VAS Winter Select Exhibition 2026
16 Jul 2026 – 2 Aug 2026
Official Opening 7pm 18 July 2026
Location: Frater, McCubbin & Hammond Galleries
The VAS Winter Select Exhibition is the second of three qualifying rounds for artists competing for the prestigious Hylton Mackley Artist of the Year Award.
The highly anticipated Select exhibitions showcase VAS member artists working across all mediums, with the strongest works selected to be exhibited throughout the upper galleries and eligible for peer votes toward December’s $20,000 major prize. Each of the three Select Exhibitions across the year also offers a $1,500 first prize.
There is no overarching theme for the Winter Select—rather, the focus is on presenting the very best of what VAS artists have to offer. As the selection process becomes increasingly competitive, the Winter Select promises to be a celebration of the diverse and dynamic talent within the VAS community.
Banner image: Study of Morning Light, Andrew Li, Oil
2026 Award Recipients
Judge Brenda Innes
Winner
Vessel in Volendam, It Hao Pheh VAS
Curator's Award
Still Life Cloth, Rachel Dettmann Smith VAS
Curator's Award
Sea Breeze, Gillian Govan
Highly Commended
A Winter Morning, Mary Hyde VAS
Last of the Stragglers, Ben Winspear VAS
The Mighty Zambezi, Anne Melloy VAS
Mary; Scientist, Thai Boxer, Liz Moore Golding VAS
In the Studio - 3 1/2 Hour Life Study, Jennifer Fyfe
Acknowledgment of traditional owners.
We would like to pay our respects to the traditional owners of the land on which our building stands, their leaders, past, present and emerging.