Brisbane is the 15th international city to host an Affordable Art Fair with the celebrated event welcoming more than 3.1 million art lovers and selling a staggering 568,000 artworks from emerging and established artists since its first Fair in London in 1999.

Marking 25 years in 2024, more than 40 independent Australian galleries will take part in the inaugural Brisbane Fair with thousands of original works for sale, priced from $100 to $10,000.

Australian Fair Director Stephanie Kelly said Affordable Art Fair was the single largest gathering of galleries and artists in one location, providing a platform for Australian creatives to showcase their work and connect with new and engaged audiences.

“Affordable Art Fair focuses on the fun side of viewing and buying art and seeks to put art into every home, no matter the size or buyer’s budget,” Kelly said.

“The mission of the Fair is to democratise and demystify the art world and make art accessible to all. Unlike traditional art fairs, every exhibited work is from a living artist, every artwork on display lists a sale price and every artwork is looking for a new home.”

The curated collection of participating galleries from across Australia and the Asia-Pacific spans all styles and genres, producing an eclectic and electrifying smorgasbord of paintings, sculptures, installations, photographic works and limited-edition prints.

“Whether you’re a lover of landscapes, smitten with sculpture or an adorer of abstracts, we’re sure you’ll find something to suit your taste, space and spend,” Kelly said.

Among the 40 participating galleries from Queensland and beyond are Studio Gallery based in the heart of Fortitude Valley, Sydney and Melbourne showing artists from across Australia, Revival Art & Design, an Albion favourite; the Darling Downs’ home of contemporary art, The Toowoomba Gallery; Sydney’s iconic Wentworth Galleries; Sydney-based contemporary Latin American gallery MG and Co; and regional powerhouse JUMBLED from Orange NSW.

In addition to browsing thousands of original artworks under one roof, visitors to the Affordable Art Fair Brisbane can participate in a range of immersive experiences including live artist demonstrations, talks and tours, kids’ activities, hands-on workshops, live music and a delectable selection of culinary delights and tasty tipples.

“The Affordable Art Fair seeks to welcome art lovers of all ages, backgrounds and experience levels to explore and enjoy Australia’s most exciting living artists in a relaxed, social setting,” Kelly said.

“Plus, all works are rotated as they sell, so regardless of whether you’re among our most eager first attendees on Thursday or instead choose to celebrate Mother’s Day with a side of art on Sunday, you’re guaranteed a satisfying and soul-brightening day at the Fair.”

Affordable Art Fair Brisbane runs Thursday 9 May – Sunday 12 May 2024 at the Brisbane Showgrounds Exhibition Building. For information and tickets, visit affordableartfair.com

Affordable Art Fair
9 – 12 May 2024
Exhibition Building, Brisbane Showgrounds
www.affordableartfair.com

The 12-day celebration of art, science, tech, new ideas, ingenuity and creativity offers a packed program of interactive installations and events to inspire.

Watch as the city around you is transformed into a world of discovery.

Curiocity Brisbane
9 – 20 March
Multiple locations across Brisbane
www.worldsciencefestival.com.au

The theme for this year is ‘connection through culture’ and is a call to action to reach out to others, participate and be part of Brisbane’s evolving cultural story. Over three weeks from 1-20 February, audiences can experience the transformative power of live performance, learn and grow through immersive workshops and travel the length and breadth of Asia across the incredibly packed festival program that has something for everyone.

Festival highlights
Fresh festival experiences for 2022 include the hip hop/luxury car/food truck event Southside by Night, the first-ever dedicated tea festival The Laneway Tea Festival, digital storytelling initiative Mother’s Table, a special Valentine’s Day event called BrisAsia Love Songs, new music and healing initiative Satsang – Sacred Gathering and BrisAsia Fashion showcasing some of the finest Asian designers.

BrisAsia Festival
1-20 February
Various locations around Brisbane
www.brisbane.qld.gov.au

Get your motor running… ‘The Motorcycle: Design, Art, Desire’ opens the throttle on the ground-breaking designs that shaped one of the most iconic objects the world has ever seen.

Featuring radical concepts, record breakers and road icons, the fully-immersive exhibition showcases 100 of the greatest motorcycles ever assembled.

This world-exclusive exhibition, only in Brisbane, will showcase the art, design and history of one of the most iconic objects of the last 150 years, the motorcycle.

Featuring more than 100 innovative and influential motorcycles from the 1860s to present day, it will consider the iconic vehicle from the perspective of social history, popular culture, design and technology.

The exhibition will tap into the appeal of this enduring object of design and art, looking at the motorcycle’s past, present and future.

