As entry fees for some of Sydney’s biggest art institutions continue to rise, a peaceful day of wandering around galleries suddenly has the ability to wreak havoc on your bank account.
Don’t get us wrong, we love experiencing those big, blockbuster ticketed exhibitions, but there’s also something special about visiting some of the smaller gallery spaces that Sydney has to offer. There’s actually plenty of free art exhibitions dotted around the city — you just have to know where to look.
We’ve rounded up the best art exhibitions currently showing across Sydney, from works by iconic Australian painters to major photography retrospectives and cutting-edge contemporary Chinese art (all for the very attractive entry fee of $0).
Margaret Olley: Australian Intimiste at NAS
Celebrating one of their own alum, the National Art School (NAS) is currently presenting Margaret Olley: Australian Intimiste, presenting an intimate look at one of Australia’s most beloved painters. Through the lens of the European artistic tradition of intimisme, the exhibition pays homage to the quiet poetry of domestic life and the interior world, with a focus on Olley’s remarkable six-decade career.
Drawing from significant public and private collections, the exhibition traces Olley’s preoccupations from early interiors to her later richly textured compositions featuring floral arrangements, antiques, and domestic objects.
Australian Intimiste also features a selection of works by her NAS friends, teachers and peers, including Jean Bellette, Margaret Cilentro and Tony Tuckson, as well as Sir William Dobell’s famous 1948 Archibald Prize-winning portrait of Margaret Olley that caused such a sensation in the day.
Where: 156 Forbes St, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010.
When: July 31-October 24, Monday-Saturday, 11am-5pm.
Definitive Dupain at State Library of NSW
This free exhibition at the beautiful State Library of NSW is the first major retrospective of Australia’s most famous photographer, Max Dupain. Drawing from his complete body of work, visitors can discover 200 images and original prints on display, from his most iconic photographs (including Sunbaker) through to unseen works and experimental gems.
The images will be shown alongside Dupain’s own words, offering a rare insight into the man behind the lens and his creative philosophy.
If you’re after a full day of culture, the State Library is just a six-minute walk from the Art Gallery of NSW, so you can kill multiple art birds with one stone and explore both institutions in a short amount of time.
Where: Galleries, State Library, 1 Shakespeare Place, Sydney NSW 2000.
When: August 24, 2026-July 18, 2027.
Brett Whiteley: Coming Home
The Brett Whiteley Studio in Surry Hills recently underwent a two-year renovation and has now opened to the public with an incredible new exhibition, titled Brett Whiteley: Coming Home.
Upstairs, Whiteley’s studio remains an intimate time capsule, a look into his workspace, his famous graffitied walls and his extensive collection of books and trinkets. Downstairs, the new opening exhibition brings together some of his most celebrated works, from the 1976 Self-portrait in the Studio to the monumental 16-metre-wide Alchemy.
The Surry Hills studio is one of my favourite art spaces in Sydney, offering a glimpse into the genius and creativity behind some of Whiteley’s most iconic works. There’s really no better way to experience Whiteley’s art than to be in this storied space, where much of it was created.
Where: Brett Whiteley Studio, 2 Raper Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010.
When: Open Thursday to Sunday, 10am-4pm.
Black Myth at White Rabbit Gallery
We’re big fans of White Rabbit Gallery at STG. The gallery was founded by Australian businesswoman and philanthropist Judith Neilson after a trip to Beijing in the late 1990s sparked an interest and passion for Chinese contemporary art. She was captivated by the creative energy and technical quality of the works she saw and wanted to share them with people outside China.
Since its inception, White Rabbit Gallery has remained completely free to explore. Hannah McKellar (White Rabbit Gallery’s Digital Communications Manager) tells us, “Accessibility is something that Judith Neilson values deeply, and she believes that her incredible collection of Chinese contemporary art should be shared.”
White Rabbit Gallery’s latest offering, Black Myth, opened to the public on June 25, marking the 33rd exhibition in the gallery’s history. The exhibition draws on the viral Chinese video game Black Myth: Wukong, which is a contemporary retelling of the classic novel Journey to the West.
Meng-Yu tells us that the exhibition “poses the question: what role does myth still play in an age driven by technology and rapid urban development?”
Where: White Rabbit Gallery, 30 Balfour St, Chippendale NSW 2008.
When: Wednesday to Sunday, 10am-5pm.
AUSSIES by Peter Drew
You may have already encountered one of Peter Drew’s iconic AUSSIE posters dotted around the city. Now the Australian National Maritime Museum is giving you the chance to see them as a collection and discover the stories of the people behind the posters.
