Beloved textile exhibition opens this week
Published on 22 June 2026
Petite Miniature Textiles 2026, one of Wangaratta Art Gallery’s most popular and significant exhibitions opens this weekend.
Petite Miniature Textiles is a biennial exhibition showcasing innovative small-scale textile practice from across Australia and forms an important part of Wangaratta Art Gallery’s program, reflecting its longstanding emphasis on contemporary textile art. The exhibition also echoes the history of textiles in Wangaratta and the continuing textile story of the region.
This year, 46 works by 34 artists and groups were selected from a highly competitive field of over 280 entries by Guest Curator Cara Johnson, an artist and previous Wangaratta Contemporary Textile Award finalist.
The selected artists and groups for Petite Miniature Textiles 2026 are:
Phoebe Beard, Claire Birbeck, John Brooks, Catherine Buddle, Benjamin Chevalier, Nicole Clift, Alana Clifton-Cunningham, Melanie Cobham, Fiona Currey-Billyard, Kasia Dudkiewicz, Anna Dunnill, Steph Everett, Belinda Farinaccia, Eli Giannini, Timothy Gresham, Michelle Hamill, Megan Kennedy, Sara Lindsay, Deborah McHugh, Juanita McLauchlan, Bhanu Mistry, Janette Murrungun, Third Object, Mary-Rose Riley, Miriam Sharp, Demelza Sherwood, Bec Smith, Lahni Thavarajah, Chop Thom, Cheryl Thornton, Lois Waters, Jessye Wdowin-McGregor, Erica Wells and Melinda Young.
Guest Curator Cara Johnson said the selection process was both rewarding and challenging.
“I would like to sincerely thank all the artists who submitted work for Petite Miniature Textiles 2026. The breadth, sensitivity and technical skill across the entries made this an incredibly difficult process. Selecting just 46 works from more than 280 submissions required close and careful looking, something that sits at the heart of my own textile practice.
The theme ‘in the detail’ reflects my ongoing interest in slow making, material intelligence and the quiet, powerful moments that emerge when time is spent with a work. The selected artists respond to this idea in diverse and often surprising ways, demonstrating how scale can intensify meaning, technique and conceptual depth.”
Following its presentation at Wangaratta Art Gallery, Petite Miniature Textiles 2026 will tour to JamFactory Seppeltsfield, South Australia, where it will be exhibited from 5 February – 25 April 2027, extending the reach of this celebrated exhibition to new audiences.
Wangaratta Art Gallery Director Rachel Arndt said the exhibition continues to attract strong national interest.
“Petite Miniature Textiles has developed a strong national following, and Wangaratta Art Gallery is one of only a few galleries internationally to present a dedicated miniature textile exhibition on a biennial basis. The opportunity to tour the exhibition to JamFactory Seppeltsfield is an exciting next chapter for the project, extending its reach to new audiences and placing contemporary Australian textile practice within a leading national craft and design context.
We are delighted to be working with JamFactory and to see the selected artists’ works presented in South Australia following their presentation here in Wangaratta.”
An opening celebration will be held for Petite Miniature Textiles 2026 on Friday 26 June from 5.30pm at Wangaratta Art Gallery. Petite curator and artist Cara Johnson will speak at the event.
Nothing is certain, said The Curtain an exhibition of textile sculpture and video by Sydney based artist Ali Noble will open in Gallery 2 at the same time. Galen College student Spencer Hayward will be performing at the event.