The best Brisbane art gallery experiences you can’t miss

Emily Murphy Emily Murphy
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Whether you’re an art connoisseur or simply appreciate the beauty and talent that goes into it, the art scene is a thriving metropolis in Brisbane.

A trip to Brisbane isn’t complete without visiting an art gallery, and luckily, there is a multitude of them to immerse yourself in. One of the best things to do in Brisbane, you’ll find major art galleries, outdoor art and special exhibitions all across the stunning river city that will keep the whole family entertained.

Here, find our guide to exploring the top art galleries in Brisbane.

1. The Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA)

Large installation at Chiharu Shiota's The Soul Trembles at GOMA Brisbane
GOMA often features revolutionary exhibitions like Chiharu Shiota’s The Soul Trembles. (Image: Evan Natsis)

QAGOMA are two riverside galleries sitting a mere 150 metres apart in South Bank’s Queensland Cultural Centre.

The Queensland Art Gallery is the traditional art experience, and the Gallery of Modern Art is, you guessed it, the modern art hub of the Brisbane galleries.

Collectively, they hold more than 16,000 works of historical, modern, and contemporary art, and also showcase some iconic Indigenous and Australian collections.

Admission: Free, but certain exhibitions and events are ticketed.
Address: Stanley Pl, South Brisbane

2. Brisbane City Council Outdoor Gallery

uesday-Night-by-Maxim-Chikanchi Brisbane outdoor gallery
The artworks liven up laneways and car parks. (Image: Emily Murphy)

The Brisbane City Council Outdoor Gallery was created to transform traditionally unsafe areas, like laneways and car parks, into imaginative, curious and engaging spaces.

Admission: Free
Address: City-wide

3. Museum of Brisbane

Exhibit at Museum of Brisbane
The Museum of Brisbane is located on the third floor of City Hall. (Image: Tourism and Events Queensland)

The Museum of Brisbane is located on the third floor of Brisbane City Hall, and this unsuspecting spot is the ideal escape from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Don’t be fooled by the name, the Museum of Brisbane is in fact one of Brisbane’s best art galleries, with many exhibitions always running. While you’re there, take a tour of the iconic Clock Tower. Make sure you book in advance (it’s free) because spots are limited.

Admission: Free
Address: Level 3, Brisbane City Hall, 64 Adelaide St, Brisbane City

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4. Brisbane Powerhouse

Artwork from the Brisbane Portrait Prize 2022
The Brisbane Powerhouse holds the annual Brisbane Portrait Prize. (Image: Emily Murphy)

The Brisbane Powerhouse is a hub for creativity, art and cultural innovation that overlooks the Brisbane River. While not exclusively an art gallery, Brisbane Powerhouse is home to a large collection of permanent art and installations that are on display. It also dons a bunch of heritage-listed graffiti from artists including Lister, Blek le Rat, Kasino, Cezary Stulgis and Ben Reeves.

Temporary visual arts exhibitions, including the World Press Photo Exhibition and the Brisbane Portrait Prize, are held regularly throughout the year.

Plus, the Brisbane Powerhouse is also home to Bar Alto, one of the best restaurants in Brisbane, so you can’t go wrong.

Admission: Free, but there are ticketed events held here to,o which vary in price. See what’s on now.
Address: Yagara Country, 119 Lamington St, New Farm

5. QUT Art Museum

Installation view of ‘Ken + Julia YONETANI: To Be Human’ at QUT Art Museum, Brisbane (5 July – 23 October 2022)
QUT Art Museum often relates to future tech and innovation. (Image: Louis Lim)

Queensland University of Technology’s Art Museum exhibits more than 2000 objects, including paintings and sculptures, predominantly from Australian artists. The exhibitions are generally contemporary art, technology-enabled or in relation to future tech and innovation.

If you want more Aussie landscapes, QUT Art Museum’s sister gallery, the William Robinson Gallery, is proudly dedicated to the display of works by Australia’s pre-eminent landscape artist, William Robinson.

Admission: Free
Address: Queensland University of Technology 2, George St, Brisbane City

6. Woolloongabba Art Gallery

Aboriginal art at Woolloongabba Art Gallery in Brisbane
Woolloongabba Art Gallery’s ethos is steeped in cultural appreciation.

