition of new work at NERAM presented in dialogue with a major Angus Nivison retrospective

Artists will receive:

Residency Stipend
Exhibition Fee
Travel assistance
Professional documentation of the program
Project catalogue
Mentored support from industry-leading practitioners

Who Can Apply
This EOI is open to:
• Emerging artists (first 10 years of practice)
• Living and working in regional NSW
• Working in any visual arts medium who’s subject or inspiration is the landscape (can be non-representational)
• Seeking to expand skills, networks, and professional experience
NERAM strongly encourages applications from First Nations artists and artists from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse backgrounds, with at least one program place prioritised for these communities.

Key Dates

EOI Open: 12 December 2025
EOI Close: Extended to 2 February 2026
Artist Selection Announced: February 2026
On-site intensive: 23 – 27 March (artists must be available to attend the on-site intensive)
Ongoing remote mentorship: April – September 2026
Angus Nivison Retrospective: 31 July – 18 October
New Horizons Exhibition: 2 October – 8 November (Opening night Friday 2 October)

How to Apply
Applicants are asked to provide:
• A short artist statement
• A brief CV
• Up to 10 examples of recent work
• A brief description of how the mentorship will support their practice (max 300 words)
Applications are to be sent to gallery@neram.dev.nucleoserver.com by COB 2nd February 2026
Applications will be reviewed by a panel including NERAM representatives and project partners.

Angus Nivison is an Australian contemporary painter, renowned for his evocative, atmospheric explorations of landscape and memory. Based near Walcha in the New England region of NSW, Nivison has developed a distinguished career spanning more than five decades, with work held in major public and private collections across the country, including the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Newcastle art Gallery, the Australia Club and New England Regional Art Museum.
Nivison’s large-scale paintings capture the emotional and elemental forces of place. He is celebrated for his ability to translate his experience of the landscape into abstract, gestural, and deeply expressive visual language.
Nivison is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Wynne Prize (2002), and has exhibited extensively in solo and group exhibitions nationally and internationally. His long-standing commitment to regional arts practice make him an exceptional mentor for emerging regional artists.
His upcoming major retrospective at NERAM in 2026 will highlight the breadth and impact of his contribution to Australian art, offering a unique opportunity for mentees to learn from an artist of remarkable depth and experience.

The New Horizons Program is supported by the Australian Government through the Regional Arts Fund, and the Country Arts Support Program administered by Arts North West.

Image: Angus Nivison, Yalgoolygum, 2003, acrylic & charcoal on canvas.

NADIGA (at the Armidale Showground)
2025-12-05 11:00 - 17:00
NADIGA means walk in Anaiwan. It is also the title of a day-long exhibition by Anaiwan artist Gabi Briggs at the Armidale Showground. The notion that walking Country is a form of knowledge-regeneration underpins three works: GEDYURA, TENYA, and ARKAN & IRBELA. These have only ever been shown in Melbourne on Wurundjeri Country and as such, their journey to Armidale can be understood as a return home. This exhibition forms a key component of her PhD research.
In Gabi’s research, walking and the artworks that emerge from it are inseparable. The works grow from the movement, listening, and remembering that happen while walking on Country. This approach is grounded in her grandmother Patsy Cohen’s book, Ingelba and the Five Black Matriarchs (1990), where walking emerges as a cultural practice and research methodology. Gabi extends this lineage in her own practice– through walking, rearticulating and continuing her nan’s work in embodied, relational ways.
The Armidale showground is entwined with this history of movement. Ingelba was once positioned in relation to the broader world through the walk to the Armidale Show. Under colonial control their movement became restricted, with authorities able to order the removal of Aboriginal people from towns. Now the Showground is being returned to Ingelba’s relational frame through the artworks, the gathering, and the planned walk that will culminate here.
NADIGA forms part of a longer project – to eventually walk Country with kin, particularly the 100km path from the former Ingelba Aboriginal Reserve to the Armidale showground. As such, NADIGA brings family together to prepare for the journey, to deepen a shared understanding that movement across Country is an ongoing cultural practice, and a mode of knowledge-making that persists despite colonial interruption.

Image: Poster designed by Marilena Hewitt

Museum Store Sunday
2025-11-30 10:00 - 16:00
On Sunday, November 30 2025, more than 2100 Museum Stores representing 25 countries, and five continents will offer relaxing, inspired shopping inside your favorite museums and cultural institutions…showcasing broad assortments of highly curated, unique, mission-specific gifts. From books to jewellery to children’s products to home accessories and gourmet food, there is something for everyone. Shop knowing you are supporting the missions and programs of each participating museum and cultural institution.
NERAM will be joining other museum and gallery shops around the world for Museum Store Sunday
With Christmas around the corner, we invite you to “shop with purpose” at your local art museum shop. Your custom will help us sustain the programs and services we provide to our community.
All day 20% shop discount (except alcohol)
50% Discount Table
Spend over $30 to go into the draw for a hamper valued at $100 or voucher for $100
Lucky Door Prize
Free Gift Wrapping
Christmas Craft activity for Kids
We look forward to seeing you between 10am – 4pm to enjoy a little Christmas shopping!

