Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts (PICA) has today announced the exhibiting artists for Hatched: National Graduate Show 2026 — the country’s only national survey of recent art school graduates and one of Australia’s most significant platforms for emerging contemporary artists.

Celebrating its 35th year, Hatched returns to PICA’s iconic galleries from 1 August to 4 October 2026, bringing together 21 artists from 20 tertiary art schools across Australia.

Hatched builds on a legacy of supporting more than 1,400 artists since its inception in 1992 — many of whom have gone on to shape the cultural landscape in Australia and internationally, including Archie Moore, Julie Gough, Dennis Golding, Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran and Raquel Ormella. The exhibition continues to provide a vital national platform for early-career artists and, for many, their first experience exhibiting at a major contemporary art institution.

Art school graduates from across Australia are nominated by their teachers and then selected by a panel of acclaimed artists and curators, platforming their work to a national audience and connecting them with their peers from across the country.

PICA CEO Hannah Mathews said Hatched is a landmark annual event that embodies the Institute’s true purpose, serving as a rare moment for Australia’s emerging arts community to come together, exchange ideas and form relationships that can shape future practice.

“For 35 years, Hatched has reflected PICA’s commitment to experimentation and ambition in Australian contemporary art. This annual program is designed to recognise artists at a moment of possibility, and provide a supportive and professionally enriching first-time experience exhibiting within a major contemporary arts institution.

“Bringing this cohort of emerging artists from across Australia together in one place, at one point in time, is a milestone in itself. The Hatched program creates a hub of activity where bold ideas converge, where artists can connect with their peers, curators, collectors and the wider industry, and where new relationships can begin to take shape. 

“For emerging artists, these moments of connection are vital, helping build the networks, confidence and professional pathways that sustain creative practice in Australia. Hatched is a true national survey that serves as a launchpad and a powerful point of connection for the next generation of artists shaping culture now,” said Mathews.

Curated by Hatched Curatorial Associate 2025-2026, Mia Palmer-Verevis, this year’s Hatched will see practices spanning ceramics, painting, moving image, installation, drawing, sculpture, photography and printmaking. 

“The artists demonstrate a bold commitment to innovative and experimental contemporary art practice. Taming unconventional materials and unpacking complex ideas, these artists offer compelling insights into diverse lived experiences, areas of research and paths of resistance.​

I’m proud to curate Hatched in its home base, within PICA’s signature gallery spaces,” said Palmer-Verevis.

Artists selected to exhibit their work at this year’s exhibition include:

• Alanna Askew, University of Wollongong (NSW)
• Thomas E. Brown, Curtin University (WA)
• Chelsea Carkeet, Queensland College of Art and Design (QLD)
• Kat Chaplin, Edith Cowan University (WA)
• Madeleine Coates, Adelaide Central School of Art (SA)
• Lychandra Anastasia Gieseman, University of Tasmania (TAS)
• Tabitha Glanville, Monash University (VIC)
• Belinda Hearn, Deakin University (VIC)
• Lilu Hosking, RMIT University (VIC)
• Sydney Jarrett, University of New South Wales (NSW)
• Tai Kelly, University of Western Australia (WA)
• Sophie Kihara-Murer, Australian National University (ACT)
• Tali Koto, Flinders University/TAFE SA (SA)
• Rebecca Lavery, Southern Cross University (NSW)
• Aliza Nickle, Monash University (VIC)
• Amirah Rachwani, National Art School (NSW)
• Liam Maree Rogers, Federation University (VIC)
• Jessica Shannon, North Metropolitan TAFE (WA)
• Mary Shaw, Victorian College of the Arts (VIC)
• Lily Thomas-McKnight, University of Sydney (NSW)
• Kelsey Woods, Queensland University of Technology (QLD)

Across the exhibition, artists examine how identity, Country and belonging are shaped through memory, material and inherited knowledge. Tali Koto (SA) explores the emotional tensions of existing between two cultural worlds through ceramic works that reflect dual heritage and diasporic experience, while Amirah Rachwani (NSW) uses self-portraiture to expose and reframe the power structures embedded in Western art history.

Jessica Shannon (WA) works with discarded industrial materials and pigments collected from the Pilbara to question land, extraction and permanence; while Lily Thomas-McKnight (NSW) centres Aboriginal knowledge systems, positioning Country as a living text, teacher and guide.

Exhibiting artists were selected to take part in this year’s program by a panel which included Tina Stefanou, artist and Hatched alum 2020; Guy Louden, artist, curator, Art Consultant and Collections Officer at Artbank; Georgia Hayward, Curator at PICA; and Mia Palmer-Verevis, Hatched Curatorial Associate 2025–26 at PICA.

PICA’s Hatched program extends its support for artists by offering two studio residencies which provide invaluable opportunities for development beyond the exhibition. Participants for the program in 2026 include Thomas E. Brown from Curtin University (WA) and Sydney Jarrett from the University of New South Wales (NSW).

This year’s Hatched: National Graduate Show also marks the 17th anniversary of the Dr Harold Schenberg Arts Awards. Valued collectively at $50,000, the awards are the largest prize pool for emerging artists in Australia — made possible by funds bequeathed to The University of Western Australia by Dr Harold Schenberg. As part of the exhibition launch, PICA in partnership with the University of Western Australia, will present four Hatched artists with these awards — made up of three $15,000 ‘most exceptional’ prizes and one People’s Choice Award of $5,000 awarded toward the end of the exhibition.

Penny Dakin, Executive Director, Communities at Minderoo Foundation, which has supported Hatched over the past 6 years, said: “Minderoo Foundation is proud to support Australia’s most promising emerging artists and long-standing partner PICA as we celebrate Hatched’s 35th year. For more than six years, Minderoo has supported the Hatched National Graduate Show and the Hatched Curatorial Fellowship, which help create strong career pathways for early career artists and arts workers. We believe programs like Hatched are essential to strengthening WA’s arts sector and nurturing future leaders in the sector.”

Judges who will determine the winners of the 2026 Dr Harold Schenberg Arts Awards include: Khaled Sabsabi, currently representing Australia at the Venice Biennale and Hatched alum 2005, Dr Theo Costantino, Director, Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery, UWA and Hannah Mathews PICA Director/CEO.

Hatched: National Graduate Show 2026 opens with PICA After Hours on Friday 31 July, kicking off with a high-energy night of art and music. The evening features the announcement of The Dr Harold Schenberg Arts Awards winners alongside an eclectic live music lineup curated by jade//vision, with celebrations continuing late into the night at Flown the Coup: Hatched Afters at The Bird, featuring sets from beloved Boorloo artists Melanija, Great Statue, Bad Whip, Blood Knows and Yikes.

Keep the energy going across Weekends at PICA with artist talks and tactile tours on Saturday 1 August and free art-making activities as part of Hatched Family Day on Saturday 8 August.
Hatched: National Graduate Show 2026 at Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts runs from Saturday 1 August to Sunday 4 October 2026. Opening Hours 12—5pm, Tue-Sun. For more information, visit: www.pica.org.au/whats-on/hatched-national-graduate-show-2026/