The Woolloongabba Art Gallery (WAG) represents a stylistically varied selection of local and Australasian art. Their ethos is steeped in cultural appreciation, and sourcing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art for the gallery is only done through 100 per cent owned and operated centres around Brisbane and beyond.

WAG has three exhibition spaces and operates in direct response to the need for continued dialogue in Australia’s multicultural future.

Admission: Free
Address: 613 Stanley St, Woolloongabba

7. Judith Wright Arts Centre

Judith Wright Arts Centre is a creative space for visual arts programming, but also for the development and presentation of original and innovative contemporary performance works, including cabaret, circus and dance, among others.

Some of the organisations within the arts centre are the Aboriginal Centre for the Performing Arts, BlakDance, Circa and the Institute of Modern Art.

Admission: Free
Address: 420 Brunswick St & Cnr, Berwick St, Fortitude Valley QLD 4006

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8. Institute of Modern Art

Khadim_Ali_Opening_Talk at IMA Brisbane
IMA gives space to often underrepresented artists. (Image: Marc Pricop)

The Institute of Modern Art in Fortitude Valley is an alternative and interactive art space, home to some genuinely groundbreaking exhibitions. You’ll experience art unlike you’ve ever seen before all the while knowing the gallery is giving space to often underrepresented artists.

Find the latest exhibitions on their website.

Admission: Free
Address: Ground Floor Judith Wright Arts Centre, 420 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley

9. Metro Arts

Artworks in an exhibition at Metro Arts Brisbane
Metro Arts exhibits both visual art and performance.

Metro Arts exhibits both visual art and performance, taking a closer look at experimental boundary-pushing exhibitions and performances.

Throughout the year, Metro Arts plays host to guest artists in residence as they extend and experiment with their practice and create new contemporary work.

There are also a series of exhibitions put on over the year. See what’s on now.

Admission: Free for art exhibitions, live events are ticketed at varying costs.
Address: 97 Boundary St, West End

10. Jan Murphy Gallery

Jan Murphy Gallery, artist Guido-Maestri-Photography-Chloe-Callistemon
Jan Murphy Gallery is a Brisbane icon. (Image: Chloe Callistemon)

The Jan Murphy Gallery opened in Brisbane in 1995. In that time, it has remained dedicated to the exhibition and sale of contemporary art of the highest calibre.

The large windows facing Brunswick Street showcase the newest exhibitions and give passers-by a taste before they come in and see it in its entirety.

Admission: Free
Address: 486 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley

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Emily Murphy
Emily Murphy is Australian Traveller's Email & Social Editor, and in her time at the company she has been instrumental in shaping its social media and email presence, and crafting compelling narratives that inspire others to explore Australia's vast landscapes. Her previous role was a journalist at Prime Creative Media and before that she was freelancing in publishing, content creation and digital marketing. When she's not creating scroll-stopping travel content, Em is a devoted 'bun mum' and enjoys spending her spare time by the sea, reading, binge-watching a good TV show and exploring Sydney's vibrant dining scene. Next on her Aussie travel wish list? Tasmania and The Kimberley.
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5 of the best Sunshine Coast day trips

    Kate Bettes Kate Bettes
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    City buzz, gourmet trails, surf breaks and art scenes are all at your fingertips.

    When it comes to planning a trip, picking a holiday destination is the easy part. The real dilemma is where to set yourself up for the night. Do you go coastal, city, or countryside? Somewhere remote and rugged, or right in the action? Luckily, the Sunshine Coast, and huge number of amazing Sunshine Coast day trips, have kindly made the choice for you.

    Ditch the hotel-hopping and suitcase-lugging. Instead, base yourself at Novotel Sunshine Coast or Mantra Mooloolaba, where big-city culture, vine-covered valleys, and theme parks are all within a two-hour drive.

    1. Sunshine Coast to Brisbane

    Drive time: 1 hour 20 minutes (105km)

    Shake off the sand from your sandals and swap the beach for the throb of the Queensland capital. Ease in gently with a bougainvillea-filled stroll through South Bank, iced latte in hand, before cooling off at Streets Beach lagoon – Brisbane’s answer to the coast (but without the waves).

    Once firmly in big-city mode, hit up the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), home to Australia’s largest collection of modern and contemporary artworks. Dive into the past at the Queensland Museum, where prehistoric fossils of Australian dinosaurs and megafauna collide with First Nations cultural collections and interactive science exhibits.