Painting masterclass with Rowen Matthews
2025-11-22 10:00 - 2025-11-23 16:00
Coinciding with his exhibition Water, on show at NERAM this summer, we are delighted to present a painting masterclass with Rowen Matthews. Ideal for experienced artists, this 2-day workshop delves into Rowen’s well-known painterly style.
Starting with a guided tour of the exhibition, participants will gain a unique insight into the artist’s painting process. Afterward, in the Packsaddle studio, Rowen will demonstrate his painting techniques and encourage everyone to explore their own sense of place using paint, brushes, and palette knives.
Materials for participants to bring: Heavy-bodied acrylic paint or oil paint will be suitable. Brushes & palette knives. Stretched canvas is recommended or good quality, heavy weight paper suitable for painting.
DATE | Saturday 22 & Sunday 23 November
VENUE | Packsaddle studio
TIME | 10am -4pm
COST | Friends of NERAM/Culture Club member price $165 General Price $180
Min 8 pp Max 12pp

Terms and Conditions
Please be aware that once bookings close, we are unable to offer a refund. If the masterclass does not proceed, you will be refunded any cash amount.
NERAM events have a limited capacity and use a ticketing system. Bookings are essential.

Packsaddle Lecture: Sundeep Bhandari, The Gondwana Art Project
2025-11-15 10:30 - 11:30
Join us for the final Packsaddle Lecture of 2025 as Sundeep Bhandari, founder-trustee of Craft and Community Development Foundation (CCDF), presents his work on the Gondwana Art Project—a dedicated initiative supporting tribal artists from the Gondwana region of central India (Madhya Pradesh & Maharashtra), working in Gond, Warli and Bhil traditions. In partnership with NERAM’s exhibition Echoes of the Earth: Tribal and Desert Art, the Foundation has collaborated directly with the museum to bring these artists’ voices and works to an Australian audience.
Under the Gondwana Art project, CCDF’s mission is to create a platform for tribal artists to present their work and their perspectives demonstrating their craftsmanship and creativity, introducing new methods and techniques that express both traditional and contemporary imagery and values. In this initiative, CCDF promotes artists and their art form that evolves from the dynamic living traditions. This project offers an invitation to the viewer to discover Gondwana region and artists that epitomise the incomparable diversity of contemporary tribal and popular Indian art.

Sundeep Bhandari, is a New Delhi–based business strategist with over three decades of experience in India’s energy and infrastructure sectors, and is the founder trustee of Craft and Community Development Foundation. He has undertaken several philanthropic projects and was heading the CSR board of Cairn India Ltd. In this role, he was instrumental in establishing community support and development projects across the country including the Centre of Excellence for vocational training in Jodhpur and The Enterprise Centre at Barmer ITI. He established Craft and Community Development Foundation with the aim of up-skilling artisans in different fields across India.
Established in 2008, the Craft and Community Development Foundation (CCDF) is a registered not-for-profit organisation created to support and fund projects that enhance livelihoods for communities in the arts and crafts sector. CCDF’s vision is to undertake initiatives that upskill artisans through the introduction of new concepts and designs while preserving the authenticity of traditional practices and connecting them to new markets. The foundation creates an empowering space that supports specialised crafts by providing training, introducing innovative design elements, and developing market linkages. Through workshops and skill development programs, CCDF works to strengthen artisan communities and improve their overall quality of life.

The Packsaddle Lecture Series invites guest speakers to expound on aspects of Australian and international artistic practices and history, providing the community with an opportunity to explore themes and ideas related to some of the museum’s key collection areas.

Echoes of the Earth: Tribal and Desert Art has been produced in partnership with the Craft and Community Development Foundation, Utopia Art Sydney and Papunya Tula Artists. Sponsored by Origin Energy (Renewable energy and the New England Community Investment Program) the Friends of NERAM

Bookbinding Workshop
2025-11-15 09:30 - 16:00
Spend a day learning bookbinding techniques with travelling bookbinder Janita Ayton. The group will be guided through Japanese stab stitched bookbinding and coptic bookbinding. Book cloth will be provided for covers so it can be blocked/debossed in gold with a blocking machine.
DATE | Saturday November 15
VENUE | Museum of Printing
TIME | 9.30am -4.00pm
COST | Friends of NERAM/Culture club members $165 Non-members price $181
Max participants 8
WORKSHOP OUTLINE
Morning session: Make covers for both book styles. Make a Japanese stab stitched book and gold blocking covers.
Lunch break
Afternoon session: Make coptic book.
Materials to bring:
Materials needed for Japanese stab stitched book: Size can be any within reason, A5 to A4-ish 8 to 15 pages each book. Paper needs to be flexible, less than 110gsm. BYO paper gives participants the option to use existing prints/artwork, or bring blank paper.
Each book needs 2 covers the same size as pages these can be slightly thicker but less than 160 GSM or same as pages.
Materials needed for coptic book: Cover boards around 2mm thick and 6 to 10 mm bigger each way than the pages. The pages can be any size but need to be folded in half so they can be sewn. Up to 10 sheets.
Materials included:
Embroidery cotton for sewing the book is provided, but if people are choosy about colour, please BYO. Book cloth for covers will also be provided, so it can be blocked/debossed in gold.
Book before 9am November 11th, to secure a place.

