Presented in partnership with Monash University Museum of Art and the Victorian Curriculum Assessment Authority, Contemporary Art on the Road is Teacher Professional development for arts educators. The program is generously supported by the Department of Education – Strategic Partnerships Program through a direct grant over the period 2026 – 2029.

The program consists of formal presentations by educators from the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA), Monash University Museum of Art (MUMA), Gertrude Contemporary, and exhibition and collection tours by our host institutions. The second component comprises a hands-on artist workshop led by Gulumerridjin (Larrakia), Wardaman, and KarraJarri artist Jenna Lee.

Image credit: Jenna Lee, Burn before reading (detail), 2025, installation view, pages of Aboriginal Words and Place Names, calligraphy ink, florist wire, glue, Burn Before Reading, Gertrude Glasshouse, Naarm Melbourne, 2025, image courtesy of the artist and MARS Gallery, Naarm Melbourne © the artist, photograph: Christian Capurro

DEEP HEART is a collaboration in poetry and song exploring love in all its strange enduring forms. Poet Ross Donlon joins with Rebecca Morton and Ken White to trace the fault lines between tenderness and truth, drawing from a lifetime of writing about connection, loss and renewal. This performance feels like being invitined into a living anthology - each piece revealing the quiet pulse of affection the outlasts the moment. Donlon's words are earth y and spare: Morton's vocals lend warmth and emotional texture: and White's accompanyment anchor's the work in intimacy. Presented in the atmospheric Castlemanie Art Museum, DEEP Heart is neither concert nor reading- it's a gathering. Listeners are invited to lean in, reflectand feel their own stories mirrored back.

Artist Studio Walk 2026

Presented by the Friends Of Castlemaine Art Museum, the Artist Studio Walk runs alongside the Castlemaine State Festival. An amazing opportunity to visit artists in their natural habitats and connect with what's happening in the makers space.

Including 51 local artists across Castlemaine, Elphinstone and Newstead.

Artists:

Abbie and Bridget Heathcote, Andrea J Smith, Ann Ferguson, Anne Tweed, Arkeria rose Armstrong, Brian Nunan, Carl ( Les) Baxter, Catherine Pilgrim, Chris Guest, Dale Cox, Damian Callanan, Dannielle Wilkinson, Darron Davies, David Frazer, Dee Hutchison, Diana Orinda Burns, Eva Miller, Geoff Hocking, Geoffrey Falk, Graeme Galloway, Greg Preece, Hazel Annear, Janet Neilson, Jinette de Gooijer, Jo and Rony Caspi, Judy Wild, Julie Millowick, Julie Shaw, Karen Holland, Leslie Thornton, Maine Images Life Drawing Group, Maldon Artist Network Inc. Gallery, Mark Fuller, Melinda Jane, Melissa O'Rourke, Michael Rigg, Michael Wolfe, Neil Fettling, Newstead Open Studios Art Trail, Penny Peckham, Richard Hollis, Robert Maclaurin, Ron Holden, Roz Avent, Russell Annear, Sandra Dean, Sarah Fowler, Sarah Koschak, Smiley Williams and Winifred Belmont.

Surprise Chef Collage Party

This party takes cut and paste to the next level! A salad of sensory play, piecing together movement, colour and texture to make a delicious collage. Using multimedia to blend a playful approach to making, this will be an ecstatic melange of creative collaboration for kids and their carers.

All materials provided including pre-cut images to play with.

For ages 3-8 years.

Artist Bio:

Randi Wagner works in collage as a way of life, forever piecing together practices and possibilities. She is a community engagement practitioner, photographer, collage maker, community cook, trauma-informed yoga practitioner and an ideas person who weaves it together in surprising ways. Calling Castlemaine home, she is originally from Saskatchewan, Canada. She has spent time in time in Myanmar and Uzbekistan working alongside master craftspeople on community-based tourism projects. These days you will find her at the markets selling bone broth, rallying for freedom, or working on community projects around town and beyond.

How can we connect with art through movement and forming shapes with our bodies? Join Heidi on a playful adventure through the gallery.

Playful Forms is an interactive dance workshop for 3-5 year olds and their parent/carers. A fun opportunity to bond with your child through art and dance!

Each ticket is for 1 child and 1 adult to participate together. This workshop is designed for carer-child interaction. Carers are responsible for their child throughout the workshop.

Artist Bio:
Heidi Barrett is a choreographer, creative movement teacher and visual artist living on Djaara country. She is cofounder of No Lights No Lycra, a global dance organisation promoting physical and mental wellbeing, and community engagement. Her latest dance project is Dusko Disco which facilitates inclusive dance workshops for all ages and abilities.