Annual exhibition call out
Craft ACT: Craft + Design Centre invites craftspeople, designers, makers and curators at all levels of experience and across a variety of mediums to propose new exhibitions every year.
The call out is typically opens in February each year for the following year's artistic program. Sign up to our newsletter to be the first to hear.
“As a 50-year-old membership organisation, we love to collaborate with artists to curate an extraordinary artistic program which embeds contemporary craft, making and design at the centre of everyday life in Australia’s capital, a global city of design,” said Rachael Coghlan, CEO + Artistic Director.
Craft ACT’s exhibition program is highly regarded and has received multiple awards. Artists whose work is featured in the Craft ACT artistic program place their work in view of collecting institutions, business and industry, individual collectors and audiences. It is a valued opportunity to foster innovation and excellence, and to help artists make a living from their practice. Experimental and traditional exhibitions, as well as regional, national and international projects, can be supported.
Recently, the high-quality exhibition program has expanded its reach and legacy by moving to deeper digital engagement. “Expanded digital engagement was a pivot during the Covid-19 lockdown but has turned into a deeply meaningful and valuable dimension of our core programming. In addition to showcasing new work, building artist’s CVs and commissioning critical essays, exhibitions selected for the Craft ACT artistic program will be supported by online videos, catalogues, interviews and professional photography,” said Coghlan.
About the exhibition program
The annual artistic program showcases and supports recent graduates and early career artists, high-calibre and iconic practitioners, as well as craft and design researchers. Every proposal is assessed by a panel of respected artists across the craft mediums of ceramics, textiles, glass, jewellery and furniture, as well as design. This rigorous ‘peer review’ approach is considered the gold standard in the arts sector, helping to promote excellence, represent diversity and remain at the cutting edge in contemporary craft and design. Selection is highly competitive every year. Craft ACT receives more applications than can be accommodated.
About Craft ACT: Craft + Design Centre
Since 1971, Craft ACT has played a vital role in sustaining Australia’s high-quality studio practice and supporting craftspeople, designers and audiences. We are proudly one of Australia’s longest continuous-running membership organisations in the visual arts and we have much to celebrate. Craft ACT is recognised as a leading centre in Australian craft and design, with a vision to strengthen the dynamic link between the arts – as encompassed in the craft sector – and the broad creative industries and design sector.
View our previous exhibitions from each year on our exhibition page.