Lately I’ve realised how long it had been since I visited the Newcastle Art Gallery. Sure, I regularly drop by exhibitions when I’m in Sydney or Melbourne, but in my own backyard I could barely ever tell you what is on. Personally I think it is because people (myself included) seem to have this idea that visiting the gallery has to be a long experience, but I reckon you could drop by for a quick lap in like 15-30 minutes and I came up with a list of things that you could do as part of a visit…
1. Coffee
Newcastle has to be edging Melbourne out for coffee mecca of Australia and the city is full of fantastic options for a caffeine hit. My personal favourite are The Edwards, Press bookhouse and Core espresso. But you could easily go further afield and start in Hamilton at a fine establishment such as Roladoor or Suspension.
2. Markets
Two Saturdays a month we are lucky enough to have some incredible inner city markets with Pacific Parks Hunt&Gather or The Olive Tree Markets in Civic Park.
3. Wandering the city (Think: Pokemon Go)
There are some great shops worth visiting like Blackbird Corner, Doughheads (mmmmm Donuts), why not do a lap of Nobbys Breakwall, How long has it been since you had a ferry ride to Stockton? Or just chill at one of the great venues at Queens wharf.
4. Friendly catchup
Make the art gallery the meeting spot for a catch up with friends. Sound cultural and enjoy a quiet conversation with a art backdrop.
5. Craft beer / small bars
My personal favourite. We’ve come a long way in recent years with the drinking culture of Newcastle with the addition of Foghorn Brewhouse, Lucky Hotel, Hop Factory, Central, Grain store / (if you can find it) The Koutetsu, Coal & Cedar, Happy Wombat, or Moneypenny.
ABOUT: Kian West
When Kian isn’t visiting art galleries or writing for Newcastle Live he runs his own zine Newcastle Mirage and manages the Social Media presence for shops, cafes, hairdressers and more.
