Eleven of Tasmania's top emerging artists on display at QVMAG

Image: RISE 2023 on display at the Queen Victoria Art Gallery at Royal Park. Photo: QVMAG

This weekend the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery will open the doors to its latest feature exhibition, RISE. 

First launched in 2023 as a platform to shine the spotlight on a curation of our islands must-watch creatives, this biennial exhibition is now back for its second year - packed with new ideas and diverse practice from across Tasmania. 

With the 2026 exhibition featuring eleven artists from across the state, visitors will be taken on an unmissable journey of creative arts in Tasmania - all for free - at the Art Gallery at Royal Park. 

City of Launceston Mayor Matthew Garwood said the exhibition was an awesome showcase of Tasmania’s creative talent. 

“Since launching in 2023, we have seen so many of the artists involved go from strength to strength in terms of profile, opportunity and confidence, and that is exactly what this platform is designed to do,” Mayor Garwood said. 

“RISE shows what can happen when our island backs its creatives and genuinely celebrates the arts. 

“Our community and the visitors exploring Launnie rallied around that first exhibition, championing every artist on display, and I cannot wait to see that same energy and momentum again for the 2026 lineup.” 

QVMAG Lead Curator Dr Kellie Wells said the exhibition was a phenomenal display of Tassie talent. 

"RISE is our opportunity to really lift up and empower a selection of Tasmanian artists and makers that we feel are paving the way in their creative field," Dr Wells said. 

"After launching this exhibition in 2023, the response from our visitors was beyond what we could have expected - which highlighted just how important it is to be providing a platform for the voices of emerging Tasmanian creatives to be seen and heard. 

"This exhibition is a beautiful reflection of the creative arts in Tasmania and the immensely talented community that we have around us." 

RISE is on display at the Queen Victoria Art Gallery at Royal Park from Saturday 14 February with free entry. 

Issued Thursday 12 February 2026.