About
La Trobe Art Institute is a contemporary art centre like no other in regional Victoria. Located on Dja Dja Wurrung Country in the heart of Bendigo’s arts precinct, we present 4 curated exhibitions, 2 façade commissions, continuous public programs and 6 seasons of artist and curator residencies each year.
La Trobe Art Institute is a vibrant place of exchange where audiences can be inspired and challenged by the work and ideas of living artists. With resources including a gallery devoted to contemporary art exhibitions, apartment, studio, 90-seat auditorium and hireable spaces, we offer stimulating social spaces for our communities.
• Our programs support artists and curators to experiment and engage with audiences in new ways.
• Our public programs surprise, enrich and challenge the conversation.
• Our short courses and education programs provide lifelong learning opportunities.
Arts and culture is foundational to La Trobe University. Through investment in the arts, La Trobe contributes to the intellectual and cultural life of its 6 Victorian campuses and the diverse people they serve.
La Trobe Art Institute was established in 2013 as part of La Trobe’s efforts to strengthen its programs in regional Victoria. The Art Institute has been based at the premises of the former Visual Arts Centre in View Street, Bendigo, since 2016. It continues the legacy of the university’s commitment to the visual arts, including through its art collections (established before 1967), La Trobe Visual Arts Centre (2005–17), La Trobe University Museum of Art (1990–2016) and La Trobe University Gallery (1983–94).
Our collection
La Trobe University art collections (1966)
Steps were taken to establish La Trobe University Art Collection even before La Trobe’s Melbourne Campus opened in 1967. Architect Roy Simpson AO incorporated the display of artworks into his vision for the new university.
Today, La Trobe Art Institute is the custodian of 7 diverse art collections, comprising about 10,500 artworks. We offer curatorial expertise, mediation and interpretation of art and culture across 6 Victorian campuses and their wider neighbourhoods.
La Trobe University art collections
• AD Trendall Collection
• Ethnographic Collection
• FM Courtis Collection
• Geoff Raby Collection of Chinese Art
• Larundel Collection
• La Trobe University Art Collection (including Sculpture Park and Etta Hirsh Ceramics Collection)
• Stewart E Fraser Collection
More information about our collections is available at our website. We welcome your enquiries, advice and information about artworks held in La Trobe art collections. Contact us at [email protected].
Themes: Transforming and managing land and natural resources, Building towns, cities and the garden state, Building community life, Shaping cultural and creative life
