NAVA In Action

What we're working on this year...

Two people smile at a NAVA booth at an outdoor festival. The booth displays posters and pamphlets promoting fair pay and recognition for artists, with a crowd visible in the background.

NAVA’s Janel Yau and Emma Pham at the NAVA stall, Deaf Festival Sydney, 30 August 2025. Photo by David Wimble.

ID: Two people smile at a NAVA booth at an outdoor festival. The booth displays posters and pamphlets promoting fair pay and recognition for artists, with a crowd visible in the background.

September 2025

Penelope Benton met with Rosina Hislop, national facilitator with the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD), 1 September

NAVA Governance Subcommittee meeting, 1 September

Penelope Benton met with Eileen Camilleri, Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Copyright Council, 2 September

NAVA published Artists call for consent and compensation in AI training, 2 September

Penelope Benton met with Dr Kate Warren, University Art Museums (UAMs) researcher for Creative Australia, 2 September

Penelope Benton met with Brett Adlington, Chief Executive Officer of Museums & Galleries of NSW, 3 September

Penelope Benton participated in National Advocates for Art Education (NAAE) Term 3 meeting, 3 September

Janel Yau participated in Australian Curriculum (AC) Arts Professional Associations and Academies, 4 September

Penelope Benton met with Anne Robertson, Executive Officer of Public Galleries Association of Victoria, 9 September

Penelope Benton attended the opening of XENO by Linda Dement at Damien Minton Gallery,  September

Georgia Mokak met with artist Nadine Lee, 10 September

Penelope Benton attended First Nations Imagine Talk: From Consultation to Co-Creation: Strengthening Relational Practice hosted by Diversity Arts Australia, 10 September

Penelope Benton attended the opening preview of Sydney Contemporary, 10 September

Penelope Benton met with Emma Rees, Cherisse Lyons, Lisa O’Brien and Callum Featherstone, Office for the Arts, 11 September

Penelope Benton attended Are you ok? in the Creative Arts: Checking In, Backstage and Beyond, hosted by Support Act, 11 September

Penelope Benton published Artists say AI scraping without permission isn't innovation, it's exploitation, Independent Australia, 12 September

Penelope Benton met with Claire Watson, Director of National Exhibitions Touring Support (NETS) Victoria, 15 September

NAVA made a submission to the Productivity Commission’s Harnessing data and digital technology inquiry, 15 September

Emma Pham met with Jane Wade, Creative Producer at Utp, 16 September

Donnalyn Xu and Emma Pham hosted NAVA stall at UNSW Art & Design Community Day, 17 September

Holly Morrison attended Living with Psychological Disorders at Work, 17 September

Penelope Benton met with Michelle Newton, Head of Visual Arts, Creative Australia, 18 September

Penelope Benton met with Adrian Collette, Chief Executive Officer and Alice Nash, Executive Director of Arts Investment, Creative Australia, 18 September

NAVA published Visual artists lead the call for tax reform, 22 September

Penelope Benton quoted by Gina Fairley in Government’s tax reform for the arts tabled – but will it be enacted?, Arts Hub, 22 September

Janel Yau and Penelope Benton met with Stripe and Rockethouse representatives, 23 September

Holly Morrison attended Active Listening, Not Fixing: Building Deeper Connections in Relationships, 24 September

Penelope Benton attended the Art of Tax Reform Summit hosted by the NSW Government, Sydney Opera House, 25 September

Penelope Benton attended the opening of Alex Seton The Fabulists at Sullivan + Strumpf, 25 September

Penelope Benton interviewed by Kim Goldsmith, ABC Western Plains Breakfast Program, 29 September

NAVA Board meeting, 29 September

Penelope Benton quoted by Gina Fairley in Fact sheet: Superannuation for artists – what you need to know, Arts Hub, 30 September.

