Join us for a dynamic program of public events at the National Art School to celebrate the opening of our major exhibition The Neighbour at the Gate.
Opening during NAIDOC week, the public program will take place over two days, Friday 11 and Saturday 12 July.
Saturday 12 July
8pm – 10.30pm
Cell Block Theatre
Ticketed, 18+
You are warmly invited to join us for an industry day, focused on artist talks and art making opportunities. Hear directly from the guest curatorium and the featured artists in The Neighbour at the Gate exhibition, charts the entangled legacies of exclusion and resilience, drawing vital parallels between the past and present, memory and nationhood.
Create a ceramic work to add to James Nguyen’s participatory installation artwork Homeopathies_where new trees grow (2025), or make a fabric tassel inspired by Jacky Cheng’s work Imaginary Homelands (2025). Learn more about the shared histories and stories behind this immersive exhibition.
Friday 11 July
10am – 10.30am
NAS Gallery
Free admission, all welcome
Friday 11 July
10.45am – 11.15am
NAS Gallery
Free admission, all welcome
Friday 11 July
11.30am – 12pm
NAS Gallery
Free admission, all welcome
Friday 11 July
12.15pm – 12.45pm
Gallery Green
Free admission, all welcome
Friday 11 July
2pm – 2.30pm
NAS Gallery
Free admission, all welcome
Friday 11 July
NEW TIME 2.45pm – 3.15pm
NAS Gallery
Free admission, all welcome
Friday 11 July
3.15pm – 3.45pm
Chapel Ground Floor
Free admission, all welcome
Join us from 11am until 3pm for a fun-filled day of family friendly, free creative activities. See the exhibition, participate in artmaking and mindfulness sessions led by Madina Yoga, and enjoy drop-in workshops facilitated by art educators, inspired by the artworks in the exhibition. Explore a range of mediums including ceramics, textiles and printmaking inspired by the work of exhibiting artists Jacky Cheng, Dennis Golding, James Nguyen and Jason Phu. Visitors can contribute a clay piece to the exhibition and take away their own textile tassel or hand printed tote bag at the end of the day.
From 12pm – 1pm, hear directly from the exhibiting artists and curators in a free panel talk, unpacking the themes of the exhibition.
After a day of artmaking and artist talks, join us for an evening of free DJ sets outdoors, with DJ Rocky Stallone, Sveta and Mason Kimber and food and beverages from 5pm. Closing out the Opening Weekend celebrations is our major program event, the Shared Skies Music Concert in the historic Cell Block Theatre, with live performances from BARKAA, Rainbow Chan and DJ Rocky Stallone (ticketed event, bookings essential).
Alongside our special celebrations and activities, the NAS Gallery will be open for extended hours until 8pm.
Saturday 12 July
11am – 11.30am & 2pm – 2.30pm
Building 25 Project Space
Free admission, all welcome
Saturday 12 July
11am – 8pm
Campus wide
Free admission, all welcome
Saturday 12 July
12pm – 1pm
Cell Block Theatre
Free admission, all welcome
Saturday 12 July
8pm – 10.30pm
Cell Block Theatre
Ticketed, 18+
Announcing Nakari Thorpe as the chair for the Artists and Curators Panel Talk for The Neighbour at the Gate this Saturday 12 July.
Nakari Thorpe is a Gunnai, Gunditjmara and Gooreng Gooreng woman from Victoria and Queensland. She is a presenter and Indigenous Communities reporter with ABC News based in Sydney providing coverage across television, radio and digital. She previously worked as a multi-platform reporter with SBS and NITV covering federal politics in the Canberra Press Gallery at Parliament House and national Indigenous affairs.
Join us for the talk in our historic Cell Block Theatre, 12pm – 1pm on Saturday 12 July, as part of our opening weekend celebrations. Secure your spot and view the full program at the link in bio.
Jul 9
Led by art educators and inspired by James Nguyen’s new installation work `Homeopathies_where trees grow` (2025), join us for a free drop-in artmaking workshop to make your own incense holder out of clay which will become part of the evolving artwork in the NAS Gallery, commissioned for The Neighbour at the Gate.
Next Saturday, 12 July, between 11am – 3pm.
Visit our website to view the full program (link in bio).
The Neighbour at the Gate has been made possible with the generous support of the NSW Government through its Blockbusters Funding initiative.
Jul 8
Next Saturday, join us for a fun-filled day of family friendly, free creative activities. There will be sound baths, drop-in artmaking, children`s activities, an artists and curators panel talk, followed by dj sets and food trucks. Stick around for after-hours access to the gallery and the Shared Skies Music Concert with BARKAA, Rainbow Chan and DJ Rocky Stallone (ticketed, 18+).
Visit our website to view the full program (link in bio).
The Neighbour at the Gate has been made possible with the generous support of the NSW Government through its Blockbusters Funding initiative.
Jul 5
Just over a week to go until the `Shared Skies` music concert featuring BARKAA, "The New Matriarch of Australian Rap" (GQ), and Rainbow Chan, Artist of the Year at the 2022 FBi SMAC Awards. But who’s counting? 👀
🎫 Concession tickets just $25 — link in bio.
@barkaa__
@chunyinrainbowchan
The Neighbour at the Gate has been made possible with the generous support of the NSW Government through its Blockbusters Funding initiative.
Jul 2
One and only✊🏽
Two years after NAS NEO on Gadigal Land, BARKAA returns to Darlinghurst on Saturday 12 July for the `Shared Skies` concert.
We’re proud to offer free Mob Tix 💖 Get your tickets today!
👑@barkaa__
The Neighbour at the Gate has been made possible with the generous support of the NSW Government through its Blockbusters Funding initiative.
Jul 1
“It wasn’t about winning, but the feeling of freedom and connection”
Artist Dennis Golding invited exhibition curatorium member Michael Do and NAS Curator, Exhibitions, Lucy Latella for an intimate look at his work `Bingo` (2025), commissioned for our upcoming exhibition `The Neighbour at the Gate` and produced at the National Art School with the assistance of master printer and artist Janet Parker-Smith (pictured); Carolyn Mckenzie-Craig, NAS Head of Printmaking; and Rebecca O’Shea, NAS Printmaking Studio Technician.
‘Bingo’ (2025) is a ten-metre-long wall installation by Kamilaroi/Gamilaraay artist Dennis Golding that draws from his recollections of family bingo nights hosted by his nan and aunty on Eveleigh Street in Redfern, Sydney. Gathering in an abandoned terrace house, they stitched together joy from what little they had; cutting game cards from cardboard, running power through borrowed cords, and making space for community.
Read the photo essay to learn more about the work and exhibition at nas.edu.au or hear the artist in conversation with grandmother Aunty Ali Golding during the opening weekend celebrations, RSVP at the link in bio.
The Neighbour at the Gate has been made possible with the generous support of the NSW Government through its Blockbusters Funding initiative.
—
Photography by Peter Morgan
Jun 30
