State Library Victoria

📚 Step into the Library these winter school holidays for treasured tales and creative adventures where memories are made page by page.

Join us for activities, crafts, movies and more:
🚗 Start your engines for an evening of imagination and adventure at our first ever Drive-In Storytime.
📝 Celebrate the 21st Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge as you reimagine beloved fairytales and classic stories at our writing workshop: Stories to discover. Stories to tell.
🖼️ Create a keepsake photo frame inspired by the book, These Long-Loved Things by Josh Pyke and Ronojoy Ghosh at a free drop-in craft session.

👉 Tap to explore the full school holiday program: https://www.slv.vic.gov.au/stories/spotlight-collection/school-holiday-program
✏️Writing workshops are supported by the Department of Education Victoria for the 21st Victorian Premiers’ Reading Challenge.

🛒✨ Step into 150 years of Aussie retail history.

The Coles Myer Archive is a treasure trove of 30,000+ items – from catalogues and clothing to photos, film reels, vintage advertising and more – stored across 1 kilometre of shelving.

The collection represents an economic, social and cultural snapshot of 20th-century Australia.

🔗 The Library has digitised 6000 of these collection items. Explore them online this International Archives Week: guides.slv.vic.gov.au/colesmyer/getstarted

Beyond the Page returns with leading voices in politics, fiction and health that take you inside the writer’s world.

Across 3 evenings, hear from incredible storytellers as they delve into their latest work and discuss their creative process:
📚 5 August - Amy Remeikis on power, public discourse and the politics of civility, inspired by her new book Screw Nice: How the Politics of Civility Shuts Us Up
📚 13 August - Join bestselling romantasy author and BookTok sensation Stacey McEwan on 13 August as she discusses her latest novel, A Forsaken Prophecy
📚 3 September – Dr Norman Swan explores brain health, ageing and cognitive wellbeing, drawing from his new book The Brain Cliff.

🔗 Be part of the conversation, book now: https://bit.ly/4utbBcb

Celebrate Rare Book Week here at State Library Victoria with exclusive curator-led tours and unmissable talks from our incredible Collections team.

This Melbourne-wide festival has been celebrating books, literacy and storytelling since 2012 – and we’re proud to be part of it with a range of free events.

🎨 Discover the materiality, aesthetics, techniques and history of handmade books at Book Arts from the Medieval to the Contemporary
📖 See highlights of the Library’s impressive holdings of medical texts, from a medieval pharmacopeia manuscript through to magnificent early modern works at Anatomy of a Book: Medical Books from State Library Victoria
📚 View a range of important Irish works works from the seventeenth to the twentieth century in Irish Texts in State Library Victoria’s Rare Book Collection
📕 Anna Welch introduces to the Library’s pioneering Women Writers Fund, at A Room of One’s Own.
💌 Or Join curator tours of our exhibitions, Rebel Heart and World of the Book.

Spaces are limited so book your free tickets now. 👇

Rare Book Week Rare Book Week is an annual, Melbourne-wide program of free talks and events that celebrate the importance of books, literacy and literature in our lives. It has been a key event in literary Melbourne’s calendar since 2012.

🐟 This World Ocean Day, deep dive into one of the Library’s most extraordinary marine-inspired treasures. 🦀

Poissons, Écrevisses et Crabes… (1754) by Louis Renard is teeming with vivid hand-coloured etchings of fish and crustaceans of the East Indies.

The earliest known publication on ocean life to be produced in colour, the hues are spectacular, at times extravagant, but many of the fish are identifiable species.

Others are more fanciful – the volume even contains an illustration of a mermaid, certified as authentic by the editor!

Renard's work is a reminder of how the sea has long stirred awe and imagination, and how vital it is to protect its stories and species.

🥽 Plunge into this fantastical book in our digital catalogue https://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/404608

🎂 Happy 213th birthday to our founder, Sir Redmond Barry!