Performance: The Sign of the Times
2025-11-14 19:00 - 19:30
To coincide with the opening of How to Weather Together, exhibiting artist Henri van Noordenburg and composure Paul Smith will present a live performance in the gallery.
The Sign of the Times project takes outcomes and processes from Henri’s visual art practice and Smith’s composition and practice, and presents them in a performance. Integral to the structure of the work is collaborative improvisation. Each artist responds to the other’s input, and this in turn affects the performance and finished work.
Born in The Netherlands and based in Brisbane, Henri van Noordenburg is a visual artist whose practice merges photography, drawing and performance to explore memory, landscape and belonging. Using a distinctive hand-carved technique inspired by sgraffito, his works have been exhibited internationally, including the Manila Biennale and Scope Basel. He has received multiple awards, and his work is held in major public and private collections including LACMA and NERAM.
Paul Smith (he/they) is a composer and researcher based in Sydney who specialises in writing opera and music for the toy piano. He is Associate Professor of Music at the University of New England. Paul has held composer/performer residencies in Armenia (2018), Italy (2019) and Japan (2024), and he was a featured composer of the inaugural Korean toy piano festival in Seoul. In 2022 he received the ABC Composer Commission Fund to compose three new works for toy piano and recorder which were released by ABC Classics. Paul’s traditional research focuses on the politics of singing and the voice and recent publications explore multilingualism in opera.

Image: Henri van Noordenburg, Composition XCI Arvo Pärt deck, 2024. Hand carved ink on Hahnemühle

Providore: Kim Bizo
2025-11-14 18:00 - 2026-02-01 16:00
Celebrating the joy of gathering, Providore brings together a series of still-life paintings that revel in the simple beauty of food, friendship and home. Continuing the artist’s exploration of pantry and fresh produce as subjects, this vibrant body of work transforms familiar ingredients—cheese boards, olives, pickles, oysters and sourdough—into sensual studies of light, texture and abundance.

Credit: Kim Bizo, Dill Pickles, 2025, acrylic on canvas

WATER: Rowen Matthews
2025-11-14 18:00 - 2026-02-01 16:00
Through his luminous and meditative paintings, Rowen Matthews explores the distinctive landscapes of the New England highlands through the elemental theme of water. Focusing on the region’s many dams—iconic features that shape both ecology and imagination—Matthews reflects on how these bodies of water hold memory, sustain life, and mirror shifting skies. His work captures the delicate interplay between environment, identity and belonging, shaped by more than three decades of living and working in Armidale. Water is both an artistic and personal journey, offering a contemplative view of landscape as a site of renewal, reflection and deep connection.

Credit: Rowen Matthews, Shadow Dam, 2025, oil on canvas

Echoes of the Earth: Tribal and Desert Art
2025-11-14 18:00 - 2026-02-01 16:00
Developed through collaboration between partners in Australia and India, Echoes of the Earth brings together Australian First Nations and Indian tribal artists whose practices bridge continents and traditions. The exhibition celebrates contemporary art grounded in ancestral knowledge, exploring the resonances between cultures shaped by land, spirit, and storytelling. Through painting these artists illuminate resonate cosmologies and living traditions that trace back to the ancient supercontinent of Gondwana. Echoes of the Earth invites audiences to reflect on the enduring creativity that flows through Country and community across time and place.

Credit: Suresh Dhurve, Ann Dai, 2020, acrylic on canvas. Courtesy of the artist and the Craft and Community Development Foundation

Echoes of the Earth: Tribal and Desert Art has been produced in partnership with the Craft and Community Development Foundation, Utopia Art Sydney and Papunya Tula Artists. Sponsored by Origin Energy (Renewable energy and the New England Community Investment Program) the Friends of NERAM

The Garden: Lae Oldmeadow
2025-11-14 18:00 - 2026-01-30 16:00
In his first solo exhibition at NERAM, outsider artist Lae Oldmeadow presents The Garden, a contemplative and tactile installation where nature and culture intertwine. Comprising series of Totems of Contemplation leading to the central sculptural work The Garden, the exhibition evokes the sensation of entering a magical forest. Crafted from palm fibre, sisal, organic cotton and ultramarine paint, Oldmeadow’s totems and wall sculptures explore reverence, resilience and renewal.

