Maquette Sculpture Award - Exhibition Opening

Join us on for a vibrant afternoon of sculpture, celebration, and community. The winner of the $20,000 Maquette Sculpture Award will be announced during the event, with the winning work joining McClelland’s renowned permanent collection of modern and contemporary Australian sculpture.

This exciting new prize showcases 62 small-scale sculptures (no more than 50cm in any dimension) by leading contemporary Australian artists, selected by artist Lisa Roet and McClelland’s Artistic and Executive Director Lisa Byrne. The winning work will be chosen by acclaimed sculptor John Meade.

Cast your vote! The People’s Choice Award will also be open for voting at the event, with the winner to be announced Sunday 22 February 2026

This is a free event but RSVP is essential
Stay tuned for upcoming Artist Talks, to be scheduled soon.

Finalists include:
Ruth Allen, Darcey Bella Arnold, John Baird, Geoffrey Bartlett, Lynne Bechervaise, Catherine Bell, Stephen Benwell, Stephen Bird, Jeremy Blincoe, Sam Bloomfield, Mark Booth, Keith Burt, Matt Butterworth, Penny Byrne, Veronica Caven Aldous, Dean Colls, Peter Cooley, Emma Coulter, Marcel Cousins, Emma Davies, Ara Dolatian, Michael Doolan, Dana Falcini, Ben Fasham, Carly Fischer, Stefanie Flaubert & Janos Korban, Wanda Gillespie, Sarah Goffman, Brad Gunn, Deborah Halpern, Anton Hasell, Brigit Heller, Titania Henderson, Marian Hosking, Linda Judge, Virginia Keft, Jo Lane, Christopher Langton, Fiona McDonald, Tim Meakins, Carolyn Menzies, Sanné Mestrom, Jamieson Miller, Glenn Morgan, Jamie Mumford, Jessica Murtagh, Mike Nicholls, Rose Nolan, Louis Pratt, Elvis Richardson, Cameron Robbins, Brian Robinson, Nuha Saad, Michael Sibel, Louise Skačej, Paul Sloan, Tai Snaith, Meagan Streader, Fleur Summers, Cyrus Tang, Meredith Turnbull, Lisa Young.

We look forward to welcoming you to McClelland for this exciting celebration of sculpture.