Highlights of the exhibition will include:

• An 1871 Perreaux, the first steam-powered velocipede and oldest known motorcycle in the world;
• The earliest Australian-designed and built machines, including a Spencer produced in Brisbane in 1906;
• The 1951 Vincent Black Lightning that set an Australian land speed record in its day and more recently a world record for the highest price paid at auction for a motorcycle;
• Symbols of speed including the1930s Triumph Speed Twin, the 1970s Ducati 750 Super Sport, and the 1990s Britten V1000;
• Off-road motorcycles highlighting a rich history of bikes built for dust and dirt;
• Customised motorcycles at the intersection of art and design;
• Ultra-modern electric motorcycles, demonstrating the future of transportation in the age of renewable energy.

The Motorcycle – Design, Art, Desire Exhibition
GOMA, Brisbane
28 November 2020 – 26 April 20201
www.qagoma.qld.gov.au

Featuring more than 100 innovative and influential motorcycles from the 1860s to present day, it will consider the iconic vehicle from the perspective of social history, popular culture, design and technology.

The exhibition will tap into the appeal of this enduring object of design and art, looking at the motorcycle’s past, present and future.

Highlights of the exhibition will include:

• A 1868 Michaux-Perraux, the first steam powered velocipede and oldest known motorcycle in the world;
• The earliest Australian-designed and built machines, including a Spencer produced in Brisbane in 1906;
• The 1951 Vincent Black Lightning that set an Australian land speed record in its day and more recently a world record for the highest price paid at auction for a motorcycle;
• Symbols of speed including the1930s Triumph Speed Twin, the 1970s Ducati 750 Super Sport, and the 1990s Britten V1000;
• Off-road motorcycles highlighting a rich history of bikes built for dust and dirt;
• Customised motorcycles at the intersection of art and design;
• Ultra-modern electric motorcycles, demonstrating the future of transportation in the age of renewable energy.

The exhibition will be accompanied by a range of special programs and events, including Up Late and a specially curated film program in GOMA’s Australian Cinémathèque.

The Motorcycle – Design, Art, Desire exhibition
Check back in again soon for further dates and details
GOMA, Brisbane
www.qagoma.qld.gov.au

Through re-evaluating and re-contextualising objects that serve as instruments of measurement, such as wind turbines and barometers, Gyre considers the complexity of relations between objects, time and space.

This exhibition is informed by Francis’s ongoing interest in how objects shape our perception of time and, in particular, how a temporal interval operates as a poetic device for the indeterminate connection between past, present and future.

Gyre Exhibition
21 August – 7 September
Main Gallery, Metro Arts, Brisbane
www.metroarts.com.au

Pene has an obsession: he endlessly catalogues boss drovers in portraits that vividly evoke the resilient, determined spirit of the rugged individuals responsible for moving thousands of livestock and teams of stockmen and cooks along the great pastoral stock routes of Australia, travelling over vast distances from station to market, or finding feed and water in times of drought.

Boss Drovers will tour to regional venues in Queensland from January 2019: Dogwood Crossing Miles | Logan Art Gallery | Artspace Mackay | Perc Tucker Regional Art Gallery Townsville | Toowoomba Regional Art Gallery | Redland Art Gallery | Gympie Regional Gallery | Bundaberg Regional Art Gallery | Caboolture Regional Art Gallery | Warwick Art Gallery | Hervey Bay Regional Art Gallery

Robert MacPherson Boss Drivers Exhibition
29 September 2018 – 24 February 2019
Queensland Art Gallery
www.qagoma.qld.gov.au

Now in its third year, the month-long program offers in-depth learning and engagement with First Nation contemporary art practices which include nine outdoor gallery sites including a display at Museum of Brisbane and large-scale projections on to the William Jolly Bridge. Maiwar also offers opportunities for the public to chat with the artists and curators at the one the many guided tours and panel discussions.

Artwork in Maiwar 2018 responds to the thematic concept of ‘endurance’; celebrating Aboriginal people’s strength and resilience as the longest living culture in the world.

This year artworks will be featured in Eagle Lane, Fish Lane, Hutton Lane, King George Square car park, Giffin Lane, Irish Lane (Charlotte Street), Edward Street (Between Elizabeth and Charlotte Street), William Jolly Bridge, Edison Lane and Museum of Brisbane.

Maiwar Exhibition
April 11 – 29 2018
Various locations around Brisbane
www.brisbane.qld.gov.au

The artwork is a fully immersive experience, inviting visitors inside a four-metre high, 15-metre wide dome created from 370 brightly coloured star garlands, forming a kaleidoscopic effect accompanied by a soundscape created by artist Michelle Xen.