Curated by Professor Pedram Khosronjead, Western Sydney University

Credit: Lae Oldmeadow, The Garden (detail), 2010-2025, palm fibre, organic cotton, acrylic paint. Photograph by Nell Schofield.

Opening Night
2025-11-14 18:00 - 20:00
Join us for the opening of five new exhibitions
Echoes of the Earth: Tribal and Desert Art
WATER: Rowen Matthews
Providore: Kim Bizo
How to Weather Together
The Garden: Lae Oldmeadow

Opening Weekend Program
Friday 14th November
5.30pm – Artist Talk: Lae Oldmeadow
6.00pm – Opening Night
6.30pm – Official opening presentation
7.00pm – Performance: The Sign of the Times Henri van Noordenburg and Paul Smith

Saturday 15th November
10.30am – Packsaddle Lecture: Sundeep Bhandari, The Gondwana Art Project

Credit: Suresh Dhurve, Ann Dai, 2020, acrylic on canvas. Courtesy of the artist and the Craft and Community Development Foundation

Echoes of the Earth: Tribal and Desert Art has been produced in partnership with the Craft and Community Development Foundation, Utopia Art Sydney and Papunya Tula Artists. Sponsored by Origin Energy (Renewable energy and the New England Community Investment Program) the Friends of NERAM

Artist Talk: Lae Oldmeadow
2025-11-14 17:30 - 18:00
Join us before the official opening to hear exhibiting artist Lae Oldmeadow in conversation with curator Professor Pedram Khosronejad as they discuss The Garden — Oldmeadow’s debut solo exhibition at NERAM.
In The Garden, outsider artist Lae Oldmeadow creates a contemplative and tactile installation where nature and culture intertwine. A series of Totems of Contemplation leads visitors towards the central sculptural work, The Garden, evoking the sensation of stepping into a magical forest. Crafted from palm fibre, sisal, organic cotton and ultramarine paint, Oldmeadow’s totems and wall sculptures explore themes of reverence, resilience and renewal.

Image: Lae Oldmeadow, Totem of Contemplation # 11 Leaf, 2022. Palm fibre and sisal twine sewn to canvas, acrylic paint

Book Launch: A Portrait of Howard Hinton
2025-11-11 17:00 - 18:00
To mark Howard Hinton’s 159th Birthday we invite you to the launch of A Portrait of Howard Hinton by Margaret Bain.
Who was Howard Hinton — the man behind one of Australia’s greatest art collections? A Portrait of Howard Hinton uncovers the life of this enigmatic philanthropist, moving beyond the familiar image of a shy bachelor who gave away his fortune for art. Drawing on Hinton’s long-lost diary and years of meticulous research, Margaret reveals a vibrant, generous, and deeply connected figure at the heart of Sydney’s cultural scene in the early 20th century.
Join us at NERAM to celebrate the launch of this remarkable new publication that sheds fresh light on the man whose vision helped shape the very foundations of the New England Regional Art Museum. There will be champagne and cake.

COSMOGRAPHIES : A speculative documentary film
2025-11-09 15:00 - 17:15
The struggle for environmental justice against ongoing forms of extractivism and ecological ruin in the Atacama Desert is an allegory against ongoing plans to colonise the Moon and Mars, where Māori astrobiologist Xuê Noon finds solace in 2051.
Cosmographies is a hybrid film that draws from speculative fiction, observational and poetic documentary, Indigenous futurism and Indigiqueer perspectives. It interweaves stories of resistance and environmental justice against extractivism in the Atacama Desert, Chile, as an allegory for contemporary plans to colonise the Moon and Mars. Set across 2023 and 2051, it weaves parallel stories of Lickan Antay land and water defenders, engaged scientists and fishing communities in Atacama, with the story of Māori astrobiologist Xuě Noon who finds solace in Mars and slipstreams across spacetime with an urgent message.
Screening at Belgrave as part of How to weather together exhibition
Film is 95 minutes
Q&A is 30 minutes. Finish by 5.15pm.
Credits
Director, Cinematographer & Writer (BIO): Juan Francisco Salazar (attending the screening for Q&A)
Writer & Performer (BIO): Victoria Hunt

How to Weather Together
2025-11-08 10:00 - 2026-02-01 16:00
How to Weather Together is a multi-artform project that explores how we live with and respond to climate change through the intimate, daily experiences of weather—both ordinary and extreme. Bringing together illustration, visual art, writing, film, and participatory activities, the project invites audiences to consider how the shifting climate shapes our emotions, behaviours, and communities. Rather than focusing solely on facts or forecasts, How to Weather Together encourages reflection, conversation, and creativity, prompting visitors to ask unusual questions and to imagine new habits, practices, and ways of being as we adapt to a changing ecological future.
Curated by Jennifer Hamilton
Artists:
Clare Britton, Rae Haynes, Horizon Factory (Nina Vroemen and Erin Hill), Henri van Noordenburg, Marissa Betts & Mike Terry, Tessa Zettel & Susie Nelson, The Weathering Collective (Tessa Zettel, Astrida Neimanis, Jennifer Hamilton).