    All this learning got you hungry? Howard Smith Wharves calls. Here, riverside dining delivers breweries with meat-forward menus, Japanese fine dining and overwater bars. If you’ve got room for more, Fortitude Valley’s shopping boutiques await you and your wallet.

    woman walking around Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA)
    Wander the Gallery of Modern Art. (Image: TEQ)

    2. Sunshine Coast to the Scenic Rim

    Drive time: 2 hours 15 minutes (170km)

    Make your way inland to the Scenic Rim for the state’s best vineyards and age-old volcanic slopes. Start your day early (like, sparrow’s breakfast early) at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat in Lamington National Park. Here, take a treetop walk through the canopy and hand-feed the wild birds who flock here.

    Next, it’s your turn to eat. Here, the food scene operates where locally sourced produce is an expectation, not an exception. Order a picnic basket crammed with regional wine and cheese to devour next to the creek at Canungra Valley Vineyards. Or perhaps a grazing platter of vegan and non-vegan cheeses at Witches Falls Winery.

    Feeling bold? Tackle the Twin Falls circuit in Springbrook National Park. Or keep the gourmet life going with a Scenic Rim Brewery tasting paddle, best enjoyed while taking in the rise of the Great Dividing Range.

    woman with cheese and wine at Witches Falls Winery
    Enjoy a cheese platter at Witches Falls Winery. (Image: TEQ)

    3. Sunshine Coast to the Gold Coast

    Drive time: 2 hours (180km)

    Surf, sand and sparkling skylines might be the Gold Coast’s MO, but there’s more to Surfers Paradise and beyond. Kick things off with a beachfront coffee at Burleigh Heads, then hike through Burleigh Head National Park to look over the ocean and whale sightings (dependent on the season, of course).

    Cool off in the calm waters of Tallebudgera Creek before chowing down on the famously buttery Moreton Bay bug rolls at Rick Shores. Travelling with the kids? Then you can’t miss Australia’s theme park capital, with Dreamworld’s big rides and Warner Bros. Movie World’s Hollywood treatment at hand to keep the family entertained.

    aerial view of Tallebudgera Creek
    Dive into Tallebudgera Creek. (Image: TEQ)

    4. Sunshine Coast to Tweed Heads

    Drive time: 2 hours 15 minutes (200km)

    Dare to cross enemy lines? Then welcome to New South Wales. Tweed Heads blends the laid-back attitude of the Northern Rivers with high-quality dining, experimental art, and farm-fresh indulgence – a combo worth the drive.

    Start strong with a long, lazy brunch at Tweed River House, then swing by Tropical Fruit World for exotic finds like red dragon fruit, handfuls of lychees and black sapote. Next, hit M|Arts Precinct – an art deco hub of micro galleries, artist workshops and one-off boutiques.

    Round off the day with sunset drinks at Husk Distillers among the glowing cane fields, and order one with their famous Ink Gin. You’ll thank us later.

    exterior of Husk Distillers
    Taste the famous Ink Gin at Husk Distillers. (Image: Destination NSW)

    5. Sunshine Coast Hinterland

    Drive time: 1 hour (70km)

    Strap on those hiking boots and make tracks inland, where volcanic peaks, misty rainforest and hinterland townships beckon. Ease in with the Glass House Mountains Lookout Walk, or, if you have energy to burn, tackle the Mount Ngungun Summit Walk for a 360-degree sight of the surrounding summits.

    Next: Montville. This township delivers European-style architecture and old-world appeal. Nearby, settle in at Flame Hill Vineyard, where a large pour of estate-grown wine comes with encompassing views of the countryside.

    Not ready to leave the hinterland villages just yet? Of course not. Meander past art galleries and indie shops at Maleny. Nab some fudge from Sweets on Maple for a sweet fix. Or go salty at Maleny Dairies with a farm tour and a chunky wedge of their deliciously creamy cheese.

    End the day among the eucalypts and rainforests of Kondalilla National Park. Here, the Kondalilla Falls Circuit winds down through trees humming with life to a rock pool beneath a waterfall – as if designed for soaking tired feet before heading back to the coast.

    view of Mount Ngungun on the scenic rim queensland
    Take on the Mount Ngungun Summit Walk (Image: TEQ)

    Start planning your Sunshine home base at all.com.