Hello weekend plans! Here’s what’s happening in Canberra
Posted on
With the Lifeline Bookfair, the National Multicultural Festival, markets and more happening, this weekend will be anything but boring.
Start planning for another busy few days in Canberra.
Special Events and Festivals
Lifeline Canberra EPIC Bookfair
Calling all book lovers! This is the event you’ve been waiting for.
Raising funds for local mental health crisis support services, the Lifeline Canberra Bookfair is back. Showcasing a wide range of fiction and non-fiction books, including rare books and collectibles, children’s books, textbooks, and foreign language books, you’ll also find magazines and pamphlets, sheet music, comics, maps, and more.
Entry is via gold coin donation or tap-and-go is available. See you there?
Until Sunday 9 February, 9 am – 6 pm | Exhibition Park, Corner Northbourne Avenue and Flemington Road, Mitchell | More information here.
National Multicultural Festival
Let us introduce you to one of the biggest celebrations of cultural diversity in Australia – and one of the most anticipated events in Canberra’s calendar.
Canberra’s city centre will transform into a vibrant celebration of global cultures with a spectacular line-up of over 200 performances, 270 food and cultural stalls, and activities that reflect the rich diversity of over 170 multicultural communities.
Mark it in your calendar!
Until Sunday 9 February | Garema Place and Glebe Park, Garema Place, City | More information here.
2nd Hand(s) on My Body
After the resounding success of its debut event in November, 2nd Hand(s) on My Body is back for round two, bringing together fashion, pole dance, and sustainability in a one-of-a-kind creative experience.
The event, envisioned and brought to life by Erotika Dabra, is a heartfelt celebration of second-hand fashion, rising creativity, and accessibility within the pole dance community. With sustainability at its core, 2nd Hand(s) on My Body highlights the power of second-hand shopping, style swapping, and community connection to tackle the rising cost of living while empowering individuals through art. Join them for a day of fashion, fun, and empowerment!
Saturday 8 February, 12 pm – 2.30 pm | The Brass Room, Fyshwick | Register here.
Your Local Wedding Guide Canberra Expo
Planning the perfect wedding day? At Your Local Wedding Guide Expo, you can do just that with the help of the best wedding industry suppliers in the Canberra region.
You’ll find products and ideas, listen to live music, see gorgeous displays, and go in the draw to win great prizes. Showcasing a variety of city and country wedding reception venues, through to cars, beauty, gowns, cakes, photographers, entertainment and more, you’ll find everything you need.
Sunday 9 February, 10 am – 3 pm | National Convention Centre Canberra, 31 Constitution Avenue, City | More information here.
International Crafts & Food Fair
Some of Canberra’s best food stalls are coming together to take your tastebuds on an international journey this month.
Highlighting some amazing cuisines (with food from Ethiopia, Laos, Italy and a whole lot more), you’ll not only eat your way around the world, but also look through beautiful handcrafts (including clothing, and accessories) and listen to fun, festive music.
Sunday 9 February, 9.30 am – 2.30 pm | 21 Wentworth Avenue, Kingston | More information here.
Markets
Capital Region Farmers Market
This market is a community project run by the Rotary Club of Hall, the only rural Rotary Club in the ACT.
Head along to browse over 100 stallholders who bring their freshly picked, grown, and hand-crafted produce. Speak to a stallholder and ask them where their produce comes from – you’ll be surprised what you’ll learn and pick up cooking storage, and usage tips!
Saturday, 7 am – 11.30 am | Exhibition Park in Canberra, Exhibition Park in Canberra, Mitchell | More information here.
Haig Park Village Markets
The Haig Park Village Markets runs every Sunday in the beautiful leafy grounds of Haig Park, Braddon.
This farmers and foodie market will delight your senses with delicious cuisines, tasty treats, beautiful blooms, fresh produce, delectable charcuterie, and artisan products. Plus you’ll discover locally handmade crafts including jewellery, art, natural body care, unique homewares, hand-poured candles, children’s apparel, pooch wares, and more. Plus, there’s live music, an artists’ table, face painting, and more!
Sunday, 8 am – 2 pm | Haig Park, Girrahween Street, Braddon | More information here.