Credit: Illustration by Tessa Zettel: G Market Stall from How to weather together: Feminist practice for climate change (Bloomsbury: 2026)

This exhibition is supported by Arts North West.

New England Friends of NERAM Artisan Trail
2025-11-08 10:00 - 2025-11-09 16:00
Step inside the studios of six talented New England artists and see where creativity comes to life. Across one inspiring weekend, the New England Friends of NERAM Artisan Trail invites you to visit artists in their working environments, watch live demonstrations, and gain unique insights into their craft.

From delicate watercolours and expressive landscape paintings to fine ceramics and reclaimed metal sculpture, this is a rare opportunity to meet the makers shaping our region’s vibrant arts scene.

Tickets are available for individual studio visits or as a weekend pass giving access to all six studios. All proceeds support the work of the Friends of NERAM in raising funds for the New England Regional Art Museum.

Tickets:
$40 Friends of NERAM members
$45 Non-members
$12 per individual studio

Book now via TryBooking

Black Gully Festival 2025
2025-11-08 10:00 - 19:30
The always highly-anticipated Black Gully Festival is set to kick off on Saturday, November 8th, 2025, in the scenic Black Gully Reserve (behind NERAM on the south side of the creek). This free, family-friendly event celebrates the vibrant spirit of Armidale as the weather warms up, offering a day filled with music, art, environmental and community engagement. The festival promises an entertaining experience for attendees of all ages.
Festival Program

9.00am – 7.30pm – Festival Livestream and broadcast 2ARMFM Community Radio
10.00am – 4.00pm – NERAM Art Gallery & feature exhibition How to Weather Together
10.00am – 2.00pm – Aboriginal Cultural Centre & Keeping Place – Music jam w/ Des Ahoy, Peter Georkas & Bob Blair (10-12)
10.00am – 2.00pm – Museum of Printing
10.00am – 4.00pm – Makers, Community and Environment Markets

Caring for Koala Country, Clothes Swap and Slow Living, Community Garden tours, Community Weathering Station, Electrify Armidale, Growing Sustainable Landscapes, Healthy Headwaters and Creek bug collecting, Highlands End of Life Project, NERAM Family Art Making, Platypus Play and Clay, River Weaving and Rising Tide, Save our Styx, Talking Soil, The Highlands Poet, Weeding for Weaving w/ Andrew Parker, Face painting and more…..

10.00am – 7.30pm – Food Vans
12.00pm – Official Opening – Welcome to Country + Thanks to Sponsors + announcements
7.00pm – 8.45pm – Astronomy night with the Stars & UNE & NT Astronomical Society@NERAM cafe

Music, Dance & Theatre Program

Main Stages
10.00am to 7.30pm

10.30am The Holy Horns
11.15am Alejandro & Armidale Salsa
11.30am JazzLab
12.00pm Welcome to Country + Thanks to Sponsors + announcements
12.30pm Tandav School of Dance
12.50pm Blakk Dynasty
1.20pm The Rocky Bottom Girls
2.10pm OhMaSoul
3.00pm MC & The Squares
3.50pm Dusky Buzz
4.40pm The Cham Cham
5.30pm PartyLine
6.30pm The Chads

Acoustic Stage (NERAM Café)
9.00am to 4.00pm

9.00am Judith Betts
9.45am Bruce’s Country
10.30am Pete Stanley
11.15am Barney St Band
12.00pm The Miggy Man
12.45pm Dallas Muirhead
1.30pm Ian Russell
2.15pm Khaleel Jundi
3.00pm Firebirds Choir
3.30pm Saturday Magic Theatre Troupe presents Pandora and the Dragon

Talks, Activities & Workshops Program

Clothes Swap@ Slow Living Tent

10.00 to 11.00am Clothes drop
12.00 to 2.00pm Clothes swap

The Community Weathering Station (CoWS) at Black Gully Festival (North Village)
The Community Weathering Station is a market stall about climate change. This Black Gully Festival we have a program of visiting artist-researcher facilitated workshops that link up with the themes of weathering: a concept that explores climate change from a grounded, localised and embodied perspective.
Throughout the day we will also offer Tea/Tarot readings when the readers are not off enjoying the festival, and there will be other little things in the stall to look at and discuss.
For the workshops: We will endeavour to have all the materials you need on hand, but please go to the link below form more details, any specific instructions and to register (FREE REGISTRATION).
CoWS workshops are for people aged 16+

10.00 -11.00am: Mixed Weathering Workshops – w/ Tessa Zettel, Astrida Neimanis and Jennifer Hamilton.
11.00am – 12.00pm: Rest your identity – w/ Ju Bavyka
12.00 – 12.30pm : Welcome to Country (MainStage)
12.30 – 1.30pm: Day for it! why we love good weather – w/ Blanche Verlie
1.30 – 2.30pm : Lunch Break
2.30 – 3.30pm : Learn to Scry with the Sky: how to prophesize through gazing – w/ Nina Vroeman

