CIAF 2026 ON COUNTRY VIP PROGRAM WITH TONY ALBERT
The CIAF VIP On Country Program is an invitation to slow down, listen deeply and experience Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander/Zenadth Kes cultures through place, practice and people across North Queensland.
Designed for collectors, philanthropists, curators, cultural leaders and travellers seeking meaningful engagement, this program offers rare access to artists, art centres and cultural sites in ways that are respectful, intimate and unforgettable.
Participants experience CIAF beyond the event - visiting studios, art centres and significant locations, and engaging directly with artists and cultural practitioners. These encounters offer deeper insight into creative processes, local knowledge systems and the environments that inform the works presented at CIAF, including how artists are responding to the 2026 theme Reclamation & Regeneration.
The program also includes curated dining experiences, private viewings, artist talks and early access to artworks at the Art Fair and Artisans Showcase. For collectors, it offers informed acquisition opportunities grounded in understanding and relationships; for supporters and philanthropists, it provides firsthand insight into the impact of cultural investment; and for curators and industry leaders, it offers valuable professional dialogue and connection.
At its heart, the CIAF On Country Program creates space for reflection, relationship and learning, connecting participants to art as a living practice shaped by Country, community and contemporary cultures.
Read more by exploring the VIP On Country Brochure below. To register and secure your place, please complete the registration form by Friday 29 May 2026.
For enquiries, please contact Perina Drummond at viprelations [at] ciaf.com.au.
CIAF 2026 On Country VIP Program Info Pack
YOUR HOST
Tony Albert
Tony Albert (Girramay/Yidinji/Kuku-Yalanji peoples, born 1981, Gurambilbarra/Townsville, Queensland) is an established contemporary artist with a longstanding interest in the cultural misrepresentation of Aboriginal people. Drawing on both personal and collective histories, his multidisciplinary practice considers the ways in which optimism might be utilised to overcome adversity. His work poses crucial questions such as how do we remember, give justice to, and rewrite complex and traumatic histories?
Albert is acknowledged industry wide as a valued ambassador for Indigenous community and culture. He was recently announced as the inaugural Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain First Nations Curatorial Fellow. He is the first Indigenous Trustee for the Art Gallery of New South Wales, a member of the Art Gallery of New South Wales Indigenous advisory, a board member for the City of Sydney's Public Art Panel and member of the Art & Place Board at the Queensland Children's Hospital and in January 2023 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by Griffith University for his significant contribution to the arts.
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