Opening of the Eva and Marc Besen Centre

TarraWarra Museum of Art, located in the picturesque Yarra Valley in Victoria (Wurundjeri Country), opens the doors publicly to its breathtaking new building, the Eva and Marc Besen Centre, from March 4, 2025. The Centre is a dedicated place of learning and creative inspiration for all ages, utilising flexible and adaptable spaces to deliver a diverse array of events including exhibitions, educational workshops, talks, lectures, performances, classical music concerts and live arts events. The new Centre provides visible access to over 300 stored artworks from the TarraWarra Museum of Art permanent collection, providing a panoramic display of iconic artworks gifted to the nation by renowned philanthropists, the late Eva Besen AO and Marc Besen AC.

For its first activation, the Australian Chamber Orchestra will perform from March 1–2 before the official opening to the public. During the opening weekend, on Saturday, March 8, 2025, the Centre will be activated by a full program of activities in partnership with Arts Project Australia (APA), celebrating the final few days of the exhibition Intimate Imaginaries, curated by Anthony Fitzpatrick. The day-long event Rhythms of the Handmade will feature talks, live artist demonstrations and family-friendly making activities. The festivities will continue until the end of March as TarraWarra Museum of Art’s new centre comes alive with behind-the-scenes tours, weekend activities for children to explore the surrounds, creative making-tables for all ages based on artworks by Kate Beynon and Rosalie Gascoigne, and performances by musicians.

Adjacent to the TarraWarra Museum of Art and embedded within the landscape of the Yarra Valley, the new 2205-square metre Centre was designed by Kerstin Thompson Architects (KTA), with landscape design by OCULUS and Wurundjeri horticulturalist and artist Craig Murphy-Wandin.

Director of TarraWarra Museum of Art, Dr Victoria Lynn, said: “An exciting chapter for TarraWarra Museum of Art, the Centre will expand the Museum’s program and deepen our engagement with both current and new audiences. We look forward to exploring the range of experiences that can be generated by the Centre, drawing inspiration from our location, exemplary collection, and current ideas.”

The Centre, completed by McCorkell Constructions, also offers unique behind-the-scenes tours of works from the TarraWarra Museum of Art collection, one of the country’s most important collections of Australian art from the 1930s to the present day. The Museum’s permanent collection was established through the generous donation of over 600 artworks by founding patrons, the late Marc Besen AC and Eva Besen AO. Through the Centre’s innovative display system of 64 art storage racks positioned behind a 46 metre-long secure glass wall, the general public will have year-round viewing access to a curated selection of works by some of Australia’s most significant modern and contemporary artists.

Director of Kerstin Thompson Architects, Kerstin Thompson, said: “The architectural concept is driven by TarraWarra Museum of Art’s commitment to fostering artistic exploration, cultural enrichment and intellectual engagement. Designed to support a diverse range of activities, the spaces are adaptable and interchangeable, accommodating gatherings of up to 200 attendees. The focus of the Centre is the Museum’s collection. An innovative approach utilising a secure glass wall reveals its treasures to all visitors. Back of house is now front of house for everyone to enjoy.”

Connecting the Centre with the Museum is a dramatic new sculpture walk between the two buildings, framing views of the stunning natural vistas of the Yarra Valley. The landscape design, featuring Indigenous and native Australian plants, was created by OCULUS in collaboration with Wurundjeri artist and horticulturalist Craig Murphy-Wandin. The outdoor walkway features sculptures from the permanent collection by acclaimed artists such as Clement Meadmore, Lenton Parr, Robert Klippel, and Antony Gormley.

Associate Director of OCULUS, Claire Martin, said: “Our approach to the landscape design was underpinned by a desire to create a dramatic arrival and entry experience, through a sequence of framed views through, to and beyond the sculptural walk. The design acknowledges and looks to celebrate the site’s rich Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung culture, broader landscapes, and the resilience of natural systems.”

About Kerstin Thompson Architects
KTA is a leading innovator and creative force in Australian architecture and urban design. Through astute design thinking, KTA creates meaningful and site-responsive architecture that seamlessly balances form, interior and landscape to achieve coherent and compelling places that enrich experience. Clarity of vision and sensitivity to place guide each and every project. KTA’s work encompasses civic and residential architecture, interiors, landscape and urban design. Highly varied, the work ranges in scale and program, and includes projects across arts, cultural, education, health, commercial and residential sectors. KTA comprises an experienced and talented team of around 50 individuals, who apply their expertise to delivering complex projects. Kerstin Thompson is the design director and principal of KTA, which she founded in 1994.

About Oculus
OCULUS is a cross-disciplinary design studio committed to connecting people with their environment and each other. OCULUS’s projects contribute to public life, combining high levels of amenity with ecological sustainability. OCULUS works across all scales, from the design of parks, gardens, streets, and mixed-used precincts, to rooftops, terraces, green façades, furniture and architectural structures.

About Tarrawarra Museum of Art
Welcoming audiences since 2003, TarraWarra Museum of Art is a leading not-for-profit public art gallery that features inventive and stimulating exhibitions and programs about modern and contemporary art. Located in Healesville, the Museum actively engages with art, place and ideas in a remarkable environment and immersive atmosphere which provides a retreat for the imagination. The worlds that artists create are a feature of exhibitions, programs and events, providing inspiring experiences that encourage visitor engagement.