All Day:

By sign-up sheet on the day: Tea & Tarot by Donation (with Piers Kelly & Ju Bavyka)
How to weather together exhibition (Mazda Gallery inside NERAM)

Full program and registration details available at: https://communityweatheringstation.net/2025/10/13/2025-black-gully-festival-stall/

Community Garden

10.30/12.30/2.30 – Composting with Joi (@ the Community Garden
Community Garden Tours – Come for a visit! Tours running from 10.00am to 4.00pm -as needed

Sustainable Living Armidale (SLA) and Friends @ North Gully Village (NERAM Side)

10.30/3.30 – Rhizomatic Somatic Meditation (1-hour sessions) for 16+ – w/Pip Ryan @ Rhizomatic Chorus tent
11.00 to 1:30 – Magpie print making @ Museum of Printing
10.30/1.00 – How healthy is my soil? – why not soil some undies! @Talking Soil tent
11:00/1:30 – Digging Together: Where Soil Science Meets Community @Talking Soil

SLA and Friends @ the Packsaddle room (Below NERAM)

11.00am – SPECIAL Presentation – Healthy Headwaters of New England and what our creek invertebrates tell us (30mins) – with Dr. Sara Mika, UNE Aquatic Ecology Lab
12.30pm – SPECIAL Presentation – The Bell’s Turtle: A Turtle of Our Own – with Dr. Lou Streeting, UNE Lazer Lab

SLA and Friends @ South Gully Village (Stage Side)
• 10.30/11.30/12.30/1.30/2.30/3.30– The Magic of Science Show @UNE Discovery
• 10.30/1.30 – Cozy Story Time – The Platypus – w/Sue Eliot @SLA and NE Rakali and Platypus tent
• 10.30/11.15/2.45- Native Rodents – who are they anyway and why should we care? @Threatened Species Tent
• 10.45/2.00 – Chatting about Energy-Efficiency – for beginners 101@Electrify Armidale tent
• 11.00 to 12.00 – Weeding for Weaving w/Andrew Parker @the Big Weave
• 11.00 to 12.00 – Making Seedballs @Armidale Tree Group
• 11.30 – Cozy Story Time- Where are all the baby Turtles? – w/Lou Streeting – @SLA and NE Rakali and Platypus tent
• 11.30 & 1.30 – Creek Bug Collecting – meet @UNE Aquatic Ecology Lab
• 12.30/2.00- Bat’s in the Backyard and Insect-eating bats @Threatened Species Tent
• 1.00 – Black Gully Walk and Talk with Funky Dave and Friends of BG – meet@the Black Gully Central Tent
• 2.00 – Chatting about Energy-Efficiency –bring your really tricky questions @Electrify Armidale tent

The Black Gully Festival program is subject to changes at any time. Please refer to website for any updates or amendments.

The Black Gully Festival – Partners and Sponsors
The Black Gully Festival would not be possible and nor would it be able to provide a free community event without the contribution of over 70 volunteers and our Partners and Sponsors. The Black Gully Festival organisers would like to extend a huge thank you to our volunteers and to the following:
Partners
Musicians of Armidale (MOA)/Sustainable Living Armidale (SLA)/New England Regional Art Museum (NERAM)/2ARMFM Community Radio/Southern New England Landcare (SNEL)/Armidale Tree Group (ATG)/Aboriginal Cultural Centre and Keeping Place (ACCKP)
Supermega sponsors, Very special sponsors, and Festival friends
Sustainable Living Armidale (SLA)/Origin Energy (Renewable energy and the New England Community Investment Program)/Armidale Regional Council (ARC)/BlackDot/Gallery 126/The Welders Dog/StringyBark Ecological/Back Track/Creative Streets Festival

The Community Weathering Station at Black Gully Festival
2025-11-08 10:00 - 16:00
The Community Weathering Station is a market stall about climate change. This black gully festival we have a program of visiting artist-researcher facilitated workshops that link up with the themes of weathering: a concept that explores climate change from a grounded, localised and embodied perspective.
Throughout the day we will also offer Tea/Tarot readings when the readers are in, and there will be other little things in the stall to look at and discuss. For the workshops: We will endeavour to have all the materials you need on hand, but please read below for any specific instructions and to register to help us plan for numbers.
All Workshops begin at the CoWS Stall

