Musician Gelareh Pour performs on the kamancheh. Image copyright Chris Warr, 2025.
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Welcome to our creative city
Ballarat is working to become the city of the sustainable and resilient practitioner, and we’re supporting all forms of artist, maker, creative and producer. Whether you are seeking to develop a fine arts practice and devote yourself to being a professional practising artist, or wanting to grow your creative business, the City of Ballarat wants to see you succeed. Designated a UNESCO Creative City of Crafts & Folk Art we’re steadily working towards economic resilience through support of the micro and artisanal.
Here you’ll be able to find opportunities for makers, creatives and artists alike. We’re working to create a clearinghouse of opportunities - expressions of interest, open jobs and other briefs - and support networks you can call on. You can also find out what kind of happenings are going on around town, perfect for the local creative. We profile our growing community of artists, makers, performers and producers, building a better city for all.
Ballarat’s heart of creativity
Over two years the City of Ballarat was focused on the development of it’s Creative City Strategy. This strategy is one that embraces the energies of makers, crafters, artists, innovators, entrepreneurs and problem solvers, linking them closer to the engine room of the city’s heart.
We know that a creative city is one that can wear the changes in economic forces, delivers new ideas, drives businesses to grow and delivers greater community cohesion and wellbeing. The creative sector in Ballarat is crucial to our prosperity, helping create better people and better places to live and work. It is creative thinking that helps all sectors to blossom, and underpins a healthier, happier and wealthier city. The City of Ballarat is dedicated to embedding creativity within its very fabric.
Current Projects & News
Image: Bryan Cush by Still Smith Studios
Image courtesy of Danielle Francis
Image: Parrot by Katie Chancellor
SUBMIT YOUR EVENT FOR BALLARAT CRAFT & DESIGN WEEK
Seeking affiliated events
Are you interested in running an affiliated event during Ballarat Craft & Design Week? Applications are now open. We’re seeking events which align with the City of Ballarat’s UNESCO Creative City status, celebrating fine arts and crafts, trades and traditional skills which merge with contemporary thinking.
This might be a talk, a performance, a retail offering, a workshop or an exhibition. You might be planning on opening your studio, or showing your craft.
Applications are now open for individuals, groups, organisations or retail spaces to register and join the Ballarat Craft and Design Week program. Applications close midnight March 30th, 2026. Please note, there is no funding to support affiliated events.
Danielle Francis
Artist-in-Residence | ART HUB
March - June 2026
Creative Ballarat is excited to welcome Ballarat’s Danielle Francis, who will be turning Art Hub into her own dressmaking studio as new the Resident Artist.
Danielle is a passionate and creative dressmaker who has taught classes at her sewing school, Thread Den, in Melbourne since 2012.
Over the next three months Danielle will be hosting drop-in sessions, workshops and private lessons for anyone looking to discover the art of sewing and dressmaking.
Reclamation: A group show
Art Space Ballarat
18 Feb - 22 March 2026
Reclamation is a group exhibition featuring four artists who each explore the theme of reclaiming the physical, psychological, or spiritual. Through a variety of mediums—ranging from furniture restoration and upholstery to painting, lino cutting, and tufting. The exhibition highlights the power of reclaiming what has been lost, overlooked, or undervalued. By showcasing both traditional craft and contemporary art, Reclamation fosters an engaging dialogue between innovation and heritage.
This exhibition showcases an exciting mix of artistic practices that bridge the gap between fine art and craft, offering viewers a unique experience of multidisciplinary creativity. Artists included in Reclamation are Alice Stewart, Tegan Ford, Rebekah Bailey, and Marce King.
Gallery Hours:
14 Lydiard St Nth, Ballarat.
Katie Chancellor:Creatures Heart and Home
15 Mar to 26 May 2026 | Unicorn Lane
Katie is a contemporary Ballarat artist whose practice brings joy, vibrancy and colour to brighten lives through the creation of her imaginative and whimsical artworks.
Katie’s series of works in Unicorn Lane are inspired by the characters she encounters in her surrounds at home. Each piece is carefully jig-sawed out, hand painted and set free into the world. You can find them this autumn just off 127 Sturt St, Central Ballarat.
Unicorn Lane exhibitions can be viewed day and night.
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FIND PLACES TO GO
There are heaps of tiny galleries, small studios, workspaces and hiding places for our creative community. Have a little scout of our open studios and micro-enterprises.
FIND WHAT’S ON
Looking for a great night out? A local experience? Check out Ballarat In the Know, designed by locals for locals.
Or do you have an event, exhibition or show you want to promote?
‘Cut Off Your Hands’ jewellery - Alana Smith - pic by Tony Evans (2023)
Weaver Ana Peditis at work - pic by Tony Evans (2023)
Activating the city streets. Artist Kelsie White takes over Mackenzie Street