Galleries and Museums
- City history
- Mainstream to out-there art
- Interactive exhibitions
To truly appreciate the cultural significance of Melbourne’s history – from the harsh days of colonial settlement through depressions and World Wars, to more recent memorable moments and achievements through the generations – a trip through the major galleries and museums is a must.
Galleries
The National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) has its Australian art section in Federation Square, where you can see the latest in retrospective and current Australian art and design. For world-class international exhibits the NGV International on St Kilda Road is the place to go.
The National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) has its Australian art section in Federation Square, where you can see the latest in retrospective and current Australian art and design. For world-class international exhibits the NGV International on St Kilda Road is the place to go.
Contemporary art in the heart
For contemporary art created closer to home, be sure to take a walk down Flinders Lane in the city, home to some of the city's most iconic contemporary private art spaces. And just 10 minutes walk from Flinders Street across Princes Bridge is the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, which is worth visiting as much for the amazing building as for its contents.
Arty bohemia
It makes sense that some of the best galleries can now be found in what were once Melbourne's most squalid suburbs, where arty bohemia thrived: Richmond and Fitzroy. Some of Fitzroy's best galleries include the Dianne Tanzer Gallery, Red and Sutton and in Richmond the Dickerson and Christine Abrahams galleries are great viewing experiences.
Art tucked away
Just 15 minutes drive from the CBD, sitting in what was once rural land, is the Heide Museum of Modern Art, showcasing modern and contemporary art and design, focusing on Australia's rich and colourful heritage and social history.
A bit further out again, in Eltham, is Montsalvat, one of Australia's first artistic colonies and very reminiscent of a small French village. Worth the trip.
Museums
The Melbourne Museum, next to the magnificent Royal Exhibition Building in Carlton, will tell you everything you need to know about both the city's and the rest of Australia's history.
Bunjilaka, the museum's Aboriginal centre, has a number of indigenous exhibits, including the excellent Koori Voices, just one way you can hear stories of Australia's original inhabitants. Melbourne: Stories from a City is an interactive exhibition where you can gain a full understanding of Melburnians across ages, classes, ethnicities and backgrounds.
Melbourne's multicultural history
For other glimpses of Melbourne's multicultural history go to the Jewish Museum or the Immigration Museum at Old Customs House.
Or to really know what's been etched through time into the ground you're walking on, sign up for a walking tour of Melbourne's city streets.
Hair-raising activities
If you're a closet science buff, or you just like to get your hands on the exhibits you see, then Melbourne's Scienceworks and Planetarium are for you. The interactive science and technology museum features the first digital planetarium in the Southern Hemisphere and has plenty of hair-raising activities, literally.
