Artistic adventures arrive next week when the National Gallery of Victoria brings its Kids on Tour program to at Ararat Gallery TAMA, for six days of fun split across two weeks.
NGV Kids on Tour offers free school holiday activities for kids, sharing the joys of art and creativity with children and families across Victoria. Coinciding with the NGV's summer exhibitions Yayoi Kusama and Cats & Dogs, NGV Kids on Tour celebrates the work of local and international artists and designers as they draw inspiration from the colour and vibrancy of nature and the world around them.
In celebration of the Cats & Dogs exhibition, children can design a Furry Friend Headband, a set of cat or dog ears inspired by their own beloved pets or furry animals in their lives that they can take home and wear.
The program will also introduce kids to the work of iconic Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, through the Lots of Dots with Yayoi Kusama activity and children's book. These drawing activities invite children to add their favourite colours and designs to dots on a pumpkin, as well as to try their hand writing a poem about the humble fruit.
Melbourne-based fashion designers and sisters Fatuma and Laurinda Ndenzako, from slow fashion label Collective Closets, celebrate the beauty and history of the African continent through their designs. The pair have developed a guided activity in which children can create paper dolls, along with their own vibrant clothing for the dolls to wear.
Designed especially for teens, the Make a Pompom with Sophie Honess activity invites participants to create a bush flower-inspired pompom using yarn, embroidery thread and colourful felts to use as accessories on bags or key chains.
The 2025 NGV Kids on Tour marks the largest ever program to date, with more than 150 venues participating across metropolitan and outer metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria.
Sessions are free to attend with no bookings required, and are appropriate for ages 3 - 16.
"We're enormously proud to have the NGV Kids on Tour program at Ararat Gallery TAMA," says Ararat Rural City Council Mayor, Cr Jo Armstrong. "These activities have been designed by some of the world's most talented creatives, and support the kind of artistic exploration so important to our kids' personal growth and expression."
WEEK 1
Tuesday 14 Jan, 10am - 12:30pm
Wednesday 15 Jan, 10am - 12:30pm
Thursday 16 Jan, 10am - 12:30pm
WEEK 2
Tuesday 21 Jan, 10am - 12:30pm
Wednesday 22 Jan, 10am - 12:30pm
Thursday 23 Jan 23, 10am - 12:30pm
