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all about photographs

EXHIBITIONS

Docklands

XYZ Photo Gallery - Docklands
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This is hard to find - Details on the website.

You’re Indian, Arn’t you?
Chetan Verma // Anai Bharucha // Danish Mansuri // George Koruth // Mayuri Kataria // Arbab Kamal Khan
7 November to 20 December 2026

We present an intimate and varied collection of India through the photographers’ eyes, inviting you to consider whatever India may be in your mind.

Magnet Gallery - Docklands
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Landprints
Pamela Thomas
to 8 November 2026

This most serene collection of landscape photography, LANDPRINTS honours the beauty of the natural world - images of the Scottish highlands, the rugged northern Isle of Skye and their antipodean counterpart in Tasmania. Mountains, water, sky and cloud formations......these are Pamela Thomas's gentle yet powerful subjects and she turns her camera on them with an unerring eye of understanding.

Whispers Woven in Water, Wings and Wildflowers
Pam Davison with Linda Britten
to 8 November 2026

A multi-layered installation by visual storyteller PAM DAVISON with dress designer LINDA BRITTEN, weaving a story of memories through photography, draperies and couture gowns..

Great Studio (aka Kindred Camera) - Docklands
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Holding the Masc
Ash Giblin
24 October to 3 November 2026

Through photographic portraiture, text and multimedia, the exhibition explores the ways our bodies, identities and cultural understandings of masculinity can be reshaped. Challenging binary representation and harmful masculine ideals, the work centres tenderness, transformation and self-authorship.

Inner City

Lennox St, Gallery - Richmond
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Yeah, but Noir
Tom Blanchford
11 November to 5 December 2026

Together in Yeah, but Noir, the quiet, moonlit serenity of Palm Springs modernism stands in contrast with the dense, neon-infused cyberpunk megastructures of nocturnal Japan. While distinct in geography and style, both series converge on the same thematic horizon: bending time, removing human subjects, and transforming real-world environments into timeless cinematic noir worlds.

Hillvale Gallery - Brunswick
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Hillvale Photo Trophy
Many Artists
To 22 November 2026

The Hillvale Photo Trophy is back for its 4th year running. In the midst of so many spaces closing down we wanted a way to fund an independent photo gallery to support emerging and local photographers in the country. Last year we became Australia's largest open entry salon style photo prize and exhibition.

City

Potter Museum of Art - Carlton
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Ngarn Wa’ngal: Art of the gum tree
John Gollings, Rosemary Laing, Janet Laurence, Jill Orr, Harold Cazneaux and many painters.
10 July – 21 Nov 2026

A defining feature of the Australian landscape, the gum tree breathes through our collective imagination, connecting us to this land and shaping our personal and cultural identities.
In Ngarn Wa'ngal: Art of the gumtree, we invite you to explore this iconic tree as a source of creative inspiration branching across centuries of artistic practice.
Translating as 'breathing for us' in Woi Wurrung, Ngarn Wa'ngal celebrates the deep cultural and ecological significance of the eucalypt. Over three floors, this expansive exhibition brings together colonial, twentieth century and contemporary works, sparking broader conversations about identity, sovereignty, climate and continuity.

Leica Gallery Melbourne - Melbourne
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Intimate Distance
Todd Hido
To 7 January 2027

The exhibition draws from Hido’s influential career, bringing together key bodies of work and offering Australian audiences an opportunity to experience the breadth and evolution of his practice.

First Site Gallery - Melbourne
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The Voice of the Maribyrnong
Elijah Cristiano
06 to 30 October 2026

The Maribyrnong River and its tributaries flow through the Country of the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Boon wurrung Peoples of the Kulin Nation. Since European colonisation, the river has been used as a transport route and a drain for industrial waste, while its surrounding landscape has supplied materials for colonial expansion. Bluestone extracted from nearby quarries was used to construct buildings including gunpowder magazines, connecting the river and surrounding landscape to a broader history of colonial violence.

Vườn lan (Orchid Garden)
Minh-An Pham
06 to 30 October 2026

At the centre of the exhibition are orchids – flowers that appear across the family wedding archives and that Pham gives to his mother on special occasions. Despite their significance, orchids never appeared in his family home while his father was alive.

