Art Wrap: Seven Must-See Winter Exhibitions Around Melbourne

While the curtain may have fallen on Rising, Melbourne has plenty of creative energy left in the tank for winter. The arts scene is heating up with a diverse array of exhibitions that push boundaries and spark conversation. From immersive digital experiences to important reflections on First Nations stories, and even an eagle crafted from iced coffee, our city’s gallery spaces are full of unexpected delights.

Martin Grant at The Ian Potter Centre

From Naomi Campbell to Lady Gaga, Australian fashion designer Martin Grant is renowned for dressing the greats. Now, the largest exhibition of his work to date has arrived at The Ian Potter Centre, showing four decades of the Melbourne-born, Paris-based designer’s output. Bringing together pieces from the NGV collection, 217 pieces donated from the artist’s archive, and several loans, Martin Grant offers a comprehensive overview of the artist’s trajectory from Melbourne suburbia to the international fashion scene. Until January 26, 2026. Free.

French Impressionism: From the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston at the NGV

We’ve all heard their names: Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas. But this winter, we’re learning their stories. Part of the NGV’s annual Melbourne Winter Masterpieces series, French Impressionism: From the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston presents over 100 paintings from the MFA Boston’s collection. Spanning 10 thematic rooms, this exhibition encourages greater understanding of a movement that continues to capture our collective imagination, spotlighting the students, teachers and human stories behind the famous works. Until October 5. $49.

65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art at the Potter Museum of Art

In its first exhibition since shutting the doors to renovate seven years ago, the Potter is back with 65,000 Years. The exhibition brings together more than 400 paintings, historic documents, installations, videos and objects from the university archive, laying out a nuanced and thematic exploration of First Nations brilliance and subjugation that asks us to re-think the roots of Australian art. Until November 22. Free.

Blak In-justice: Incarceration and Resistance at Heide

Personal. Political. Resistant. Heide’s exhibition Blak In-Justice speaks directly to the realities of Indigenous incarceration and deaths in custody in Australia. Curated by Barkindji artist Kent Morris, the creative director of The Torch Project, the exhibition brings together the work of pivotal artists including Destiny Deacon, Gordon Bennett and Julie Dowling. Alongside these names, there’s also works from current and former inmates, many of whom connected to creative practice through The Torch. Until July 20. $25.

Lane Cormick: Smoking will never die but you will at Linden New Art

Open-ended and without a predictable outcome, Melbourne-born artist Lane Cormick’s multimedia practice continues to defy categorisation. Cormick’s first retrospective, Smoking will never die but you will collects 20 years of work, from photographic portraits obscured by hole-punch cuttings to a frozen iced-coffee sculpture of an eagle that melts throughout the day. Until August 24. Free.

Distraction at Melbourne Science Gallery

Are smartphones a tool, a time sink, a source of anxiety, or a rich well of knowledge? Distraction investigates this question, exploring our complex relationship with the digital world. Merging cutting-edge university research with contemporary art, the exhibition invites audiences to reflect on their own habits and connections. From immersive installations highlighting the homogenisation of the image to interactive arcades, this exhibition has something for everyone. Opens July 26. Free.

The Veil at Buxton Contemporary

Like a memory or a ghost The Veil operates in the spaces between. More easily felt than understood, the multimedia exhibition unpicks notions of identity, memory and cultural resilience, while talking to the spiritual and otherworldly. This exhibition showcases a major new commissioned film from First Nations artist Hayley Millar Baker, plus recent acquisitions, existing works and commissioned pieces from local and international artists. Until November 1. Free.