Canberra Museum and Gallery

Canberra Museum and Gallery (CMAG) is a city-centre venue focused on Canberra and the surrounding region’s social history and visual arts. At the corner of London Circuit and Civic Square in Civic, it brings together exhibitions, collection displays, learning activities and community events, making it a useful stop for visitors wanting more context about the place beyond the national institutions.

The collection includes paintings, photographs and Sidney Nolan’s Term of His Natural Life series. CMAG also provides custodianship for the ACT’s collection and has an Open Collections gallery, described as a space where visitors can engage with the collection in a different way. Its programme changes regularly, with exhibitions and events ranging from artist talks and practical workshops to film screenings and discussions. Recent listings include FlutterBry’s Worlds Beyond Waste, which explores sculpture made from everyday waste, and a film and talk about the Maratus spider with local citizen scientist Stuart Harris.

The venue’s exhibition programme can shift from local history and regional stories to more playful, immersive presentations. RELICS: A New World Rises is billed as an experience of LEGO worlds, combining nostalgia with immersive art, while the FlutterBry exhibition uses creative lighting and dramatic shadows to give the work a different character by day and night. These examples suggest a gallery that is comfortable presenting both collection-based material and contemporary, accessible projects rather than following a single exhibition style.

CMAG suits solo visitors who want to browse at their own pace, as well as groups looking for an exhibition, talk or workshop in the heart of Canberra. Families may find the hands-on programme particularly relevant, with the listed waste-art workshop designed around making and experimenting, and kids admitted free to the advertised FlutterBry talk. The venue also offers a way to connect with Canberra’s creative history through its collection and its focus on artists, objects and stories associated with the region. Check the current programme before visiting, as exhibitions, events and booking requirements vary.