City Gallery - Melbourne
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The Green Bus
Andrew Chapman
3 September to 19 February 2027

The Green Bus takes exhibition viewers on a photographic journey through the familiar streets of the city.
Melbourne is the muse of photographer Andrew Chapman, who has spent much of his life documenting the metropolis and the events that have fashioned it. Through a selection of 55 photographs spanning 55 years from 1971, he reveals the social history and community life that have played out on the streets and in the spaces that bring the city’s people together. Without nostalgia but with a candid and curious eye, he points to the traces of the past that mark the passage of time and the chimeric promises of urban life in the 21st century.

Immigration Museum - Melbourne
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On Country: Photography from Australia
Tony Albert (Kuku Yalanji) & David Charles Collins, Ying Ang, Atong Atem, Elisa Jane Carmichael (Ngugi/Quandamooka) & Sonja Carmichael (Ngugi/Quandamooka), Maree Clarke (Yorta Yorta/Wamba Wamba/Mutti Mutti/Boonwurrung), Michael Cook (Bidjara), Brenda L Croft (Gurindji/Malngin/Mudburra), J Davies, Liss Fenwick, Adam Ferguson, Robert Fielding (Yankunytjatjara/Western Arrernte peoples), The Huxleys (Gumbaynggirr/Yorta Yorta), Ricky Maynard (Pakana), Lisa Sorgini, Tace Stevens (Noongar/Spinifex), wani toaishara, James Tylor (Kaurna) ‘Ibukun’ Oloruntoba
16 October to 13 June 2027

In Country: Photography from Australia showcases powerful contemporary artworks by Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists, reflecting how imagery shapes our understanding of place, belonging and identity.

Through striking images and perspectives, the exhibition explores relationships between Country, colonialism and community in Australia today.
Opening at Immigration Museum in October 2026, this stunning exhibition invites visitors to consider how photography can capture our connections to place, culture and each other.

Vic Archives Centre - North Melbourne
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Rehearsing the City
Ai Tam Do, Adrian Leung, Suzanne Phoenix, Ted Richards, Sande Harsa, Mark Forbes, Melanie Cobham, Michael Currie, Andrew Tan, Hashem McAdam, Chris Bekos and Deb Stembridge.
21 May 2026 to March 2027
 This exhibition reflects on public space as a stage, a place where meaning is constantly performed, contested and redefined. On display are photographs sourced from the collections of Victoria’s State and National Archives, as well as work by contemporary photographers responding to Victoria’s urban environment.

Hellenic Museum - Melbourne
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ONEIROI
Bill Henson
Indefinately

ONEIROI sets out to inspire discussion about what it means to be custodians of an ancient past and captures the way in which our history, culture and art shape the way in which we make sense of our own world.

Old Treasury Building - Melbourne
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Swinging Sixties
Various
Until 2027

The 1960s is remembered as a turbulent decade. In contrast to the ‘conservative’ 1950s, the sixties are associated with changing ideas, youthful rebellion and experimentation. New music, new fashions and new attitudes to authority defined ‘the generation gap’.

Making Modern Melbourne
historical photographs & Sarah Pannell
Indefinitely

An optimistic new nation was created at the dawn of the 20th century. Australia was self-governing, and Melbourne would be its temporary capital while Canberra was constructed.
This free exhibition at Old Treasury Building examines the tumultuous century that was to come, with two world wars and a Depression. But also, a ‘long boom’, multiculturalism, rights for all citizens, increased public transport and heritage laws which would protect the historic buildings we still have today!

Protest Melbourne
historical photographs & Sarah Pannell
Indefinitely

The right to protest is important in a democracy. In between elections, it allows citizens to express their views directly to government and the community on issues they believe to be important. In Melbourne we tend to take that right for granted. Throughout our history, men and women have taken to the streets to express their views on a wide variety of issues, from political rights to the environment. The first protests took place in Melbourne in the early 1840s and Melburnians have been protesting ever since. This exhibition looks at some of the issues that have been important to Melbourne’s citizens over the years.

South East/East

Melbourne Camera Club - South Melbourne
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THE BRIGHT SIDE (OF THINGS)
Andew Tan, Bob Warfield, Bruce Dowding David Watts, Helen Lang, Helen Mavoa Jim O'Donnell, Kazi Fattah, Leanne Poole Robin Tully, Alison Macleod, Wayne Harridge members
24 + 25 + 31 October + 1 November 2026

The annual exhibition of the Conceptual group.