Drew’s work is a powerful statement against discrimination, challenging assumptions about Australia’s national identity. In the early 1900s, government policy reduced non-British migration to a trickle, before effectively bringing it to a standstill after 1909.
Immigration officials were given the power to subject prospective migrants to a dictation test in any prescribed language. Many of the AUSSIES depicted in Drew’s work were seeking an exemption from this test.
You can see these incredible portraits at the Australian National Maritime Museum’s free outdoor exhibition, located in front of Wharf 7, near the Pyrmont ferry stop.
Where: 2 Murray Street, Darling Harbour, Sydney NSW 2000.
When: Open 10am-4pm.
Lorrie Graham: Photojournalist
Another impressive photography exhibition at the State Library displays five decades of photography by Lorrie Graham, the pioneering and influential photojournalist.
Graham became the first female photography cadet at The Sydney Morning Herald in 1975 before moving to London three years later to work at The Observer. In 1980 she returned to Australia, working as a staff photographer for leading publications before embarking on a successful freelance career.
Curated by Graham herself, this major retrospective brings together significant events, remarkable people and everyday moments, alongside intimate interviews in which Graham shares personal reflections on her career and the stories behind her photographs.
Where: Photography Gallery, State Library, 1 Shakespeare Place, Sydney NSW 2000.
When: September 14-October 31.
Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year
The Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year exhibition offers a breathtaking glimpse into the natural world, capturing extraordinary moments from a critically endangered sawfish gliding among sea turtles to royal penguins stopped in their tracks by a colossal elephant seal.
The exhibition features the best images selected from 2,129 entries by 501 photographers across 17 countries, so, as you can imagine, they’re of the highest calibre.
The free annual exhibition celebrates the talents of professional, emerging and junior photographers, showcasing remarkable images captured across Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and New Guinea. It’s on until February 14, 2027, giving you plenty of time to be able to check it out.
Where: Australian Museum, 1 William Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010.
When: September 12-February 14.
Near at Hand: Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial 2026
Featuring 11 contemporary artists from across Australia, the Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial is the country’s leading exhibition dedicated to contemporary drawing.
Titled Near at Hand, the exhibition explores drawing as an intimate art form, showcasing personal mark-making, inner imaginings and up-close observations of the everyday. Artists make use of a range of materials, from pastel and pencil to watercolour, light and thread, showcasing the evolving possibilities of one of the world’s oldest art forms.
Head to lower level two in the iconic Naala Nura building at the Art Gallery of NSW to see the exhibition. You can also see Mechelle Bounpraseuth’s ສູ້ສູ້ Sou Sou and teamLab’s Super Nature on this level, free of charge.
Where: Art Gallery of New South Wales, Naala Nura, Art Gallery Rd, Sydney NSW 2000.
When: September 12-March 7.
Mechelle Bounpraseuth, concept painting for Mechelle Bounpraseuth: ສູ້ສູ້ Sou Sou 2025 (Image: Mechelle Bounpraseuth).
ສູ້ສູ້ Sou Sou by Mechelle Bounpraseuth
This interactive exhibition brings plenty of colour to the Art Gallery of NSW’s Naala Nura building, as Mechelle Bounpraseuth displays her hand-built, glossy ceramics.
The exhibition features newly commissioned works and large-scale ceramic sculptures that pay homage to the family dinner table, with a special emphasis on fruit, especially the rare kind from her Lao parents’ homeland. Its title, ສູ້ສູ້ Sou Sou, is a Lao phrase of encouragement meaning ‘you can do it!’ or ‘stay strong!’, in reference to the exhibition’s emphasis on the role of young people in the continuation of culture.
Where: Art Gallery of New South Wales, Naala Nura, Art Gallery Rd, Sydney NSW 2000.
When: March 14, 2026- February 2027.
And Still I Rise
And Still I Rise comprises a collection of works by a group of culturally diverse Australian women artists, named after Maya Angelou’s famous collection of poetry, And Still I Rise.
Featured artists working across a range of mediums include Kim Ah Sam, Mia Khin Boe, Mechelle Bounpraseuth, Chun Yin Rainbow Chan, Agnes Christina, Rubaba Haider and Wendy Yu, to name just a few. Their works draw on lived experience and inherited memory, offering fresh perspectives on identity, history and what it means to belong.
Where: Art Gallery of New South Wales, Naala Nura, Art Gallery Rd, Sydney NSW 2000.
When: November 8, 2025-January 10, 2027.
