Exhibition theme: Welcoming Creativity — Community-Led Cultural Stories in Coffs Harbour 16^th-20^th June 2026.

A shared space for culture, making and belonging—where many journeys meet on Gumbaynggirr Country.

Exhibition Statement: Welcoming Creativity is a community-led exhibition presented by New Horizons in Coffs Harbour, inviting people to share culture through creative practice during Refugee Week and beyond. The works bring together stories of identity, resilience and everyday joy—told through textiles, weaving and painting. These pieces are not presented as polished, professional outcomes; they are genuine expressions of cultural creativity, made in community and shared with care.

Multicultural expression is welcomed and celebrated. First Nations community members, people from refugee and migrant backgrounds, and Australians born here and overseas are invited to contribute and connect—sharing what home, language, place and community mean to them.

New Horizons has invited local community groups to create and exhibit a work—individually or collaboratively—using textile techniques, weaving and/or painting. Together, these pieces form a vibrant collection of cultural knowledge, traditions, symbols and new creative experiments.

Making art side-by-side can be grounding and empowering. This exhibition honours the role of creativity in building connection, confidence and friendship—strengthening community in a city shaped by settlement, movement and welcome.

Visitors are invited to spend time with the works, listen to the stories held in materials and colour, and celebrate the many cultures that make Coffs Harbour home.

Acknowledgement: We acknowledge the Gumbaynggirr People as the Traditional Custodians of the land on which this exhibition takes place and pay respect to Elders past and present.

Dates of event to coincide with Refugee week and the exhibition will open on Tuesday 16^{th June} and run until Saturday 20^th June 2026. An opening and morning tea will run on Tuesday 16^th from 10am with all community members invited.