On the Local Arts Trail in September 2025
— with Alison Desmond —
Over the Winter months Moorabool’s inspiring artists have been diligently working, honing their crafts, to present fabulous new artworks for Spring!
BMAC, Lerderderg Library, Bacchus Marsh
The open-entry Artist Book Awards are upon us again this year with artist books and altered books on display at Lederderg Library, Bacchus Marsh through September.
View cut, folded, hand-bound pages, paper works and more, limited only by the imagination.
The exhibition can be viewed Monday to Saturday during library opening hours.
BMAC artists’ group will meet in the supportive community environment of the library from 1pm to 3pm on Tuesday, September 16, free and open to all.
Lerderderg Library is open Monday to Saturday, check the website for times
Flack PTO Gallery
Leanne Martin’s passion for botanical illustration began with a workshop in the Melbourne Royal Botanical Gardens in 2009.
Since 2012 she has been exhibiting her drawings and watercolours inspired by Australian native flora and fauna.
Leanne’s delicately structured samples are conventionally formatted and exemplified in Pink Waratah (Shady Lady).
Her goals are to further study in the United Kingdom as well as visit Western Australia for wildflower season.
Also showing at Flack PTO is Nichola Roberts’ playful high-key coloured acrylic paintings.
Check the new giftshop for Fathers’ Day, bursting full of handmade gifts and vintage artefacts presented in the renovated historic building.
Flack PTO Gallery is open 11am-2pm Fridays and Sunday, and 10am-3pm Saturdays
Ballan Art Space
It’s been a busy time for Ballan Art Space - September’s new exhibition will be Artists’ Choice so we will see a wide variety of subjects and themes represented.
The artists have also been involved in an inaugural exhibition at the new Ballan Library, illustrating stories written by local schoolchildren, with a commemorative exhibition catalogue available for purchase, opening 6pm to 7pm on Wednesday, September 3.
On Saturday, September 6 the group will host a destash of arts and crafts materials, coinciding with the Lions Club market day in Inglis Street.
Fathers’ Day is also coming up fast so pop into the gallery for some crazy bargains like this Sun God mechanical sculpture by local artist Tracey Taylor.
Oak Grove Gallery
View contemporary landscape paintings of local bush landmarks, inspired by the style of Tom Roberts and the Australian Impressionists, housed in the restored 1872 Ballan News Building.
Visit Marty, open most days, for Moorabool’s best views.
Gordon Bar Room Gallery
Gordon Bar Room Gallery continues to impress with its collection of original, affordable, high-quality local work, with a great range of ceramics, jewellery, textiles, paintings, prints and more.
Perfect for finding that stylish one-off, created by local artists.
Moorabool Art Pathways Program (MAPP)
Up in Lights Outdoor Galleries
This breathtaking, adorned golden skeletal Madonna with light streaming through the lush foliage of a rainforest is part of Heidi Bones’ Icons + Bones, which can be viewed at Bacchus Marsh Village Green until September 30.
25 Years of Wombat Arts Group will be showing at AA McClean Reserve, Ballan until November 5.
Expressions of interest from local artists are sought to occupy the MAPP light box spaces, so contact Moorabool Shire Council and get your work seen in high-traffic sites for maximum exposure - check the Moorabool Shire Council Arts & Culture webpage for details.
Public and Community Arts
Moorabool Shire has an amazing collection of public art, from markers of place in bush settings, to Ballan’s cosily yarn-bombed Inglis Street, to eye-catching paste-ups in the townships.
Step out from Winter hibernation and into the wide world that is Moorabool arts.
You can find out more about Moorabool’s public art pieces at the Moorbool Shire website
About On the Local Arts Trail
The Local Arts Trail column is released through our monthly eNewsletter and on this website at the start of each month.
If you have an arts-related exhibition or event you’d like to let us know about, you can use our Submit an Event form.
Keep in touch with the local arts scene by following us on Facebook and Insta, and be sure to sign up for our monthly eNewsletter.