A signature event of the Surf Coast Arts Festival 2026, Manor Made is a first-of-its-kind partnership between The National Trust of Australia (Victoria), custodians of Barwon Park Mansion, and The Rose Street Artists' Market, Australia's longest-running independent designers and makers market.
Together we have curated a day that pairs heritage stewardship with the very best of Australia’s contemporary makers.
Spanning the mansion, the stables and the surrounding grounds, the festival brings three distinct experiences together under one tagline – Old House, New Tricks!
‘Wayngurrla’ – a centrepiece exhibition by Aunty Marlene Gilson OAM
Inside the mansion, a centrepiece exhibition titled ‘Wayngurrla’ a Wadawurrung word meaning ‘to make good’ by celebrated Wadawurrung artist Aunty Marlene Gilson OAM will offer visitors a moving and important encounter with First Nations storytelling. Aunty Marlene’s distinctive paintings reframe Australian colonial history through a Wadawurrung lens, and ‘Wayngurrla’ will sit in dialogue with the mansion’s own complex story.
Quiet Riot Small Works Art Prize in the Stables
In the bluestone Hall, the annual Quiet Riot Small Works Art Prize returns, showcasing finalists from across the country in one of the region’s most anticipated contemporary art prizes. The winner will be announced on the day, with the full finalist exhibition open throughout the festival.
Makers Market
Beyond the mansion walls, the grounds will host up to 120 stallholders – ceramicists, textile artists, jewellers, printmakers, woodworkers, photographers, homewares designers and small batch food and beverage producers, drawn from across regional Victoria with priority given to the Surf Coast, Bellarine and Greater Geelong communities.