August 2025

NAVA published ANU’s proposed restructure threatens studio-based art education, 4 August

Penelope Benton quoted by Gina Fairley in You’re killing me: tax reform for artists is needed now, Arts Hub, 5 August 

NAVA mentioned by Paul Sakkal in Leaked letters and closed-door talks with PM: Media bosses’ AI fight, Sydney Morning Herald, 6 August

Georgia Mokak attended the National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAA) cultural keepers tour, 6 August

Georgia Mokak and Janel Yau attended Indigenous fashion awards, Darwin 6 August

Georgia Mokak and Janel Yau attended opening ceremony of the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair (DAAF) 7 August

Georgia Mokak and Janel Yau presented a NAVA information stall at the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair (DAAF) 8 - 11 August

Donnalyn Xu presented to RMIT Art Enterprise Workshop (AEW) students, 8 August

Penelope Benton attended the opening of Hannah Buck, LAST DAYS ON EARTH at Our Neon Foe, 9 August

NAVA mentioned by Gina Fairley in ‘I’m tired of barely being paid.’ Artists are living below the poverty line, Arts Hub, 12 August

Penelope Benton and Leya Reid met with Jordan Ward and Jonty Boshier, Australian Public Policy Institute (APPI) 18 August

NAVA submitted to the NSW Government’s consultation on opportunities for tax reform to support the arts and creative industries, 18 August

NAVA hosted Parenting in the Arts consultation for the Code of Practice, 20 August

Penelope Benton and Janel Yau met with Rockethouse 21 Aug

Penelope Benton attended the opening of the NSW Visual Arts Fellowship (Emerging) and EJ Son: Fountain, Artspace 21 August

NAVA published Parenting in the Arts: insights from the Code consultation, 21 August

NAVA published GST hits artists harder than most, 21 August

Penelope Benton and Janel Yau met Marc Goldenfein, co-founder ArtsPay, 22 August

NAVA cautions against premature AI agreement, 22 August 

NAVA Development Subcommittee meeting 25 August

Janel Yau and Georgia Mokak presented a Professional Development Workshop at Diversity Arts Australia, 27 August

Janel Yau and Holly Morrison met with Liz Martin, CEO Accessible Arts NSW, 27 August

Penelope Benton attended the launch of Liveworks 2025, Performance Space, 28 August

Penelope Benton attended the opening of Matters of Time: Contemporary Metal Practices; Emma Fielden: The Sky Swallowed a Stone; and Mason Kimber: A Caressing Gaze, 29 August

Janel Yau attended the opening of Kaldor Public Art Project 38, AGNSW, 29 August

Emma Pham and Janel Yau presented a NAVA information stall at the Deaf Festival Sydney, 30 August.

July 2025

June 2025

  • NAVA hosted Activate Your Activism: An Access, Ethics and Cultural Rights Workshop facilitated by Bedelia Lowrencev, M. Sunflower and Imogen Yang, 2 June
  • Georgia Mokak met with Emma Hicks, 3 June
  • Janel Yau met with Liz Martin, CEO Accessible Arts NSW, 5 June
  • NAVA published NAVA questions NT Government’s backflip on new gallery, 5 June
  • NAVA published Legislative reform is essential to secure artists’ futures, 10 June
  • NAVA published Centre the artist by paying them, 11 June
  • Emma Pham met with Sarah Rose, Associate Curator and Executive Assistant at Artspace Sydney, 11 June
  • Georgia Mokak met with Nadine Lee, 11 June
  • Penelope Benton met with Joanna Vaughan, Adviser to Tony Burke MP, Minister of the Arts, and Emma Rees, Director Visual Arts and Design, Office for the Arts, 12 June
  • Penelope Benton met with Emma Rees, Director Visual Arts and Design, Office for the Arts, 16 June
  • Georgia Mokak met with Gordon Hookey, 16 June
  • Penelope Benton presented a workshop on the Code of Practice for Visual Arts, Craft and Design to the Office for the Arts team, 17 June
  • Emma Pham presented to UNSW students in Art and Design in Practice, 18 June
  • Penelope Benton met with Judy Grady, Head of Visual Arts and Cheryl Yates, Head of Visual Arts Licensing 18 June
  • Penelope Benton and Janel Yau attended Protecting Mental Health: Psychosocial Hazards in Not-for-profits hosted by Justice Connect, 19 June
  • Georgia Mokak attended No Space is Empty, First Nations Symposium hosted by Powerhouse Museum, 19 June
  • Donnalyn Xu met with Julie Ewington, 19 June
  • Donnalyn Xu participated in Deafconnect Auslan Class, 19 June
  • Emma Pham presented a workshop on the Code of Practice for Visual Arts, Craft and Design to Camden Council, 19 June
  • Penelope Benton attended the opening of Yolŋu power: the art of Yirrkala, Art Gallery of New South Wales, 20 June
  • Penelope Benton met with Anne Robertson, Executive Officer Public Galleries Association of Victoria (PGAV), 23 June
  • Penelope Benton met with Brett Adlington, CEO Museums & Galleries of NSW 24 June
  • Donnalyn Xu presented on NAVA and the Code as part of Ancher Points: Emerging Artist Intensive is a program run by Penrith Regional Gallery for artists in Greater Western Sydney, 25 June
  • Penelope Benton participated in consultation with National AI Centre, Technology and Digital Division, Department of Industry, Science and Resources
  • Penelope Benton met with Kerri Glasscock, Executive Director Create NSW, 25 June
  • Penelope Benton quoted by Linda Morris in ‘A real shock’: Alarm as NSW arts agency slashed by 25 per cent, Sydney Morning Herald, 25 June
  • Penelope Benton met with Erin Brannigan, Associate Professor in Theatre and Performance at the University of New South Wales, 26 June
  • Penelope Benton participated in Arts Strategic Workforce Advisory Group (SWAG) meeting for Services and Creative Skills Australia (SaCSA), 26 June
  • Penelope Benton participated in consortium of national peak bodies for the arts, quarterly meeting 26 June
  • Penelope Benton attended the openings of Caroline Zilinsky Mirror, Mirror at Nanda Hobbs and Sidney McMahon Sixty-nine at Verge Gallery, 26 June
  • NAVA co-signed creative industry and media organisations letter regarding acknowledgement of the Government’s economic agenda and concerns regarding copyright “reform” and exceptions, 27 June
  • Penelope Benton attended the opening of Tom Polo in a part of your mind, I am you, Ngununggula, 28 June.

