Dozens of artists from some of Australia’s most remote communities will travel to Sydney this July for the sixth annual National Indigenous Art Fair (NIAF), a cultural marketplace and public program that brings Indigenous arts and stories to the heart of the NSW capital.
Held at the Overseas Passenger Terminal on Gadigal Land over 5–6 July, the event coincides with the opening weekend of NAIDOC Week. It reflects this year’s theme: The Next Generation: Strength, Vision and Legacy. Now in its sixth year, the NIAF is presented by First Hand Solutions Aboriginal Corporation and offers city audiences a chance to connect directly with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists. Around 100 artists will attend, representing over 30 remote art centres from across the continent.
The program includes weaving workshops, fashion showcases and live performance alongside a marketplace of ethically sourced artworks, jewellery, ceramics, homewares and textiles. All works are created by Indigenous artists using traditional materials and techniques grounded in culture and Country.
Among this year’s highlights is a weaving masterclass led by acclaimed Northern Territory artist and cultural leader Regina Pilawuk Wilson (Durrmu Arts). Wilson’s work is held in major collections, including the NGV and British Museum. Using fibres harvested in her community of Peppimenarti, Wilson’s workshop bridges generations of knowledge through contemporary practice.
Artistic voices from multiple Countries will feature throughout the weekend, including Alison and Lucinta Puruntatameri of Munupi Arts, whose ochre paintings draw on ancestral stories and Tiwi Island traditions. Central Desert artist Vanetta Nampijinpa Hudson brings vivid Fire Dreaming designs recently seen on Grove Juice bottles. Arrernte artist Chantelle Mulladad’s bold geometric style featured on The Ghan during this year’s Parrtjima Festival.
For actor and curator Miah Madden (Bundjalung), who returns in an expanded creative leadership role, the 2025 event also marks the debut of Heart in Art – a professional development program for visiting artists – and a curated furniture and fashion project, The Living Room, presented in collaboration with the Australian Design Centre.
“The Art Fair is about more than buying art,” said First Hand Solutions’ CEO Peter Cooley. “It’s about meeting the makers, hearing stories firsthand, and creating pathways for remote artists to thrive.”
The 2025 program also includes Cultural Couture: Storytelling Through Indigenous Fashion, a panel with NSW and remote designers, and a flash mob-style wearable art performance at Shop at the Runway.
More information is available at the National Indigenous Art Fair website.
