For their fifth Slow Art Day, the Mildura Arts Centre invited visitors to slow down and explore artworks across several of the gallery’s current exhibitions. Rather than focusing on a single piece, participants were encouraged to choose a work from each exhibition and spend five to ten minutes observing it carefully.
The selected exhibitions included: Time and Place by Bruce Munro, Chapter 5 (Mallee Parley) by Aaron Bailey, Alight by Nicola McClelland, and works from the Mildura Arts Centre Collection. This approach allowed participants to experience a variety of artistic styles and perspectives while practicing slow looking.
Visitors were encouraged to bring a journal and pencil to jot down thoughts and questions while observing the artworks. Others attended with friends and discussed their reflections together afterward. The experience often continued beyond the gallery walls, with participants gathering for refreshments at the Vista Café Bar onsite to continue their conversations.
Slow Art Day also connected naturally with other events happening at the centre that day. Visitors were invited to attend artist talks and exhibition openings, including a presentation by Nicola McClelland, where they could share their observations and continue engaging with the art and artists.
The city of Mildura is known as a cultural hub in regional Australia – Mildura itself is located far north-western Victoria, Australia, on the banks of the Murray River near the New South Wales border.
We at Slow Art Day HQ love the simple cross-exhibition design of their Slow Art Day and would love ourselves to someday visit this wonderful center for art and theater (they have a 500 seat theater) and we look forward to what they come up with for Slow Art Day 2026.
– Ashley, Jessica Jane, Johanna, and Phyl