6 November 2026 | National Film and Sound Archive of Australia

In line with the Craft + Design Canberra Festival theme of Dissent, this conversation asks whether we are measuring the things that matter most. As Canberra grows and changes, are we optimising for the metrics that are easier to count, or for the things that make our city a better place to live? This discussion will explore how the measures we choose influence the places we create, and whether it is time to broaden the way we define success. 

12 – 13 November 2026 | Canberra Museum and Gallery

BOLD Dissent is a two-day conference featuring leading dancers, designers and thinkers from across Australia and the world bringing a focus on dissent. Shaking up the way we create and present performing arts and the ways in which organisations and artists can create more accessible and inclusive environments for the future.

6 November 2026 | National Film and Sound Archive of Australia

Dissent by Design explores creativity as a form of dissent: the ways artists, designers, activists and storytellers use their practice to resist, imagine and rebuild.  

6 – 22 November 2026 | Queanbeyan Hive

A powerful act of dissent against the marginalisation of older voices, Elder Art is an exhibition of artworks by older members of the community. Through art and artist talks, the exhibition amplifies these voices, celebrating the richness that a long life and diverse experiences of history can bring to our shared community. 

7 November 2026 –  30 January 2027 | Canberra Contemporary

POWER - The Future is Here is the result of a collaboration between Kamilaroi/Gamilaraay and Biripi artist Dennis Golding and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students from Alexandria Park Community School, who designed capes informed by their lived experiences and cultural identity.

5 November – 6 December 2026 | Various Locations

Featuring works by Yamile Tafur Rios, Brock Willis and Danish Quapoor, Signs of Dissent | Graphic Interventions transforms public space through site responsive artworks responding to the Festival theme of Dissent. Drawing on cultural identity, environmental narratives and quiet acts of resistance, each artist challenges everyday perspectives and reimagines the visual landscape of Canberra. 

15 November 2026 | Black Mountain

Walk on Country with Tyronne Bell (Ngunawal ) through the tracks and trails of Black Mountain, gaining a First Nations understanding of bush foods, artefacts and stone tools, with panoramic views of Canberra along the way. This tour reads the landscape through Ngunawal knowledge held and carried forward since long before Canberra was planned, offering the 2026 Festival theme of Dissent as continuity of culture on Country. 

5 July – 13 December 2026 | Tuggeranong Arts Centre

In dissent against the decline of the Murray Cod, Tuggeranong Arts Centre invites you to join collaborative community weaving sessions, using natural fibre and recycled materials to complete a large scale textile sculpture. Hear First Nations stories and learn about the environmental conservation efforts surrounding this threatened and culturally significant species.