Southside Farmers Markets
This village market is located at Canberra College, making it the perfect place to duck in to grab what you need (and maybe a few things you don’t). Order an egg and bacon roll to start the morning as you explore the best of fresh seasonal veggies, handmade pasta, and pet treats.
Sunday 8 am–11.30 am | 2 Launceston Street, Phillip | facebook.com
Food and Wine
Tasting Australia with Adam Shipp
Join a seasonal walk through the National Museum’s Christina and Trevor Kennedy Garden, as Adam Shipp (Wiradjuri) of Yurbay Consultancies shares his passion for native plants.
Each tour finishes with the opportunity to sample some of the flavours found in the Kennedy Garden and around the Canberra region!
Saturday 8 February | National Museum of Australia, Lawson Crescent, Acton Peninsula, Acton | Book here.
Stage and Screen
Sunset Cinema
Who doesn’t love going to the movies? Get the most out of summer, by heading to the Sunset Cinema at the Botanic Gardens. Showing all the new hits, some old favourites, and family classics, bring a picnic, some camping chairs or a blanket and sit back and enjoy the show!
Until Saturday 22 February, from 6:30 pm | Australian National Botanic Gardens, Clunies Ross Street, Acton | Movies and tickets can be found here.
The Great Kimberley Wilderness
Be transported to one of the world’s most breathtaking and pristine landscapes in The Great Kimberley Wilderness – a 35-minute virtual reality experience narrated by Luke Hemsworth.
Guided by scientists and traditional owners, this journey crosses stunning coastlines and majestic gorges, venturing deep into these timeless lands. Soar over the thundering King George Falls, explore the remarkable striped sandstone domes of the UNESCO-listed Purnululu National Park, and travel back more than 350 million years to the Devonian Reef, uncovering the ancient geology that has shaped life as we know it.
This experience reveals the history, geology, culture and wonder of the remarkable Kimberley wilderness, which has been nearly two billion years in the making.
Daily, every hour from 9.15 am to 4.15 pm | National Museum of Australia, Lawson Crescent, Acton Peninsula, Acton | Find out more here.
Music
The Necks – Bleed Album Launch
That’s right, you can see revered music trailblazers and one of Australia’s great cult bands, The Necks, at the Street Theatre this February.
Formed in Sydney in 1987, The Necks have operated with the same line-up for more than thirty years. And this is your chance to see it live for yourself.
Saturday 8 February, 8 am – 10 pm | The Street Theatre, 15 Childers Street, City | Book here.
Joseph Tawadros – The Oud Unleashed
Six-time ARIA award-winning composer and Oud virtuoso, Joseph Tawadros is coming to Canberra for a very special performance.
Drawing upon thousands of years of ancient traditions, his performances are a vibrant take on the oud, which he presents with influences of jazz, flamenco, prog rock and even bluegrass. From furiously fast numbers to more slow and meditative reflections, it’s the oud as you’ve never heard it before.
Sunday 9 February, 4 pm – 9 pm | The Street Theatre, 15 Childers Street, City | Book here.
“Dear Songs” at Tallagandra Hills Winery
Join Inez Hargaden for the launch of her highly anticipated debut EP Dear Songs at Tallagandra Hills Winery, an evening that promises to be as heartwarming as it is entertaining.
Originally from Ireland, Inez now calls Canberra home and is known for crafting inclusive, warm performances that draw out a wide spectrum of emotions. This is a rare opportunity to hear the full EP in an intimate setting, surrounded by good company and great local wine.
Sunday 9 February, 3.15 pm | 1692 Murrumbateman Road, Gundaroo | Book here.
Exhibitions
The Bald Archy Prize 2025
Get ready for Australia’s leading satirical art extravaganza, the Bald Archy Prize! Born in 1994 as a whimsical take that more serious competition, this prize throws open its canvas to artists of every stripe, inviting them to unleash their creativity in portrait paintings teeming with humour, dark satire, light comedy, or caricature.
Now, entering its 29th year in 2025, the Bald Archy Prize beckons artists to carry forward the rich tradition of revelling in laughter while basking in the beauty of art. The exhibition kicks off in Canberra before embarking on a tour across various venues in Eastern Australia, so make sure you don’t miss out!