May 2025

  • NAVA cited in What Labor, the Coalition and the Greens are offering the arts in the 2025 federal election — and what the sector wants, The World Observer, 1 May
  • Georgia Mokak met with Nadine Lee, multi-disciplinary artist and arts worker 1 May
  • Penelope Benton met with Maria Farmer PR, 1 May
  • Emma Pham presented Artist Rights: Protecting and Respecting Copyright workshop in collaboration with local artist and educator, Jeremy Sheehan, at Charles Sturt University, Port Macquarie, 2 May
  • Emma Pham presented Know Your Worth: Fees and Wages for Artists workshop in collaboration with local artist and educator, Jeremy Sheehan, at Bellingen Memorial Hall, 3 May
  • Penelope Benton met with Joshua Lowe, Co-CEO Theatre Network Australia, 5 May
  • Janel Yau and Holly Morrison met with Liz Martin, CEO Accessible Arts, 6 May
  • NAVA published Returned Albanese Government must prioritise visual arts, 7 May
  • NAVA cited by Richard Watts in Peak bodies welcome re-elected Albanese Government and call for greater commitment to live music and visual arts sectors, Arts Hub, 8 May
  • Penelope Benton attended the opening of Joan Ross 'Heads or Tails' at N. Smith Gallery, 8 May
  • Penelope Benton attended the opening of the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes, Art Gallery of NSW, 9 May
  • Penelope benton quoted by Dee Jefferson in Silent Spring, Art Guide, 14 May
  • Emma Pham and Donnalyn Xu met with Teik Kim Pok, Cultural Projects Coordinator ‑ Sector Support, City of Sydney, 14 May
  • Georgia Mokak met with Christine Evans, Pro Vice-Chancellor Indigenous Education UNSW and Emma Hicks, artist, writer and educator, 15 May
  • Georgia Mokak met with Nadine Lee, multi-disciplinary artist and arts worker 15 May
  • NAAE published Aligning global and national visions for arts education, 19 May
  • Extraordinary Board meeting, 20 May
  • NAVA was successful in its application for Multi-year Funding through Create NSW, 21 May
  • Penelope Benton interviewed by Liz Trevaskis on ABC Darwin Drive, 22 May
  • Emma Pham presented the fourth and final session of Area Coded, with artist Jason Wing, 23 May
  • NAVA AGM, 26 May
  • NAVA Board meeting, 26 May
  • NAVA announced key governance changes with new board appointments, 27 May
  • NAVA filmed a new set of Artist Files with Atypical, 27 May
  • Janel Yau met with Eddy Garcia and Erica Rose Jeffrey, Arts Queensland, 27 May
  • Georgia Mokak attended First Nations Arts and Culture Awards at the Art Gallery of NSW, 27 May
  • Penelope Benton and Janel Yau met with Kate Schaffner, Director and Patrick McCarthy, Manager Strategic Initiatives and Engagement, Creative Workplaces, 29 May.

