Master of Contemporary Art

Meet Priya Namana

After moving to Melbourne to pursue design, Priya Namana found herself increasingly frustrated at the socio-political climate around her. She found a constructive space for expression in the Master of Contemporary Art.

"Though I have always wanted to study art, I never had the opportunity to, as it felt quite inaccessible growing up in India. I migrated to Australia to study design. Through witnessing and experiencing different forms of prejudice so personally here, I felt the urgent need to respond to the attitudes revolving around race, class and gender. Free artistic expression became a high priority in order to find survival strategies and ways of navigating the world in general.

From the outside, conceptual practices appear to be exclusive, in that they are predominantly occupied by a male, white presence. I fit into neither category. By understanding and accepting that my framework and output was a highly conceptual one, somehow and somewhere along the way the urgency shifted to making myself visible in this space where it seemed like I didn’t belong, and confronting that discomfort.

Once all that became clear, I decided to dip my toes back in through a Graduate Certificate in Visual Art. The staff in this course, who are all practising artists, were so active in instigating change, open to their own vulnerabilities, and deeply thoughtful and supportive, that I was convinced to continue to build my practice at the VCA through further study."

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2024 Graduate Exhibition Catalogue

Explore the 2024 VCA Art Grad Show - one of the largest exhibitions of emerging art in the country. See an extraordinary display of new art by more than 160 graduating students from our Sculpture, Photography, Painting, Drawing and Printmaking, Honours, Master of Contemporary Art, Masters of Fine Art, and PhD programs.

With more than 500 ambitious and thought-provoking artworks on display, the 2024 VCA Art Grad Show is a snapshot of the future of artmaking in Australia, introducing the next generation of artists to the world.

2024 VCA Art Catalogue

Faculty of Fine Arts and Music

The course is taught at the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music, the proud home of the Victorian College of the Arts and the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music.

Much of the teaching, research and performance takes place in, or near, the new Ian Potter Southbank Centre on the University of Melbourne’s Southbank campus. Our facilities on the University's Parkville campus, including Melba Hall, are also used for teaching, research and performances.

While studying at the Faculty, you will have the chance to benefit from a range of partnerships and engagement activities at major arts companies in Melbourne's Arts Precinct, local and national festivals and sister institutions around the world.

Explore the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music

Wilin Centre

Situated in the heart of Melbourne's Arts Precinct, the Wilin Centre for Indigenous Arts and Cultural Development provides exposure to contemporary Indigenous arts practices and supports the recruitment of Indigenous artists, academics and students.

Learn more about the Wilin Centre

Exhibition and Studio spaces

The Stables and Arts Studios

The Faculty of Fine Arts and Music art studio and exhibitions area comprises 465 art studios, work preparation areas, multipurpose installation and project spaces, tutorial rooms, and public exhibition venues, including The Stables and VCA Art Space.

The Stables and Arts Studios

Fiona and Sidney Myer Gallery

Visit the Fiona and Sidney Myer Gallery, our primary exhibition space. It is a professional exhibiting space for graduate and alumni work, Art studio projects, artists in-residence, staff exhibitions, as well as independent local and international exhibitions.

Fiona and Sidney Myer Gallery