Reimagine sandbags with Lisa Waup

Saturday 23 August 2025, 11am–12pm and 2–3pm
A photograph of a person with short hair wearing dark clothing standing in the gallery space surrounded by intricately patterned soft hanging sculptures

Informed by a profound connection with her chosen materials, Lisa Waup’s practice articulates what she holds most precious. Country and connection to the natural environment are grounding forces in the artist’s work, encouraging narratives of engagement and activism. Trained as a printmaker, Lisa embraces an experimental multidisciplinary approach working across printmaking, weaving, sculpture, jewellery and textiles.

Join Lisa for an artist-led workshop that responds to her artwork holding Country. Created after a major flood experienced with family, this work reimagines a utilitarian sandbag as a vessel for memory, tradition, and shared experience. In this session, you are invited to reimagine your own sculptural hessian bag by further embellishing repurposed fabric that has been screen-printed with the artist’s intricate and distinct designs. In discussion with the veil curators Hannah Presley and Bella Hone-Saunders, Lisa will share insights into her artistic practice and guide you through the process. Enjoy the conversation with the artist and other participants while you work on a sculpture to take home on the day.

Sewing materials will be supplied, with needles and scissors used during the session. The workshop is suitable for ages 12 and above, however, under-18-year-olds should be accompanied by an adult. No prior sewing knowledge is required to participate, and assistance will be available.

Hosted in the gallery, the veil artists workshops offer an opportunity for deeper engagement with the ideas and creative practices behind our current exhibition. 

This is a free event, but booking is essential.

Event Details

Saturday 23 August
11am–12pm and
2–3pm

JOIN WAITLIST

Access

Buxton Contemporary is fully wheelchair accessible. Find detailed information about building access and available resources on our Visit page. Please contact the gallery at buxton-contemporary@unimelb.edu.au or on 03 9035 9339 if you have any questions or would like to request an accommodation.

ABOUT Lisa Waup
Lisa Waup is a mixed-cultural First Nations artist and curator, born in Naarm (Melbourne), whose multidisciplinary practice encompasses a diverse range of media including weaving, printmaking, photography, sculpture, fashion and digital art. With a deep connection to the symbolic power of materials, her work reflects her personal experiences, family history, Country and broader historical narratives. Through her practice, Waup weaves together threads of lost history, ancestral relationships, motherhood and the passage of time, culminating in contemporary expressions that speak to her past, present, and future.
Image: Lisa Waup. Photography by Christian Capurro

Buxton Contemporary acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the unceded land on which we work, learn and create, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung and Bunurong peoples, and the wider Kulin Nations. We acknowledge their continuing care for Country and recognise that Australia’s First Peoples art and cultural practices have thrived here for millenia.