April 2025

March 2025

  • Penelope Benton quoted by David Burton in Resignations and censorship: Australia wrestles with artistic freedom, Arts Hub 4 March
  • Penelope Benton participated in Copyright and Artificial Intelligence Reference Group (CAIRG) meeting to discuss findings on the feedback to the Attorney General's Department consultation on copyright and AI transparency issues, 5 March
  • Holly Morrison attended Wellbeing Through Art, presented by Accessible Arts and the Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW), 5 March
  • NAVA Board meeting, 6 March
  • Penelope Benton met with Gabrielle Sullivan, Chief Executive Indigenous Art Code, 7 March
  • NAVA made a submission to the Fair Work Commission (FWC) regarding the case Variation on the Commission’s own initiative – Amusement, Events and Recreation Award 2020 (AM2024/37), 10 March
  • Emma Pham met with Skye Petho, Programs and Partnerships Manager, Arts Mid North Coast, 12 March
  • Georgia Mokak met with Emma Hicks, 12 March
  • Penelope Benton participated in national cross-artform peak organisations quarterly meeting, 13 March
  • NAVA wrote to Adrian Collette CEO and Robert Morgen Chair of the Board Creative Australia again raising urgent concerns regarding Creative Australia’s withdrawal of Khaled Sabsabi’s selection for the 2026 Venice Biennale, and the absence of a recruitment process for a new Head of Visual Arts, 13 March
  • NAVA responded to Creative Australia’s governance review announcement, 17 March
  • NAVA wrote to Adrian Collette, CEO and Robert Morgen, Chair of the Board Creative Australia regarding the announcement of a governance review into the decision-making processes for the 2026 Venice Biennale, 18 March
  • Penelope Benton met with Maud Page, Deputy Director AGNSW, 18 March
  • Penelope Benton attended Nusra Latif Qureshi Birds in Far Pavilions, AGNSW 18 March
  • Penelope Benton met with Gabrielle Sullivan, Chief Executive Indigenous Art Code, 18 March
  • Donnalyn Xu and Emma Pham met with Hannah Rouse, Producer Creative Programs Inner West Council, and Amylia Harris, Producer Creative Programs Inner West Council, 18 March
  • Penelope Benton met with Lena Nahlous, CEO & Executive Producer Diversity Arts Australia (DARTS) and Joshua Lowe, Co-CEO Theatre Network Australia (TNA), 19 March
  • Georgia Mokak attended Protecting Indigenous Art: Legal Essentials for Indigenous Creatives, 20 March
  • Georgia Mokak met with Nadine Lee, 20 March
  • Penelope Benton met with Dr Oliver Watts, artist, curator and academic, Artist Director Copyright Agency Board, Head Curator of Artbank, 20 March
  • Penelope Betnon attended the launch of A gestural drift curated by Sara Oscar in the Artbank Window, 20 March
  • Emma Pham hosted Area Coded: Emerging Artist presented by NAVA and Utp, 21 March
  • Georgia Mokak presented at Empowering Artists for the Future: Professional Development Forum hosted by the Saltwater Freshwater Arts Alliance, Coffs Harbour NSW, 24 March 
  • Georgia Mokak hosted one on one sessions with First Nations artists from the Mid North Coast at Saltwater Freshwater, 25 March
  • NAVA wrote to City of Perth Council urging reconsideration of its position on the removal and indefinite storage of two significant public artworks - Paul Ritter’s The Obelisk and Lorenna Grant’s Arch, 24 March
  • Penelope Benton and Leya Reid met with Tess Chappell, National Industrial Officer - Equity Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA), 25 March
  • Penelope Benton met with Anne Robertson, Executive Office Public Galleries Association Victoria (PGAV), 26 March
  • Penelope Benton met with José Da Silva, Director UNSW Galleries and Chair of University Art Museums Australia (UAMA), 26 March
  • Penelope Benton met with Dr Ben Eltham, writer, researcher, trade unionist, 26 March
  • Penelope Benton, Georgia Mokak and Leya Reid met with Kate Schaffner, Director and Georgia Cheesman, Project Officer Creative Workplaces, 26 March
  • NAVA responded to the Federal Budget 2025-26, 26 March
  • Penelope Benton quote by Richard Watts in Federal Budget 2025-26: how does it benefit the arts?, Arts Hub 26 March
  • Penelope Benton quoted by Jason Blake in 2025-26 Budget Offers Modest Support for the Arts, Limelight 26 March
  • Donnalyn Xu and Emma Pham met with Imogen Yang, independent collaborative arts practitioner, M Sunflower, artist, and Bedelia Lowrencev, actor, dancer, singer and theatre-maker, 26 March
  • Georgia Mokak Presented at Djurali, 26 March
  • Penelope Benton met with Imogen Beynon, 27 March
  • Penelope Benton met with Maria Farmer, MFPR, 27 March
  • NAVA wrote to Professor Pickering, Vice-Chancellor and President of Monash University regarding the Postponement of Flat Earth exhibition at Monash University Museum of Art (MUMA), 27 March
  • NAVA and National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) Monash branch responded to Monash University’s postponement of exhibition featuring Khaled Sabsabi, 27 March
  • Penelope Benton quoted by Jason Blake in University condemned for postponing exhibition featuring works by Khaled Sabsabi, Limelight 27 March
  • NAVA cited by Joshua Black in Blue Poles and its $1.4m price-tag shocked the nation, but did it change us?, InDaily 27 March
  • Penelope Benton facilitated extraordinary meeting of national cross-artform peak organisations, 27 March
  • The Fair Work Commission published responses to NAVA’s submission regarding Arts sector - Amusement, Events and Recreation Award 2020 (AM2024/37), 28 March
  • NAVA Governance Subcommittee meeting, 31 March.