Until Sunday 23 March | Watson Arts Centre (Canberra Potters), 1 Aspinall St Watson | More information here.
Waves of Kinship
This is a new photo-based work by Polish-born Kamberri/Canberra-based artist Marzena Wasikowska.
Inspired by fieldwork and studio meditations on the built environment, waterscapes and global warming, as well as her immediate family, works in this exhibition have been created with support from a Capital Arts Patrons’ Organisation (CAPO) grant.
Until Sunday 23 March | Platform, 19 Furneaux St Manuka | More information here.
Moonsnake
Thinking about possible connections between the moon and snakes, Steven Holland brings together a recent series of yellow-snake dream drawings with a selection of his bronze Serpent sculptures that were created over several decades.
Designed to coincide with the Chinese New Year, Luna Year of the Snake in 2025, this exhibition is free to visit.
Until Saturday 5 April | 137 Reed Street North, Greenway | More information here.
Unconditional
This is a mixed-media examination of loves in many forms, from the joyful, to the painful, life-affirming, difficult at times, but invariably unconditional.
Reflecting the multi-faceted qualities of love, in terms of media used as well as subjects, it shows various expressions of love and argues that we are all different yet united by emotions.
Until Saturday 5 April | 137 Reed Street North, Greenway | More information here.
This Is Studio&
Studio&’s debut exhibition as a collaborative, celebrating two years of making together.
In it, works are reflective of the diversity, interests and skills being honoured at Studio&. It’s a wonderful reminder the power art has in personal expression and community building and demonstrates that art exists in the exchange, process, collaboration, providing access to and noticing in everyday life.
Until Saturday 5 April | 137 Reed Street North, Greenway | More information here.
Celebrate Gungahlin: Young Voices
This exhibition features artworks and documentation from the 2024 Celebrate Gungahlin Festival.
Local artists Megan Daley and Pinal Maniar worked with children and their families to create masks, banners, and props for the inaugural festival parade. Showcasing the documentation of the process and the parade, as well as highlights from Our Town: A Celebrate Gungahlin Community Exhibition, head along to support over 100 young people who live, work or play in the Gungahlin region.
Until Sunday 23 March, 10 am – 4 pm | The Nook, Belconnen Arts Centre, 118 Emu Bank, Belconnen | More information here.
Escape. Control. Delete. by Kristie Watts
In Australia, more than one in three women have been physically and/or sexually assaulted. Every week a woman is murdered by her current or former partner. Escape Control Delete is a process and conceptual-based installation that makes the statistics of violence against women in Australia visible.
Each blacked-out key represents a woman in the community creating an unavoidable visual representation of words heard and reports read about the increasing statistics of women in Australia affected by abuse.
Until Sunday 23 March, 10 am – 4 pm | Window Gallery, Belconnen Arts Centre, 118 Emu Bank, Belconnen | More information here.
TILT by Alex Asch and Mariana del Castillo
This is the final exhibition in a two-year collaboration between artists Alex Asch and Mariana del Castillo.
Exploring ideas around identity, memory, belonging, and ownership, through colonisation, migration, and displacement the two artists enter the conversation from opposite ends. Head along to see it for yourself.
Until Sunday 23 March, 10 am – 4 pm | Pivot Gallery, Belconnen Arts Centre, 118 Emu Bank, Belconnen | More information here.
3000 days … and counting …
Esteemed Australian botanical artist Sharon Field is waging a personal protest against global warming. And in doing so, she is creating a monumental piece of art.
Setting herself a challenge to create a draw/painting for 3000 days on a series of scrolls, she is making Australia’s own version of the Bayeux Tapestry (the historic 11th Century tapestry depicting the Norman conquest of England and measuring approximately 68 metres).
Providing a visual record of the plants the planet is in danger of losing, you can see it at the Belconnen Arts Centre.
Until Sunday 23 March, 10 am – 4 pm | West Gallery, Belconnen Arts Centre, 118 Emu Bank, Belconnen | More information here.
