Rewild | 2025 Artists-in-Residence Exhibition

Overview

Rewild | Artists-in-Residence Exhibition presents new work by artists Michele Grimston and Hannah McKellar, developed through the 2025 Craft + Design Canberra Artist-in-Residence program at Cinerea Cottage, located within Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve. The residency combines time immersed in the landscape with a dedicated research component undertaken in partnership with the National Zoo and Aquarium.

Framed by the theme of Rewilding, the program invited Michele and Hannah to consider ecological restoration and shifting relationships between humans and the natural world. Through the residency's research component with the National Zoo and Aquarium, the artists went behind the scenes to observe conservation practices and engage with rewilding as a progressive approach to conservation, one that enables natural processes to repair ecosystems and restore wilder, more biodiverse habitats.

As part of the exhibition launch, Hannah McKellar and Michele Grimston will join Exhibitions Coordinator Stacy Jewell in conversation, reflecting on their residency experiences. This talk offers a rare insight into the processes, challenges, and reflections that inform each artist's practice, highlighting how attentiveness and responsiveness have shaped the creation of their work.

The Craft + Design Canberra Artist-in-Residence program is supported by ACT Parks and Conservation Service. The 2025 research partner was the National Zoo and Aquarium.