Jan Murphy Gallery

Contemporary Art Hub in Historic Fortitude Valley

Jan Murphy Gallery occupies a prominent position in Brisbane's vibrant Fortitude Valley precinct, one of Queensland's most dynamic cultural and creative neighbourhoods. The gallery has established itself as a significant venue for contemporary Australian art, representing and championing a diverse roster of artists who work across painting, sculpture, and mixed media. With a carefully curated program that spans multiple generations of practitioners, Jan Murphy Gallery serves as a vital platform for established and emerging voices in the national and international contemporary art scene.

The gallery's presence in Fortitude Valley places it at the heart of Brisbane's artistic ecosystem, drawing collectors, artists, and art enthusiasts to a neighbourhood known for its galleries, studios, cafés, and creative industries. Its location makes it an essential stop for anyone exploring contemporary Australian art in Queensland, and a respected fixture in the broader landscape of Australian galleries.

A Diverse Roster of Contemporary Artists

Jan Murphy Gallery represents a thoughtfully selected group of artists working in contemporary practice, including Ben Quilty, Heidi Yardley, Linde Ivimey, James Guppy, Celia Gullett, Adam Pyett, Robert Malherbe, Richard Lewer, Natasha Bieniek, and Mark Tweedie, amongst others. These artists work across a rich spectrum of styles—from abstraction and expressionism to figurative painting, landscape, portraiture, and sculptural practice. The diversity of approaches on the gallery's roster reflects a commitment to supporting artists who push boundaries and explore complex ideas through their work.

The gallery's artists engage with themes ranging from memory and identity to spirituality, nature, and the unconscious. Several are recognised beyond the gallery walls; notably, artist Drew Connor Holland, represented by Jan Murphy Gallery, recently won the prestigious Blake Art Prize People's Choice Award—the 69th iteration of one of Australia's longest-running awards for contemporary art. This achievement underscores the gallery's reputation for nurturing artists whose practice engages meaningfully with contemporary culture.

A Curated Exhibition Calendar

The gallery maintains an active and carefully planned exhibition schedule that brings fresh work to its Brisbane space throughout the year. Recent and upcoming exhibitions showcase the breadth of its program: Ben Quilty's 'The River' (May–June 2026) was followed by concurrent exhibitions from Linde Ivimey ('I will remember you') and Heidi Yardley ('Trick of the light'), both running June–July 2026. These exhibitions give collectors and visitors the opportunity to encounter significant new works and revisit the practice of long-standing represented artists. The gallery also maintains a stockroom of additional works and regularly updates its news section with artist announcements, exhibition details, and professional milestones.

Each exhibition is presented with curatorial attention and professional installation, providing a thoughtful context for experiencing the work. The gallery's approach to programming balances solo presentations from mid-career and established artists with opportunities to discover newer voices, reflecting a commitment to both depth and diversity in contemporary practice.

Sculpture, Painting, and the Stories Materials Hold

A distinctive thread running through much of the work shown at Jan Murphy Gallery is an interest in the expressive and conceptual possibilities of materials themselves. Sculptor Linde Ivimey, for instance, works with reclaimed and found materials—bone, fabric, fibres, and remnants—each carrying its own history into the finished work. She describes her sculptures as 'charms' shaped through 'accumulation, intuition, and care.' Similarly, painter Heidi Yardley mines imagery from vintage ephemera and found photographs, reconstructing and dissolving familiar forms to unsettle nostalgia and expose latent tensions. This shared interest in how materials and histories are transformed through artistic practice speaks to a philosophical depth that distinguishes the gallery's roster from purely decorative or commercial approaches.

The gallery's commitment to showing works that engage intellectually and emotionally with contemporary concerns—memory, identity, spirituality, and environmental consciousness—ensures that visits offer not just visual pleasure but genuine conceptual engagement. Whether through abstract expressionist painting, figurative work, or assembled sculpture, the artists shown here invite viewers to look more closely and think more deeply about the world around them.

Planning Your Visit to Jan Murphy Gallery

Jan Murphy Gallery welcomes visitors and collectors throughout the year, with an active program of exhibitions, a regularly updated artists' roster, and a stockroom of available works. The gallery's website provides comprehensive information about current and upcoming exhibitions, artist profiles, and news. For those interested in previewing new work or discussing acquisitions, the gallery invites visitors to register interest in forthcoming exhibitions or contact them directly.

Located in Fortitude Valley, the gallery is easily accessible for anyone visiting Brisbane's inner-north precinct. Whether you are an established collector, an emerging enthusiast, or simply curious about contemporary Australian art, Jan Murphy Gallery offers a welcoming and professionally curated space to encounter significant work. Subscribe to the gallery's mailing list to stay informed about exhibitions, artist announcements, and special events throughout the year.