Neither Here Nor There by Liz Faul
Liz Faul was born in Canberra and grew up here. And that’s what inspires her work.
Conveying her feelings about Canberra and how it’s changed over the years, in this exhibition, she uses repeated motifs to express her memories of growing up here — the Burley Griffin map, the photographs of familiar places, and silhouettes of the family at different times. It combines painted papers, recycled printed materials, found papers and her illustrations on canvasses or boxes.
Until Sunday 23 March, 10 am – 4 pm | Generator Gallery, Belconnen Arts Centre, 118 Emu Bank, Belconnen | More information here.
BLAZE 2025
Canberra Contemporary’s eagerly awaited emerging artist showcase, BLAZE, returns to present the dynamic and diverse voices of Kamberri/Canberra’s rising creative talents.
Featuring six exciting artists at the beginning of their careers, BLAZE offers an insight into the evolving art scene of the region and exhibits bold, thought-provoking works across installation, painting, photography and sculpture.
Featuring the work of Sophia Childs, Sophie Dumaresq, Gabrielle Hall-Lomax, Emeirely Nucifora-Ryan, Brennan O’Brien and Jessika Spencer.
Until 17 April | Canberra Contemporary, 44 Queen Elizabeth Terrace, Parkes | canberracontemporary.com.au
Between Touch and Memory
Showing at Cox Gallery for a limited run, don’t miss this opportunity to see Sienna Curby’s work in person. Graduating with a Bachelor of Visual Art in 2024, and receiving the COX Prize (part of the Emerging Artist Support Scheme at the ANU’s School of Art & Design), it’s a unique opportunity to support a local up-and-coming artist.
Until Friday 14 February | 1/19 Eastlake Parade, Kingston | More information here.
…Is somebody gonna match my freak?
This is a joint exhibition by Sophie Dumaresq and Asil Habara (wet sahara), the 2024 recipients of the M16 Artspace ANU Emerging Artists Support Scheme.
A tongue-in-check nod to the two artists shared sense of humour and interest in online popular culture, shit posting, and the very real-life currents behind driving viral trends, you’ll want to see this for yourself.
Until Sunday 16 February | M16 Artspace, 21 Blaxland Crescent, Griffith | More information here.
Creek
This is a solo exhibition by Kirsten Wehner, recipient of the 2024 M16 Artspace Environmental Artist Residency, generously supported by ConceptSix.
Exploring life along Weston Creek (a little-known waterway in suburban Canberra), ‘Creek’ presents drawings, sculptures and experimental collaborations that honour work to rehabilitate the catchment and invite attention to the waterway’s possibility as a place of cultural/ecological flourishing.
Until Sunday 16 February | M16 Artspace, 21 Blaxland Crescent, Griffith | More information here.
Pompeii
If seeing Pompeii in Italy is on your bucket list, mark your calendars for this one! The National Museum of Australia is showing its Pompeiiexhibit, 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.
Until Sunday 4 May | National Museum of Australia, Lawson Crescent, Acton Peninsula, Acton | Book here.
Sport and Wellness
Canberra United vs Central Coast Mariners
Don’t miss the Ninja A-League Round 15 match at McKellar Park! Head along to support Canberra’s team in green as United faces off against Central Coast Mariners.
Saturday 8 February, 5 pm – 7 pm | McKellar Park, Walkley Place, Mckellar | Book here.
UC Capitals v Sydney Flames
The UC Capitals are taking on the Sydney Flames and it’s sure to see sparks fly. Full of excitement, grab your tickets before they sell out.
Sunday 9 February | AIS Arena, 26 Leverrier Street, Bruce | Book here.
Workshops and Programs
Art Therapy taster
Art Therapy is a great support for mental health and wellbeing, but also a rich and rewarding career path. This free event is designed to be social, but offers attendees information, access to resources and creative practice opportunities.
A casual format will include space for questions and conversations, guided art activities and creative prompts for independent practice. No RSVP needed. Drop in anytime for a quick chat or stay for the whole 2 hours. Bridie Macgillicuddy is a professionally registered Art Therapist.
Saturday 8 February, 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm | Q Gallery, 13a Edgar Street, Ainslie | brightmarks.com.au