Open all day and night during the festival, visitors can walk in and out, stay a while and reflect on the light filtering through the iridescent star strings, run your hands along the stars and think about the many hearts and hands that have been part of its creation.

The One Million Stars installation will be lit at night, creating a true beacon of peace for the Commonwealth Games and Brisbane.

Maryann created the first ‘stars’ following a tragedy in her local community, determined to counter violence with peace, darkness with light. Since 2012, thousands of people have come together to weave stars and meet the target of creating one million stars to realise this artwork as part of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games. Stars were received from 15 countries including Nigeria, USA, Canada, Kenya, Fiji, Barbados, Tonga, Japan, New Zealand, Malaysia, Samoa, Scotland, England, Cook Islands and Australia.

Presented as part of Festival 2018, a celebration of arts and culture taking place in Brisbane, across the Gold Coast, Cairns and Townsville during the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games. Supported by the Queensland Government and designed and developed by Museum of Brisbane in collaboration with Lumen Cloud.

One Million Stars public art installation
29 March – 15 April 2018
King George Square, Brisbane
www.museumofbrisbane.com.au

Acting more as a surreal wonderland than a music festival, every part of Jungle Love has been meticulously pored over to provide a liberating and immersive experience for all attendees. A luscious campsite nestled under a breezy canopy of trees, surrounded by a freshwater stream (that you can swim in) is the backdrop, and music is the soundtrack. Pulling out an array of impressive one-of-a-kinds; creativity is at the core of every planning stage and Jungle Love 2016 steps it up a notch.

Featuring a massive two story treehouse-bar towering above the site in between the two main stages, the top floor will function not only as a brilliant place to take in the serene surroundings but also as a dedicated gold bar, for artists and those who want to embrace the full Jungle Love experience.

In addition to this brand new bar, we have a few other surprises in store. Whispers have begun of secret micro-venues dotted across the site. Hidden experiences and pleasant surprises are a Jungle Love tradition; stumble across visual art installations and impromptu performances, but those with a keen eye or a little bit of luck might find themselves in secret locations, immersed in weird and wonderful circumstances.

Jungle Love is a 100 per cent inclusive environment. Plus, a festival with ‘Love’ in the name should probably celebrate just that. Right? Hardcore Jungle Lovers can make it official any way they want with an (unofficial) ceremony in the Jungle Love on site chapel The Sanctuary of Seduction. The bikes are also back this year, but with a twist. The festival declares its love for all people (especially the LGBTQ community) by offering up free rainbow coloured bicycles to ride across the site. Pick up a bike, it’s yours. Not using it? Pay it forward to the next gem with tired feet.

To top it all off, this absolute paradise is BYO and culinary options are in abundance with offerings far superior to the typical daggy dagwood dog one might find elsewhere. Not only will your taste buds thank you but your belly will too.

So come celebrate life, celebrate music, celebrate creativity and celebrate friendship. Float in the creek with a beer, discover your new favourite band and meet your new best mates. The Jungle Love community awaits.

Jungle Love will be held at Borumba Deer Park, near Imbil, on Friday 25 and Saturday 26 November. Camping is available from 24-26 November inclusive. Those of you there on the Thursday night will be treated to a pre-festival Treehouse Party to christen the brand-new Treetop Bar, soundtracked by the awesome Accomplice Collective, Lena Avaxa, Mood Swing & Chevy Bass and more.

Jungle Love Music and Arts Festival 2016 — line-up
7C’s, Accomplice Collective, Angharad Drake, Aquila Young, Austen, beneb, The Brains Trust, Bugs, Captain Dreamboat, Chaika, Cheap Fakes, Clea, The Con and the Liar, Confidence Man, The Counterfeit Umbrellas, Dreamtime, Dubarray, Electrified Fooling Machine, Family Jordan, FeelsClub, Fieu, The Francis Wolves, Grimmer, The Halls, Hazards Of Swimming Naked, HHAARRPP, HRBRT, The Jensens, Jimmy Davis, The Keepaways, Kudos, Lastlings, Magenta Voyeur, Malo Zima, Meredith, Michelle Xen, Mid Ayr, Monster Zoku Onsomb, Native Spirit, Neighbour, OKA, Omegachild, Papperbok, Pop Cult, Post-Dusk, Robert Knaggs, Sahara Beck, Shady Bliss, Shag Rock, Simi Lacroix, Sovereign, Theatre Of Thunder, Tijuana Cartel, TOISOC, Tsun, Twin Haus, The Vaudeville Smash, White Blanks, Wonky Queenslander DJs, Yoste, Zefereli

Jungle Love Music and Arts Festival 2016
Friday 25 and Saturday 26 November 2016
Borumba Deer Park, near Imbil, Queensland
www.junglelovefestival.com.au