Australia’s largest contemporary art gallery to be constructed in Melbourne

NGV Contemporary will be constructed as part of a multi-million revamp of the Southbank arts precinct, though experimental space Testing Grounds will be lost to a new Arts Centre Melbourne campus in the process.

Image via creative.vic.gov.au

Testing Grounds, a temporary space hosting innovative and experimental creative practices, will be a casualty of the redevelopment of Melbourne’s Southbank arts precinct.

The vacant land at 1 City Road behind Arts Centre Melbourne, currently the home of Testing Grounds, has been earmarked for a new creative hub (to be managed by Arts Centre Melbourne) including galleries, rehearsal rooms and a permanent home for Orchestra Victoria, as part of the multi-million redevelopment of the arts precinct.

Unlock Padlock Icon

Unlock this content?

Access this content and more

Richard Watts OAM is ArtsHub's National Performing Arts Editor; he also presents the weekly program SmartArts on Three Triple R FM. Richard is a life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, a Melbourne Fringe Festival Living Legend, and was awarded the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize in 2020. In 2021 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Green Room Awards Association. Most recently, Richard received a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in June 2024. Follow him on Twitter: @richardthewatts