Established in 1871 and located in the Domain, the Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW) is the state's leading museum of art and one of Australia's foremost cultural institutions. Visited by more than one million people every year, it holds significant collections of Australian, European and Asian art, and regularly hosts blockbuster exhibitions featuring famous artists.
In December 2022, AGNSW officially opened the Sydney Modern Project, the centerpiece of it being the expansive new second gallery building, which resides right next to the original building, with its 19th-century sandstone facade facing the Domain parklands and the city beyond. The extension has been touted as the most significant cultural development to be established in the Harbour City since the Sydney Opera House, and was awarded Museum Opening of the Year by international art publication Apollo.
Aboriginal language names for Art Gallery of NSW buildings
In April 2024, the Art Gallery announced new names for both of its buildings, drawn from the local Aboriginal language. The new North Building has been given the Aboriginal name Naala Badu, meaning "seeing waters" in the Sydney language; and the pre-existing South Building has been given the name Naala Nura, meaning "seeing Country".
The Art Gallery engaged extensively with key Aboriginal stakeholders and communities about receiving Aboriginal names for its buildings. "Naala Badu" references both the adjacent waters of Sydney Harbour and those that have always sustained communities throughout the state; and "Naala Nura" acknowledges both Indigenous Country in general and the golden sandstone of the Art Gallery’s original building, hewn from local Country.
The Sydney Modern Project: a world-class gallery for Australia
You cannot fully comprehend the scale of the mammoth Naala Badu building – designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa of SANAA – until you descend down from the ground floor entrance, through the three limestone-clad art pavilions that gently step down towards the harbour, and wander out onto the more than 3,400 square metres of accessible roof ‘art terraces’ and courtyards. Around every corner, new spaces emerge, and reveal with them entirely new styles and arrangements of art. Keep heading down to the fourth floor below ground to discover the Tank, an adaptive re-use of a 2,200-square-metre former Second World War fuel bunker.
Rather than obstructing the sweeping views of the city, the architecture of the newer building embraces the scenery. Sheer glass-panelled walls, a Wonka-esque glass elevator and layers of escalators with glass railings all work to showcase the landscape as an artwork in its own right. Natural light plays a big role, and on a particularly sunny day the rays stream through those clear walls and the ripped cover to the entrance foyer to light up the indoor and outdoor artworks better than any specially rigged electric lights.
Plan your visit | How to get to the Art Gallery of NSW
The Art Gallery of NSW is open every day from 10am to 5pm (except for Christmas Day and Easter Friday). On Wednesday nights it is open late 'til 10pm. Most exhibitions are free to roam, and some blockbuster shows require a ticket.
Public transport: If you're catching the train, St James and Martin Place stations are both about ten-minutes walk from the Gallery. Bus 441 departs from the York Street side of the Queen Victoria Building (Stand D) and drops off near the Art Gallery. There is also a drop-off and pick-up zone on Art Gallery Road near the front of the Art Gallery.
Parking: You can find metered parking on Mrs Macquaries Road and other streets around the Art Gallery, and there are also several car parks nearby. The closest are the Domain Car Park and The Wharf, Woolloomooloo Car Park, both of which can be booked in advance online.