Pride Centre - St Kilda
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Body Language
Vicki Jones
22 October -29 November 2026

Body Language is a collaborative portraiture project with LGBTIQA+ people in Australia and The Pacific, which explores the expression of gender beyond the binary, presented as photographic prints with participant statements. Via the use of both digital and analogue photographic processes and set in safe spaces, the participants are the co-creators of their own representation, inviting the viewer to consider the idea that gender is a creative, evolving, personal life process, expressed by each individual.

Buxton Contemporary - Southbank
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a/part:
Hoda Afshar
30 October to 24 April 2027

Central to the exhibition is an expanded iteration of Afshar's major work Code Black/Riot (2025), a multi-channel video work developed in collaboration with renowned artist Vernon Ah Kee and writer and human rights defender Behrouz Boochani. Co-commissioned by Buxton Contemporary and the Biennale of Sydney, the work premiered at the 2026 Biennale of Sydney: Rememory. For its presentation at Buxton Contemporary, Code Black/Riot will be reconfigured as a large-scale immersive installation, with eight channels and a soundscape that audiences move through, amplifying the gravity and physicality of the work.

Glen Eira City Council Gallery - Caulfield
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Fabulous 70s: a celebration of Melbourne fashion
Prue Acton, Jenny Bannister, Sally Browne, Clarence Chai, Mr Simon, Miss Hartnell, Leon Haskin, Elvie Hill, Van Roth, Norma Tullo and others.
To 20 December 2026

From vibrant colours and striking patterns to experimental styles, the exhibition reflects a time of creativity, individuality and cultural change.
Featuring garments, accessories, photography and archival material from public and private collections, this exhibition invites all ages to explore, connect and be inspired by the distinctive style of the decade — from bohemian to disco and beyond.

Museum of Australian Photography - Monash
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Bowness Photography Prize 2026 exhibition
Various
to 8 November 2026

The Bowness Photography Prize invites entries from artists working with photography. Entries for the prize will be considered from still photo-based media including analogue and digital photography, produced within the last year.

The inner sky
Sarah Rhodes
to 8 November 2026

The inner sky works with photographic paper as a site of exchange.
At the centre of the exhibition is a figure shining a torchlight through a piece of translucent paper. The figure is neither fully concealed nor fully revealed. The shadow cast by the figure works like a photogram made in the darkroom. From this starting point, Rhodes experiments with paper to explore the different ways light conceals and reveals an image.

The World Came Flooding In
Isobel Knowles & Van Sowerwine
21 November 2026 To 14 February 2027

The World Came Flooding In is an immersive and sensitive portrayal of life before, during and after natural disaster. Detailed miniature sets combined with community-made replicas of lost furniture evoke the rich inner world that remains when everything is washed away.
Through virtual reality, projections, miniatures, photographs and sound, The World Came Flooding In explores the rich inner world that remains when everything is washed away. Hear from three flood-affected individuals – Marina, Antoinette and Tom – as they share their personal stories of living through climate disaster. Separated by thousands of kilometres but united in their experience, these voices share a powerful collective narrative.

Look!
MAPh members
To 7 December 2026

LOOK! is an annual exhibition exclusive to MAPh members that provides a fantastic opportunity for members to exhibit their work at MAPh. The competition is open to all current MAPh members who are invited to submit up to three photographic prints. There are no thematic restrictions.

Father
Diana Markosian
21 November 2026 to 14 February 2027

Father by Diana Markosian traces the artist’s decade-long journey to reconstruct the image of her long-lost father and confront the emotional void left by his absence. Fifteen years after their separation, and with no address to guide her, Markosian traveled to Armenia in search of a man who had become a stranger to her.

Heidi Museum of Modern Art - Bulleen
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BRASSAÏ
BRASSAÏ
25 July – 8 November 2026

This exhibition will present the most comprehensive survey of the work of the eminent Hungarian-born, French photographer Brassaï yet to be seen in Australia. With a focus on the artist’s iconic images of the city and its people by night, the exhibition will also consider his friendship with Picasso and other leading figures of the Parisian avant-garde, his experiments with Surrealism, and his hallmark photographs of graffiti. Produced in collaboration with the artist’s estate, this survey brings together more than 150 vintage prints and offers a fascinating visual journey into the intimate world of Paris in the 1930s.

Frankston Arts Centre - Frankston
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Frankston Reframed: Pathway Through Life
Alfonso Folle
6 February to 7 November 2027

Through a series of fifteen spherical photographs, Alfonso Folle transforms familiar Frankston locations into miniature worlds, using changing light and perspective as a metaphor for the journey through life. Moving from morning to night, the exhibition explores how time, experience and memory can change the way we see familiar places and, in turn, the way we understand our own journey.

