Victoria Gallery

Victoria Gallery, endowed by the John and Myriam Wylie Foundation, is the Library's newest exhibition space.

The stories and collection items presented in the Victoria Gallery change annually, providing an immersive and interactive experience for visitors and placing the best of Victoria’s many great treasures on public display.

The inaugural exhibition, Velvet, Iron, Ashes ran from 24 October 2019 until 12 July 2020. It showcased how the armour of infamous bushranger Ned Kelly was connected to cricket's celebrated Ashes Urn, how fairy floss was connected to Victoria's Latrobe Valley electricity industry, and why the granddaughter of one of our prime ministers once wore a glittering velvet cloak that symbolised the Murray–Darling irrigation scheme.

From 18 March 2021 until 27 March 2022 the gallery displayed a selection of photographs from Window on Collections: the Rural and Regional Photography Commission, a poignant series that documents the year that was 2020 in regional Victoria.

From 24 June 2022 until 26 February 2023, the space was home to Handmade Universe: From craft to code and the spaces between, an exhibition that celebrated the rewards of making and the limitless scope it offers for invention and enquiry. 

Currently the gallery is home to Melbourne Out Loud: Life through the lens of Rennie Ellis, an exhibition which explores a collection of iconic, unseen and everyday photographs from one of Melbourne's greatest chroniclers. 

The Victoria Gallery can be entered through the North Rotunda, via the Swanston Street entrance.

About the Victoria Gallery

The Victoria Gallery opened in October 2019 as part of the Library's Vision 2020 redevelopment project, and was made possible by an $8 million gift from the John and Myriam Wylie Foundation.

The grand heritage space originally opened in 1892 as the home of the National Gallery of Victoria (until 1968). It subsequently housed Melbourne Museum’s ethnographic collection (until around 1999), when it became a staff workspace for the Library.

• For more about the Victoria Gallery, read our research guide.

Hours

Daily 10am to 6pm

Facilities

• Exhibition tours