Blockbuster exhibitions to see in Canberra this summer
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With the heat rising, and the days getting longer, we’re all looking for ways to stay cool, stay entertained, and keep our brains active. My recommendation? Head to one of Canberra’s many national institutions!
Whether you’re into history or politics, there’s something for everyone this summer. Check out these must-see blockbuster exhibitions opening this season.
Pompeii (National Museum of Australia)
If seeing Pompeii in Italy is on your bucket list, mark your calendars for this one! From Friday 13 December to 4 May 2025, the National Museum of Australia is showing its Pompeii exhibit, featuring over 90 discovered objects from the ancient city before Mount Vesuvius erupted. This display in Canberra will be the first time some of these objects have been seen outside Europe!
Visitors will be taken into the exhibit with an engaging atmosphere created by large-scale digital projections and captivating soundscapes. Expect to see recovered jewellery, sculptures, pottery, frescoes, and other objects once used by this civilisation. Book your tickets here.
Behind the Lines 2024 (Museum of Australian Democracy)
It’s time for the annual wrap up of this year’s best political cartoons at the Museum of Australian Democracy! Opening on Friday 29 November, the Behind the Lines 2024 exhibit will feature political cartoons by established and emerging cartoonists across Australia all under the theme ‘No guts, no glory.’
Some of the highlights include witty comics poking fun at the growing use of AI, poignant drawings about the international conflict, and cheeky sketches relating to the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
More information can be found here.
Carol Jerrems: Portraits (National Portrait Gallery)
Photographers, this one’s for you! Spend some time learning about a key influential figure in Australia’s photographic history at the National Portrait Gallery’s latest exhibit – Carol Jerrems: Portraits. The exhibition showcases more than 140 photographs, drawn from the National Gallery of Australia, the National Library of Australia, and the National Portrait Gallery.
Expect to see photographs from her earlier work to her more famous works, including Vale Street 1975. Learn how her work defined the 1970s and the future of Australian photography while examining portraits of cultural figures like tennis legend Evonne Goolagong, fashion designer Linda Jackson, and author Bobbi Sykes.
The exhibit, opening on Saturday 30 November, and running till 2 March 2025, coincides with the 50th anniversary of Jerrem’s landmark publication, A book about Australian women. Tickets for the exhibit can be bought here!
Anne Dangar (National Gallery of Australia)
Get lost in a world of swirls, squares, lines, and colours at the NGA’S free Anne Dangar exhibit opening on Saturday 7 December. This iconic Australian artist played an important part in bringing modern art to Australia in the twentieth century, and this exhibit allows locals a chance to browse her ceramics, paintings, archival material, and more in this major retrospective exhibition celebrating her life and art.
Find out more about the history of Dangar and the NGA’s exhibit here, before the exhibit finishes on 27 April 2025.
The Anne Dangar exhibition is part of the NGA’s Know My Name project, aimed at enhancing understanding of women artist’s contribution to Australia’s cultural life. So, make your trip to the gallery worth it, and check out the Ethel Carrick exhibit after Dangar’s!
Ethel Carrick (National Gallery of Australia)
The National Gallery of Australia (NGA) is continuing its focus on celebrating the work of all women artists, with its major exhibition Ethel Carrick. Post-impressionist art lovers will be excited to see 140 pieces by Carrick, in the first retrospective of her work for nearly half a century.
What’s even better? Entry is free, so you can visit as many times as you want!
After being inspired by her work (and maybe Dangar’s too), head to the NGA’s free Ethel Carrick and Anne Dangar Studio to play with artmaking processes and ideas in the style of these iconic artists. All ages are encouraged to have a go!
Ethel Carrick is running from Saturday 7 December 2024 to 27 April 2025. Find out more here.
20 Years of Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year (National Archives of Australia)
Experience the wonder of two decades of award-winning nature photography as a new exhibition opens at National Archives of Australia.
20 Years of Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year celebrates the winning entries from each year since its inception.
Conceived in 2004 by Dr Stuart Miller AM, the competition aims to stoke the public’s fascination with the natural world and provide a platform for emerging and established photographers alike to showcase the remarkable flora, fauna and landscapes of Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and New Guinea.
Developed by the South Australian Museum, this free exhibition invites visitors to trace the evolution of photographic techniques over the past 20 years.
Images on display range from the eye of a firestorm captured by last year’s winner Samuel Markham to 2016 winner Matthew McIntosh’s macro shot of mosquitoes feasting on the forehead of a treefrog, to the 2010 winner Glenn Ehmke’s face-off between a Gentoo penguin and an elephant seal.
The exhibition is open from 28 November 2024 until 27 April 2025. Find out more here.
Feature image: Pompeii at the Grand Palais. Credit: Didier Plowy.
