Newcastle Art Gallery is unique in Australia. Not only does it boast one of the most comprehensive collections of Australian art of any regional gallery in the country, but it is frequently selected as the only regional gallery in the state to host national and travelling exhibitions.

Close to the CBD and to other Newcastle cultural institutions, the Gallery, with this important collection, is a destination growing in popularity for local, national and international visitors.

Visit the Newcastle Art Gallery  site to find out about the latest exhibitions and to learn more about the Gallery.

How to find us

Newcastle Art Gallery is part of the Civic Cultural Precinct, and is located on the corner of Laman and Darby Streets, Newcastle, directly behind Civic Park and next to Newcastle Region Library.

The Gallery is a short walk from Civic Station, CBD shops and services and also close to the Darby Street dining and shopping precinct. Wheelchair access is available.

Opening Hours

The Gallery is open 10am-5pm every Tuesday to Sunday through out the year. Closed Good Friday and Christmas Day.

Admission is free. Some special exhibitions may incur a charge.

Redevelopment project

The Gallery redevelopment will provide an opportunity to contribute to the revitalisation of the City’s cultural identity both locally and nationally.

The Gallery has the potential to become an even more significant tourism asset for Newcastle. The extension and diversification of Newcastle’s tourism brand to include cultural tourism will have growing importance in the future.

The Gallery can play a key role in the generation of cultural tourism and return sustained economic benefits to the City.

The Gallery’s location at the gateway to one of Newcastle’s most popular dining, leisure and retail precincts, reduces many of the challenges which cultural institutions often face in operating revenue generating businesses, providing a passing trade which can be tapped into to supplement the Gallery’s own visitor base.

Within a short walking distance of the Gallery there are 14 commercial or community gallery and studio spaces. While these represent a diverse range of styles and standards, this group presents a substantial clustering of activity focussing on the visual arts. This grouping offers the potential for the development of an ‘arts tour’ tourism product centred on the Newcastle Region Art Gallery, one of many opportunities for the gallery to increase its contribution to the burgeoning city and region tourism market.

The redevelopment of the gallery aims to:

• ensure Newcastle Art Gallery becomes nationally recognised as a major Australian art gallery, providing a symbol of excellence and pride for the people of Newcastle, and an example of the achievements of this community
• establish Newcastle Art Gallery as a model of best-practice in the collection, curation and exhibition of the visual arts, housed in an iconic landmark building for Newcastle
• confirm the Gallery’s role as an important contributor to cultural tourism in Newcastle, acting as magnet for visitation to the new Civic and Cultural Precinct, and enlivening the Precinct’s Darby Street frontage and the eastern end of Civic Park
• reinforce Newcastle Art Gallery’s status as a place for learning about visual arts where visitors can extend their understanding and appreciation of visual arts and enjoy the iconic works from the permanent collection
• allow the Gallery’s unique Japanese ceramic collection to be presented in a way that reflects its status as the most valuable and comprehensive collection of its type in Australia, acknowledging the cultural industry partnership from which it has grown
• ensure Newcastle Art Gallery becomes an institution which generates revenue towards its own cost base through commercial operations, public programs and strategic partnerships.

 Art Gallery redevelopment project in our brochure (794 kb)