Stall opens 10am

Mixed Weathering Workshops 10-11am
Drop into the CoWS Stall and participate in a selection of activities “Lucky Dip”, “Close Meteorology”, “Speed Zining” and “Weathering With and Without”. These games are connected to How to weather together exhibition in the gallery and book of the same name. Participants can take home their contributions or they can add it to the exhibition upstairs. These activities are all designed to engage with yourself and each other differently and carefully in relation to everyday weather, but also as a method for connecting to the large scale catastrophe of climate change. If you miss the early workshop options to participate will be available throughout the day.
We believe weathering well requires the proliferation of feminist, queer and anticolonial environmentalisms and the global redistribution of shelter and vulnerability. To assist in grass-roots revolutionary mobilisation, we offer up simple practices as part of a larger historical movement: to change the climate of climate change and be ourselves changed in the process.
Facilitator Bio/s: The weathering workshops are facilated by Tessa Zettel (Sydney), Astrida Neimanis (Canada) and Jennifer Hamilton (Armidale). These three have been collaborating for a decade as The Weathering Collective.
FREE REGISTRATION

Rest your identity: 11-12
With Ju Bavyka
This workshop leans on meditation practices to examine our relationships to aspects of our identity, including habits or social roles, that get overworked in everyday life. This overwork can be a response to social injustice, patriarchy, gendered roles, being disabled, or to the self-exploitation of one’s ethnic and cultural background in order to exist and survive. After a short introduction, participants are invited to follow a guided meditation and to identify parts of themself that require a little rest, revision, and kind reintegration on better terms. A space for encounter and possible connection is created during the discussion afterwards. This workshop is included in the CoWS program as a practice that allows for new openings to the weather world.
Cushions provided.
Facilitator Bio: Ju is a visual artist, writer and community organiser. They create from a queer, forager perspective and are interested in practices of hospitality and generosity. Ju lives, works and rests on unceded Gadigal Wangal lands in so-called Sydney, Australia, and sometimes in Berlin. They have ties to Kazakhstan and Germany through their birth, education, community connections and family history.
FREE REGISTRATION (Please RSVP to help with numbers, but please also show up on the day either way)
15 Max

12pm Welcome to Country (Mainstage)

DAY FOR IT! why we love good weather 12.30-1.30pm
With Blanche Verlie
Most of our efforts to communicate the importance of global heating focus on how scary and bad changing the climate is. But a lot of people find it too scary to think about, and so they disengage from the topic. What if we celebrated all the benefits that a safe climate affords us? This walkshop riffs on the Australian idiom “Day for It!” that celebrates all the great, fun things we can do in good weather and who those activities allow us to be, to help us clarify the cultural and personal value of our Holocene climate.
What you’ll need to participate: a phone with a camera and internet connection OR a pen and paper. We’ll be walking around the Festival and chatting to people about what their favourite weather is, and why they love it.
Facilitator Bio: Blanche is a multidisciplinary social scientist whose work focuses on climate change working. Her research investigates how people understand, experience, and respond to climate change, and how we might do this differently and better. Her book Learning to live-with climate change: From anxiety to transformation is available as a free e-book. At the University of Sydney, she is a Sydney Horizon Fellow in Gender and Cultural Studies, and one of the leaders of the Environmental Justice theme at the Sydney Environment Institute.
FREE REGISTRATION (Please RSVP to help with numbers, but please also show up on the day either way)

1.30-2.30 Lunch break (& Rocky Bottom Girls playing on mainstage!)

Learn to Scry with the Sky: how to prophesize through gazing, 2.30-3.30pm
With Nina Vroeman
This workshop will explore exercises from Horizon Factory’s publication Deep Gazing.
The book is a guide, a tool, an atlas and a companion for individual and communal attunement to the environment. Opening to the expansiveness of the sky, learning to read its signs and traces, and allowing for messages and meanings to arise beyond the art of forecasting.
Facilitator Bio: Nina makes interdisciplinary work about ecology that is speculative and embodied. They live in Tiohtiá:ke (Montreal), on the traditional territory of the Kanien’kehà:ka and are a recent MFA graduate from Sculpture and Ceramics at Concordia University. For more information about their work visit ninavroemen.com/
FREE REGISTRATION (Please RSVP to help with numbers, but please also show up on the day either way)
15 Max

Stall closes 4pm

In Conversation: Behind the Scenes with Packsaddle
2025-11-01 10:30 - 11:30
Join us at NERAM for a special In Conversation between NERAM Director Rachael Parsons and members of the current Packsaddle Committee.
Together, they’ll pull back the curtain on all things Packsaddle — how this beloved annual exhibition is imagined, planned, and brought to life each year. Discover the stories behind the art, the community connections that make it possible, and why this remarkable group of women continues to dedicate their time, creativity, and passion to supporting NERAM after 40 years.
An inspiring and insightful look at one of the most enduring and generous supporter groups in regional Australia.

