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Quick Information

ADDRESS

180 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne VIC 3006, Australia

Timings

10:00–17:00

VISITORS PER YEAR

1500000

TICKETS

From $28.32

NUMBER OF ENTRANCES

2

Plan your visit

Did you know?

A large portion of NGV’s acquisitions come from the Felton Bequest (a bequest by Alfred Felton in 1904). Over the years, more than 15,000 works have been purchased through this fund.

The NGV International building is famously surrounded by a shallow moat and water features, part of a cohesive architectural vision to frame the gallery elegantly.

The recent Yayoi Kusama exhibition (2024–25) shattered NGV records: over 570,000 visitors, making it the most attended ticketed exhibition in NGV history and the highest attendance for a visual art show ever in Australia.

Why visit National Gallery of Victoria

A global dialogue in art

At NGV, centuries and cultures meet under one roof. Explore European masters, Asian traditions, Indigenous dot paintings, and bold Australian voices in a single visit.

Iconic architecture and spaces

Walk through the shimmering Waterwall, gaze at Leonard French’s stained-glass ceiling in the Great Hall, and enjoy the open-air Sculpture Garden with striking installations.

Programs for everyone

From free guided tours and blockbuster fashion shows to hands-on kids’ workshops, NGV ensures both art lovers and families find something memorable.

Australia's creative heart

While NGV International showcases global art, NGV Australia (Ian Potter Center) highlights Indigenous heritage, colonial-era classics, and daring contemporary reinventions.

What's inside National Gallery of Victoria?

Azuma Makoto's Block Flowers installation at National Gallery of Victoria.

Here’s a high-level view of its zones and galleries. (Later in the page we’ll spotlight must-sees.)

  • Special exhibitions: Continually rotating blockbuster shows in flexible gallery wings.
  • Level 1: Asian Art & Early European: Chinese ceramics, Japanese prints, early European masters.
  • Level 2: European & International Panorama: Renaissance through 19th century, sculpture, decorative arts.
  • Level 3: Contemporary & Rotating Galleries: Recent acquisitions, installations, cutting-edge art.
  • Sculpture Garden & Outdoor Zone: Outdoor installations and seasonal architecture commissions.
  • NGV Australia (Ian Potter Centre): Indigenous art, colonial history, modern and contemporary Australian works.
Plan your visit to NGV

Must-see highlights in NGV's collection

Angel with tools and geometric shapes in "Melencolia I" at National Gallery of Victoria.

Melencolia I by Albrecht Dürer (1514)

A masterful engraving of introspection and intellectual challenge. NGV holds one of Dürer’s finest copies.

Sheep shearing scene at National Gallery of Victoria, showcasing workers in a shearing shed.
The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai, displayed at National Gallery of Victoria.
Interior scene from "The Block" by John Brack, featuring a butcher's shop at the National Gallery of Victoria.
The Thinker sculpture at National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne.

Exploring the spaces of the National Gallery of Victoria

Ground floor: NGV International

  • Location: Main entry via St Kilda Road.
  • Significance: Serves as the gallery’s welcome zone, with the famous Waterwall at the entrance. This level often houses blockbuster touring exhibitions.
  • Highlights: The Waterwall, ticketed temporary shows in the large exhibition halls, and access to the Sculpture Garden with seasonal architecture commissions.

Level 1: Asian Art & Early European Wings

  • Location: First floor of NGV International.
  • Significance: Dedicated to Asian collections (ceramics, textiles, ink paintings) alongside early European art from pre-Renaissance through Renaissance.
  • Highlights: Chinese jade carvings, Japanese ukiyo-e prints including The Great Wave off Kanagawa, and early Italian panel paintings.

Level 2: European & International Panorama

  • Location: Second floor, NGV International.
  • Significance: The heart of the collection, spanning European Old Masters to 19th-century decorative arts.
  • Highlights: Giambattista Tiepolo’s The Banquet of Cleopatra, Pablo Picasso’s Weeping Woman, and treasures from Rembrandt and Turner.

Level 3: Contemporary & Rotating Galleries

  • Location: Upper floor of NGV International.
  • Significance: A dynamic space for contemporary acquisitions and rotating themed exhibitions.
  • Highlights: Installations by international contemporary artists, photography, and digital media showcases.

Sculpture Garden & Outdoor Zone

  • Location: Rear of NGV International.
  • Significance: A tranquil outdoor extension of the gallery experience.
  • Highlights: Permanent sculptures, contemporary commissions, and the annual NGV Architecture Commission.

NGV Australia: The Ian Potter Centre (Federation Square)

  • Location: Federation Square, opposite Flinders Street Station.
  • Significance: The world’s first major gallery dedicated entirely to Australian art.
  • Highlights: Indigenous galleries with Emily Kame Kngwarreye’s Big Yam Dreaming, colonial works like Tom Roberts’ Shearing the Rams, and modern icons such as John Brack’s The Block.

Tracing NGV’s journey: Australia’s oldest public art gallery

  • 1861: The NGV is founded, making it Australia’s first public art gallery. It opens in the State Library of Victoria building.
  • 1880s–1900s: The collection rapidly expands, enriched by colonial art and acquisitions of Old Masters.
  • 1968: NGV International opens on St Kilda Road in a striking modernist building designed by Sir Roy Grounds. The Waterwall and Great Hall stained-glass ceiling become instant icons.
  • 2002: NGV Australia (The Ian Potter Center) opens in Federation Square, dedicated to Indigenous and Australian art.
  • 2003–present: The Melbourne Winter Masterpieces series launches, cementing NGV’s reputation for blockbuster international exhibitions.
  • Today: With over 70,000 works, NGV is Australia’s most visited gallery, blending global treasures with bold contemporary shows.

​Check current and upcoming exhibitions at NGV >

Designing culture: The buildings behind NGV Melbourne

The National Gallery of Victoria is really two architectural landmarks in one. NGV International, on St Kilda Road, was designed in 1968 by Sir Roy Grounds, one of Australia’s most celebrated modernist architects. His design turned the gallery into a fortress of culture: bluestone walls, a surrounding moat, and the famous Waterwall at the entrance make the approach as memorable as the art inside. Step into the Great Hall and you’ll find Leonard French’s stained-glass ceiling, the largest of its kind in the world, casting a kaleidoscope of color that visitors love to admire lying flat on the floor.

Across the river at Federation Square, the Ian Potter Center opened in 2002, designed by the innovative Lab Architecture Studio with Bates Smart. Its bold, angular façade of glass, zinc, and sandstone feels futuristic, a sharp contrast to Grounds’ solemn geometry. Together, the two sites embody Melbourne itself: a city that treasures heritage while embracing the avant-garde. Visiting both is like walking through two chapters of architectural history, each telling its own story about art and the city.

Frequently asked questions about NGV Melbourne

The NGV is Australia’s oldest and most visited art museum, famous for its world-class collection spanning European masters, Indigenous Australian art, Asian traditions, and contemporary design.

More reads

NGV opening hours

Getting to NGV

NGV exhibitions