The annual Primavera exhibition of artists under 35 is a Sydney institution. Since its inception in 1992, the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia has played host to well over 200 young artists, including many who went on to become well-known names, such as Mikala Dwyer, Shaun Gladwell, Michael Zavros and Nell.
Art prizes are the tried and tested route, alongside programs like Create NSW’s Visual Art Fellowship (Emerging), which opens this week at Artspace in Sydney. Graduate shows like Hatched at PICA in Perth are another. But beyond that, there are relatively few opportunities for emerging and early-career artists to exhibit in institutional spaces, especially since the departure of pulse-check exhibitions like Melbourne Now and The National, which both faded out in 2023.
