Sydney Contemporary, in partnership with Principal Partner MA Financial Group, launches its ninth edition today, and announces the winner of the acquisitive $15,000 MA Art Prize as emerging Gamilaraay artist Juanita McLauchlan.
Presented at Presenting Partner Carriageworks from 11 – 14 September 2025, Sydney Contemporary 2025 is the Fair’s largest edition to date, showcasing 116 exhibitors presenting over 500 artists from Australia and around the world. In a major new development, this edition features the premiere of Photo Sydney, dedicated to contemporary photography.
Program highlights this year include nine large-scale installations, including a major outdoor artwork by Aotearoa artist Lisa Reihana CNZM adorning the entrance of Carriageworks with hundreds of reflective discs that shimmer with the wind, as well as two special performances, by Dr Christian Thompson AO and Kalisolaite 'Uhila, curated by José Da Silva. Further highlights include a dynamic talks program exploring the intersection of art, design, and architecture, curated by Stephen Todd and Micheal Do.
Since its launch in 2013, Sydney Contemporary has welcomed over 25,000 visitors per edition and generated more than AU$138 million in art sales. The Fair is the pre-eminent meeting place for the art world, and critical to the growth of the art market in Australia.
Sydney Contemporary Fair Director Zoe Paulsen said: “We’re thrilled to open the doors to the ninth edition of Sydney Contemporary – our most ambitious Fair to date. With more exhibitors and artists than ever before, alongside new initiatives such as Photo Sydney, this year promises to be a landmark celebration of contemporary art. Visitors can expect to encounter works of exceptional quality across a breadth of mediums and practices, from emerging voices to established names, all filling Carriageworks with creativity, curiosity and ideas. Sydney Contemporary continues to be Australasia’s premier art fair – and we look forward to welcoming seasoned collectors, first-time buyers, and art lovers alike to experience the 2025 program.”
Sydney Contemporary Founder and Co-Owner Tim Etchells said: “Now in its ninth edition, Sydney Contemporary has cemented its place as Australasia’s leading art fair. Each year we bring together collectors from across Australia, New Zealand and further afield for the country’s most significant week of art sales. More than just a marketplace, the Fair is a vital meeting point for collectors, artists, galleries and art lovers, playing an essential role in shaping and sustaining Australia’s art ecosystem. We look forward to welcoming visitors to what promises to be yet another strong year.”
MA ART PRIZE
The winner of the 2025 MA Art Prize has been announced today as emerging Wagga Wagga–based Gamilaraay artist Juanita McLauchlan, who is showing at Sydney Contemporary with CASSANDRA BIRD.
With a record-breaking number of entries this year, Principal Partner MA Financial Group’s annual MA Art Prize returns for its third year with an increased prize of $15,000, established to celebrate and support emerging and early career artists in Australia.
McLauchlan’s practice explores the tension between chaos and control within the printmaking medium, embracing its complexity, texture, and layered processes. Using domestic fabrics such as vintage blankets as a base, she works with leaves, animal pelts, and other organic materials to print, eco-dye, and embroider, creating works that extend beyond the flat picture plane to occupy and activate space. Her experimental approach to material and conceptual problem-solving is deeply informed by her Indigenous heritage, which provides both a foundation and guiding framework for her work.
She is currently presenting an exhibition, yilaa minyaminyabal maaru-ma-lda-y (soon everything will be healing), at the Art Gallery of New South Wales part of their Contemporary Projects series (until 19 October 2025). In her first state art museum exhibition, this ambitious new body of work draws upon the intimacy of personal belongings and body adornments.
McLauchlan was selected by a judging panel comprising Andrew Martin, Managing Director & Head of Asset Management, MA Financial; Amelia Hill, Senior Advisor, MA Financial; Janna Robertson Special Advisor, MA Financial; Jarrod Rawlins, Director of Curatorial Affairs, MONA; Sebastian Goldspink, Independent Curator; and Sue Cato AM, Principal, Cato & Clive.
This year's finalists included artists Billy Bain, Punni Brown Nungarrayi, Julia Trybala, and Nicole Zhang.
Andrew Martin, Head of Asset Management at MA Financial and member of the judging panel for the MA Art Prize winner said: “We were thrilled to receive a record number of entries for the 2025 MA Art Prize, with an outstanding calibre that made the judging process both inspiring and challenging.
Juanita McLauchlan’s winning submission ‘Mandaymanday / string of stars’ stood out for its originality and distinctly Australian voice. Intertwining native and colonial materials to create an impression of Wiradjuri Country, Wagga Wagga NSW, where she lives, and symbolising connections of bloodlines across generations is unique and inspiring. We hope the MA Art Prize will support Juanita in taking the next step in her professional journey, providing her the opportunity to share her voice and talent with a broader audience.”