Potter Museum of Art - Carlton
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Ngarn Wa’ngal: Art of the gum tree
John Gollings, Rosemary Laing, Janet Laurence, Jill Orr, Harold Cazneaux and many painters.
10 July – 21 Nov 2026

A defining feature of the Australian landscape, the gum tree breathes through our collective imagination, connecting us to this land and shaping our personal and cultural identities.
In Ngarn Wa'ngal: Art of the gumtree, we invite you to explore this iconic tree as a source of creative inspiration branching across centuries of artistic practice.

Translating as 'breathing for us' in Woi Wurrung, Ngarn Wa'ngal celebrates the deep cultural and ecological significance of the eucalypt. Over three floors, this expansive exhibition brings together colonial, twentieth century and contemporary works, sparking broader conversations about identity, sovereignty, climate and continuity.

West of Melbourne

Wyndham Art Gallery - Werribee
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Remnants: What Remains and what Flows
Idil Abdullahi, Anu Kumar, Latai Taumoepeau, Tace Stevens,, Hussein Abdirahman Mohamud, The Unbound Collective
To 18 October 2026

REMNANTS brings together seven leading artists to explore how memory and care survive in the aftermath of colonial violence through film, photography, performance, and installation. The exhibition engages soil, water, and the body as living archives, bridging grief, resilience, and the possibility for alternative futures. Visitors are invited to witness and participate, shaping new connections and imagining justice beyond traditional narratives. 

North of Melbourne

Gold Street Gallery - Trentham East
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Insecta
Ellie Young
2 September to 15 November 2026

“Insecta is defined as the most species-rich class of organisms, comprising approximately 1 million described species, characterised by three major body divisions—head, thorax, and abdomen—and a single pair of locomotory appendages on each thoracic segment.”

Memento’s
Danielle Edwards
18 November to 7 February 2027

A memento often helps one remember a particular moment in time, a place, or an event.
A souvenir or keepsake that is a signal to a memory locked in the past, until the memento brings it into the present.

Castlemaine Art Museum - Castlemaine
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Biyal
Various artists
to 29 November 2026

In February 2024, the Biyal dropped a significant limb. This was a pivotal event for Dja Dja Wurrung People and the broader community.

The DJAARA Malamiya (Cultural Heritage) and Galk-galk Dhelkunya (to heal/to care for, many trees) teams ensured timber was protected and transported to a safe location – allowing time for Dja Dja Wurrung People to determine the next steps.
In the days following the limb drop, many came to spend time with the tree – and the community's connection to the Biyal has shaped and sustained this project.
Since then, Uncle Rick Nelson and Dja Dja Wurrung People have guided how the timber has been shared - with community, and with those commissioned to create works for BIYAL..

Horsham Regional Gallery - Horsham
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National Photographic Portrait Prize 2025: A National Portrait Gallery Exhibition
Various
to 31 January 2027

Now in its 18th year, the National Photographic Portrait Prize supports and celebrates photographic portraiture in Australia. Each year the prize attracts thousands of entrants from emerging and established artistic talent across the country. In 2025, the judges – writer and broadcaster Benjamin Law, Senior Curator at the National Portrait Gallery Serena Bentley, and Leigh Robb, Curator of Contemporary Art at the Art Gallery of South Australia selected 48 finalists from a field of more than 1400 entries.

Just out of State

MAMA Murray Art Museum - Albury
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National Photography Prize 2026
Various
To 22 November 2026

Every two years the National Photography Prize offers an opportunity to consider the vital role of photography in contemporary art in Australia. The National Photography Prize brings together artists from across Australia who are developing and challenging photographic language and techniques.

Works from the Collection
Rosemary Laing
To 8 November 2026

This collection of photographic works recently gifted to the museum by the artist’s estate, provides an introduction to the scope and range of Rosemary Laing’s practice. Through constructed visual narratives, Laing’s photographs invite viewers to reconsider the way land, identity, and memory intersect and provide an opportunity to reflect through photography upon the Australian landscape, colonial histories, environmental change, and the politics of place.

Beds I Have Slept In
Heidi Freihaut
To 8 November 2026

From its inception in the 19th Century photography has been closely associated with travel and the recording of transient relationships to place. Heidi Freihaut’s Beds I Have Slept In presents a series of colour photographs selected from hundreds made during time spent by the artist in over 60 countries, supplemented by second series of images presented as a slideshow.