HOTA, Bundanon and Araluen among the remote Australian galleries that are helping drive regional tourism

The road less travelled is increasingly framed by decent art.

It’s one way to look at the recent rise of regional Australian art galleries — more so, their positioning and pull as a driver of regional tourism.

Where once such galleries were a pleasant addition to a weekend away — somewhere you wandered after a quaint country lunch — ambitious commissioning sees many “regionals” securing exhibitions that are turning a gallery visit into a weekend away and an aligned regional town into a destination.

From NSW’s Bundanon Art Museum to Shepparton Art Museum in Victoria, the coastal pull of Newcastle Art Gallery (NSW) and the country’s oldest and largest regional gallery, Victoria’s Bendigo (currently undergoing a major renovation), Queensland’s HOTA and Araluen Arts Centre in the NT, these institutions, among others, are driving traffic to the regions on the back of thoughtful and alluring curation and shows not found in the cities.

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It was in 2022 that Bendigo Art Gallery secured the exclusive Elvis: Direct From Graceland exhibition which was opened by Priscilla Presley. More than 219,000 visitors — 24,000 from interstate — made the trip with 67,000 being first-time visitors to the gallery.

The collectable merchandise sold out and the economic stimulus for Bendigo was measured in eight figures.

Shepparton Art Museum, held in the lush food bowl of the Goulburn Valley and locally known as SAM, underwent a $50 million renovation and relocation in 2021.

It’s now showing Facing Modernity: Degas To Picasso, an Australian exclusive of 37 paintings and sculptures including works by Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali and Henri Matisse.

According to SAM’s artistic director Danny Lacy, attendance sits at 100,000 visitors a year, up from 35,000.

“We’ve got three times as many visitors coming through the gallery doors now,“ Lacy tells ROAM. “And with that comes more opportunity for cultural tourism and to have visitors spend dollars in Shepparton and stay the night.”

Budanon CEO Rachel Kent says programming for a cultural institution on the south coast of NSW brings people to the museum and plugs them into the surrounding narrative and towns, where food, dining and nature are also part of the experience.

“We also offer accommodation,“ Kent says, “which helps when coming for an art experience. But we’re also about showcasing fine dining on the South Coast, too. To be set in quite an extraordinary natural bush setting on 1000ha, well that’s amazing in itself.”

Man On Fire: Visions Of Nebuchadnezzar runs at Budanon until October 11, bringing Arthur Boyd’s iconic work into a new dialogue with a major commission by contemporary artist Shaun Gladwell.

Visitation statistics show that those who head to Budanon mostly come from NSW and the ACT, though increasing numbers are also arriving from Victoria and Queensland.’

“We’re seeing visitation for our bespoke weekend events and concerts including those from Auckland and the Asia Pacific region, too,” Kent adds.

At HOTA, on Queensland’s Gold Coast, the White Rabbit exhibition of Chinese contemporary art is on show until October.

Gallery visitation is up 30 per cent on 2025 figures. The HOTA team works closely with State tourism bodies to find ways to not only attract interstate visitors but lure the Asia-based holiday-maker, too.

HOTA, which opened in 2021, is proof that sun and culture can go hand in hand. The 1000sqm gallery is part of a larger arts precinct that includes lakeside cinemas and theatres and attracts nearly 700,000 annual visitors, with a significant rise in international visitors from Asia (China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea), so too the rising middle class in India.

And there’s potential to build on those relationships, according to former HOTA head of arts and culture Yarmila Alfonzetti.

“Now that we have a high-quality art precinct which meets the needs of Japanese and Chinese tourists, the demand is increasing,” Alfonzetti says. “I’ve seen the rise and rise of international tour groups at HOTA, and what we know is that if you have a group of international tourists coming here from Asia, they want food, culture and nature experiences.”

Newcastle Art Gallery has tripled its visitation since reopening as a larger renovated space in February.

The gallery holds one of Australia’s finest public art collections, comprising more than 7000 works of art valued at $145 million. The gallery will present Muse in September, a first major survey of globally recognised, Newcastle-based artist Angela Tiatia.

Still, it’s the expansion of the Newcastle Airport, which includes flights from Indonesia and Singapore, with Japan and Perth to also commence, that will change the way the gallery pitches to a “new” regional arts traveller.

“Regional galleries and museums are more courageous and inventive than their city counterparts,” states Newcastle’s director Lauretta Morton. “They have to be innovative, because their funding is not at the same level as that of State and the national institutions.”

Morton believes regional galleries act as an anchor point within a community, fostering and driving certain connection.

“They also punch well above their weight.”

Bundanon Art Museum

Where Arthur Boyd’s landscape meets contemporary art, architecture and the wild Shoalhaven.

170 Riversdale Road, Illaroo NSW; bundanon.com.au⁠

McClelland Sculpture Park + Gallery

Art gets out of the white cube and into the bush, with monumental sculpture set among 16ha of landscaped grounds.

390 McClelland Drive, Langwarrin VIC; mcclelland.org.au⁠

Araluen Arts Centre

The cultural heart of Central Australia, with an exceptional collection of Aboriginal art and the annual Desert Mob exhibition.

61 Larapinta Drive, Alice Springs NT; araluenartscentre.nt.gov.au⁠

Bendigo Art Gallery

One of Australia’s great regional galleries, mixing an impressive permanent collection with ambitious international exhibitions.

42 View Street, Bendigo VIC; bendigoartgallery.com.au⁠

Art Gallery of Ballarat

Australia’s oldest and largest regional gallery, with a rich collection spanning Australian art from the early colonial period to today.

40 Lydiard Street North, Ballarat VIC; artgalleryofballarat.com.au⁠

Newcastle Art Gallery

A major regional collection spanning Australian art, from colonial works to contemporary and First Nations practice.

1 Laman Street, Newcastle NSW; nag.org.au⁠

Shepparton Art Museum (SAM)

A striking lakeside museum celebrating Australian ceramics, Indigenous art and contemporary practice.

530 Wyndham Street, Shepparton VIC; sheppartonartmuseum.com.au⁠

MONA

David Walsh’s gloriously eccentric, subterranean collision of art, architecture, wine and Tasmanian hedonism.

655 Main Road, Berriedale TAS; mona.net.au⁠

Pt Leo Estate Sculpture Park

More than 70 major Australian and international sculptures scattered through gardens, vineyards and sweeping coastal country.

3649 Frankston-Flinders Road, Merricks VIC 3916; ptleoestate.com.au

HOTA

The Gold Coast’s cultural counterpoint to the beach — a 17ha lakeside precinct where major exhibitions, performance, sculpture, cinema and dining collide.

135 Bundall Road, Surfers Paradise QLD; hota.com.au⁠