Born in 1813, he became the founding trustee of State Library Victoria (then Melbourne Public Library) in 1853 – and was appointed first chancellor of the University of Melbourne that same year.

Barry was the driving force behind the Library’s policy of access and education for all, which was radical thinking at the time. Even before the Library opened, he reportedly made his own book collection available to anyone who wandered into the kitchen of his cottage.

The influential public figure also oversaw the establishment of the Museum of Victoria and National Gallery of Victoria, and famously presided over the trial of Ned Kelly.

As we celebrate 170 years of the Library, we're reflecting on Barry's vision, which helped shape the cultural institutions we know today.

🌏 This World Environment Day we're taking a closer look at Mount Buffalo – Victoria’s oldest national park, declared in 1898.

The 'island in the sky' sits on the traditional Country of the Taungurung People, whose enduring connection to and care for Country continues today.

The park is home to plants found nowhere else on Earth, like the Buffalo Sallee tree. It's sheer cliffs, granite tors, waterfalls and sweeping views have drawn visitors for generations, including the early 20th-century Victorians in these collection photos.

This year's World Environment Day focuses on climate change – on the urgent signals the Earth is sending and the signals we choose to send in response.

The UN Environment Programme’s global campaign calls on everyone to step in, go further, and help steer a world already in flux.

Explore Mount Buffalo through the Library’s archives and reflect on the landscapes we’re working to protect. 🌿

💞 Have you wandered through Rebel Heart: Love letters and other declarations and spied this magnificent mourning brooch?

Sitting among stories of defiance and devotion, this small but powerful piece is made from the hair of Anne Drysdale and Caroline Newcomb – two pioneering women who shared a lifelong partnership near Geelong in the 19th century.

Mourning jewellery flourished in the Victorian era as a way to express grief and remembrance after the death of a loved one – the inclusion of hair allowed the wearer to keep a physical trace of them close to their body.

This deeply personal, extremely fragile brooch is a tender reminder of a relationship that defied convention.

👉 Learn more about the rebel hearts of Anne and Caroline and how our conservators have cared for this rare and delicate treasure: https://blogs.slv.vic.gov.au/our-stories/collection-care/a-rebel-heart-remembered-the-story-behind-a-remarkable-mourning-brooch/

💌 See it in Rebel Heart before it comes off display in mid-June to ensure its ongoing preservation.

Today is Mabo Day, and the last day of Reconciliation Week.

3 June marks the historic 1992 Mabo decision in which the High Court of Australia recognised native title, the recognition that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ rights over their lands did survive British colonisation.

Reconciliation must live in the hearts, minds and actions of all Australians as we move forward, creating a nation strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Our Indigenous research guides are one way to continue that journey. Whether you're researching family history, exploring First Peoples' culture, or learning about the long history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, these guides can help you navigate the Library's collections and resources.

Continue your research with our guides and databases: https://guides.slv.vic.gov.au/indigenous

A famous boxing kangaroo named Jack. The Myer Christmas windows. Secret tunnels under a seaside mansion. 🗺️

These are just some of the topics our patrons have asked librarian Kylie Best for help exploring.

Our incredible reference librarians roam every corner of the city block that is the Library building – including subterranean storage spaces – to consult books, microfilm, newspapers, journals, manuscripts, images, ephemera and more to answer your most curious questions.

Whether you're a seasoned researcher or visiting the Library for the first time, our Ask a Librarian service is available to help with your next discovery.

🧐 As we celebrate the Library’s 170th anniversary, learn more about the wonderful work of our reference librarians: blogs.slv.vic.gov.au/our-stories/ask-a-librarian/a-map-in-the-maze-ask-a-librarian-at-state-library-victoria/

Sorry to say it, Melbourne, but winter has officially arrived. ❄️

These Victorian snow scenes have us feeling the chill already.