February 2025

January 2025

  • NAVA office opened 6 January 
  • NAVA team undertook Cultural Awareness training with Koori Kinnections, 13 January
  • Penelope Benton met with Rebecca Butler, Executive Director Museums & Galleries QLD, 16 January
  • Janel Yau attended In Conversation: Marikit Santiago and Zico Albaiquni, Campbelltown Arts Centre, 18 January
  • Penelope Benton met with Isabella Alexander, Evana Wright and Genevieve Wilkinson, Faculty of Law University of Technology Sydney (UTS), 20 January
  • NAVA announced Improved insurance for NAVA Members – New partners, better coverage, 21 January
  • Submitted Pre-Budget Submission 2025-26 to Treasury, 21 January
  • NAVA published Invasion Day/Survival Day Statement of Solidarity 2025, 21 January
  • Georgia Mokak and Penelope Benton participated in Envisioning Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander AI Futures, hosted by the Centre for Global Indigenous Futures Macquarie University, 22 January
  • Penelope Benton met with Brett Adlington, CEO Museums & Galleries of NSW, 23 January
  • Penelope Benton attended the opening of Re-Stor(y)ing Oceania, Latai Taumoepeau and Elisapeta Hinemoa Heta, curated by Taloi Havini; and Juanita McLauchlan, guuma-li / gather, 23 January
  • Janel Yau attended the 3rd Bankstown Biennale featuring, Karla Dickens, Jamie Eastwood, Maddison Gibbs, Edwina Green, Morgan Hogg, Gillian Kayrooz, Wona Bae and Charlie Lawler, Gary Lee, Ruth Ju-Shih Li, Jazz Money, Claudia Nicholson, Joan Ross, Salllvaage, Kien Situ, James Tylor, Dung-Chuan Wen, Jason Wing, 23 January
  • Media Release: Celebrating Clothilde Bullen on receiving an Order of Australia Medal (OAM), 27 January
  • NAVA mentioned by Phoebe Blogg in Trailblazer Clothilde Bullen honoured for services to Indigenous arts, National indigenous Times, 28 January 
  • Penelope Benton, Leya Reid, Georgia Mokak, and Ju Bavyka met with Jennifer van Bronswijk and Guy Donovan, Holding Redlich, Kate Schaffner, Director Creative Workplaces and Imogen Beynon, 29 December
  • Penelope Benton met with Brett Adlington, CEO Museums & Galleries of NSW, 29 January
  • Penelope Benton attended the openings of Casey Chen: Another Jingdezhen Car Boot Sale, and Louise Zhang: Moving in Quiet, N. Smith Gallery, 30 January
  • Penelope Benton quoted by Linda Morris in Museum of Contemporary Art seeks ‘white knight’ as entry fees kick in, Sydney Morning Herald (SMH), 31 January.