Portraiture in Charcoal with Michael Simms
2025-11-01 10:00 - 2025-11-02 16:00
Due to popular demand, Michael Simms is back with his charcoal portraiture workshop. Excitingly the workshop has been extended to two days, giving students more time to develop, practice and hone their skills under the guidance of Michael.
In this workshop, students will learn how to draw the human face with charcoal – one of the most versatile and expressive mediums. Michael will provide his unique tips and tricks on how to simplify the face into basic shapes to make portraiture fun and accessible.
Michael will conduct demonstrations and provide individual feedback to students throughout both days.
Students will also have the opportunity to visit Michael Simms Stages exhibition in the Mazda Gallery of NERAM.
Topics covered include:

Overview of materials: the different types of charcoal and how to use it
The proportions of the human face
How to simplify the human face into basic planes and tonal shapes
How to break down individual facial features
How to build structure into your portrait
Capturing a ‘likeness’
Understanding tonal values
How to achieve a sense of volume and form in your drawings
Drawing from a live model
The impact of lighting

DATE | Saturday and Sunday, 1st & 2nd of November
TIME | 10am – 4.00pm both days
VENUE | Packsaddle Studio
COST | General Price $221.00 – FoN/Culture Club member Price $245.00
All materials are included
Min 10, Max 14

Image: Courtesy of Michael Simms

Packsaddle Exhibition 2025
2025-10-24 17:00 - 2025-11-09 17:00
Packsaddle is an annual art exhibition that has been raising funds for NERAM since 1985. Each year the Packsaddle Exhibition presents a diverse range of paintings, original prints and sculpture by leading Australian artists, providing local collectors and art lovers the opportunity to purchase great artworks to start or build their own collections, while also supporting NERAM.
Opening Night Event: Friday 24 October >>>>> Book your free ticket
Viewing from 5.00pm | Selling from 6.00pm | Opening remarks by Christopher Hodges, Gallery Director, artist and owner of Utopia Art Sydney
Packsaddle 2025 Program of Events

Saturday 25 October 10.30am: Packsaddle floor talk with Christopher Hodges
Saturday 1 November 10.30am: Packsaddle floor talk
Sunday 9 November 1.00 – 4.00pm: Pick up Party for customers to collect their works

Opening Night: Packsaddle Exhibition 2025
2025-10-24 17:00 - 20:00
Join us for the ringing of the bell to open the 2025 Packsaddle Exhibition!
Be among the first to view—and purchase—original artworks by leading and emerging Australian artists. Now in its 40th year, Packsaddle is a beloved fundraising exhibition that brings together a curated selection of contemporary paintings, prints, and sculptures in support of NERAM.
Every artwork sold directly supports both the artist and the future of the New England Regional Art Museum. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to collect something special and celebrate four decades of community, creativity, and generosity.
Viewing from 5.00pm. The bell will ring at 6pm (no artworks will be sold prior), when the selling and celebration will commence.

STAMP PRINTING WORKSHOP
2025-10-18 10:30 - 2025-11-01 15:30
STAMP PRINTING WORKSHOP: Experience NERAM Museum of Printing and UNE Museum of Antiquities as places of inspiration for stamp making.
Join Black Gully Printmaker Rhonda Ellem for a three-Saturday experimental workshop designing, making and printing stamps.
Day one at NERAM Museum of Printing. Introduction to carving rubber stamps and making stamp pads, and an introduction to using advertising blocks from the museum’s collection. Stamps and blocks will be proofed then combined with stencilling, overprinting, chine colle and collage.
Day two at UNE Museum of Antiquities (UNEMA). There’ll be a talk by Dr Bronwyn Hopwood, the Curator and Collections Manager of the recently refurbished UNE Museum of Antiquities (UNEMA). UNEMA is Australia’s only regional museum of Classical Antiquities and home to the nationally significant James Rivers Barrington Stewart Collection of Cypriot archaeological material from the stone age to the medieval period. The museum also offers displays from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Oceania, the 19th century and more. The talk will be followed by drawing in the museum taking anthromorphic and zoomorphic inspiration from the collections. These drawings will be developed into stamps back at MoP.
Day three at NERAM Museum of Printing. Final printing onto postcards, cardstock and found papers using repetition, masking, colour blending and progressive printing. Themes of Cinderella stamps and EFOs (errors, freaks and oddities) from the philatelic world will be explored.
No experience necessary.
Saturdays 18, 25 October & 1 November
TIME | 10.30am to 3.30pm
VENUE | Museum of Printing NERAM.
Please note: on 25 October the workshop starts at UNE Museum of Antiquities at 10.30 and returns to the Museum of Printing NERAM for the afternoon
COST | Friends of NERAM/Culture Club Members – $155 , General price $170
Students 16yrs + are welcome
Specialist materials supplied with a material list sent prior.

Image credit: Stamp, courtesy of Rhonda Ellem
Terms and Conditions

All bookings for events, art classes and workshops require payment in full at the time of booking
A minimum number of 8 students required for classes to proceed, please book and pay by Monday 13 October 2025 to ensure classes go ahead
Please be aware that once bookings close, we are unable to offer a refund
If the class does not proceed, you will be refunded any cash amount
NERAM events have a limited capacity and use a ticketing system. Bookings are essential
Student contact details may be passed on to facilitators for communication purposes