The plus side? It’s curl-up-with-a-good-book season.
As the days get shorter and the nights get colder, we think it's time to rug up and get reading. 📖

National Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to consider how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

The National Reconciliation Week theme, All In makes clear that reconciliation is not a spectator sport and that all of us must step away from the sidelines and take action to make change.

This week in the Redmond Barry Reading Room find a curated collection of books by First Peoples authors, with stories that deepen understanding and help shape the path ahead.

Creative Acts reveals the extraordinary journeys behind artistic creation – where the process is as powerful as the outcome. The exhibition uncovers the connections, rituals and deeply personal quests that shape their work. 🎨

Dr Deanne Gilson is a proud Wadawurrung woman and artist living and working on her ancestral home of Ballarat. Her practice revolves around her spiritual connection to Country and her Creation story, drawing inspiration from generational storytelling traditions and strong family connections. She draws on this ancestral knowledge through her matriarchal line.

In her commission, Bundjil the Eaglehawk and Creator of Kulin Country depicts the Wadawurrung Creation story from spirit form to life and back again to stars in the night sky.

🌙 Hear from Dr Deanne Gilson tonight at Library up Late: https://bit.ly/4ulQppf
📆 Exhibition closes this Sunday, plan your visit: https://bit.ly/4d9fFYe

National Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

This year marks 25 years of Reconciliation Australia and the 2026 theme All In, a call for all Australians to commit wholeheartedly to reconciliation every single day.

All In makes clear that reconciliation is not a spectator sport and that all of us must step away from the sidelines and take action to make change.

Making weekend plans? Start your Friday night at Library Up Late. ✨

Step into an after-dark playground of art, music and imagination as State Library Victoria comes alive for the launch of Rising Melbourne.

Wander through sound, music, art and performance; from shimmering soundscapes in the Dome to concert experiences in the Ian Potter Queens Hall, moments of reflection with after-hours access to our exhibitions, or ignite your own creative spark with artist talks and collage poetry.

Book now: https://www.slv.vic.gov.au/whats-on/library-late-x-rising

The State Library after dark? Immediately yes. For one night only, RISING turns the building into a late-night playground of sound, dance, DJs, choir, letter-writing and the Dome reimagined as a Sonic Temple. It’s giving romance, intellect and a very good reason to stay out past your bedtime. Tap the link to find out when, and discover the other RISING moments Melbourne will be talking about 👉 https://ebx.sh/8m0FSz

📷 RISING and State Library of Victoria

The people have gone home, the lights are dimmed, and the Library is settling in for the night. It’s time for Storytime After Dark. 🌛

Sneak in with your teddy bear, wear your favourite jammies and snuggle up for an enchanting storytime after dark in the Pauline Gandel Children’s Quarter. Listen to twilight tales and join in on soothing songs and lullabies as the sun sets.

📖 This free event is most suitable for ages 3-8 years.
📆 Tuesday 2 June.
🎟️ Book now: https://bit.ly/4cb0sFB

✨ Celebrating 170 years of curiosity, community and collections. ✨

On this day in 1859, the Queen’s Reading Room (now The Ian Potter Queens Hall) opened on Queen Victoria's birthday, once the south wing was completed.

Photographs taken on the opening day show the Chief Librarian, assistants and workmen posing as patrons to mark the moment.

The central part of the room had opened in 1856 as the Library's original building. The north wing followed in 1864, but only part of it was used for the Library; the rest housed pictures from the National Gallery collection.

In 1860, the hall was redesigned by Edward La Trobe Bateman, with a bold colour scheme inspired by Owen Jones’ The Grammar of Ornament – unlike anything seen in Melbourne at the time.

Look closely today and you can still see traces of Bateman’s design amid layers of history.

🔗 Learn more about Queen's Hall: https://blogs.slv.vic.gov.au/our-stories/queenshall/

Library Up Late is back next Friday for Rising opening weekend 🌙

Immerse yourself in a night of inspiration and imagination as State Library Victoria transforms into an after-dark playground of artistic expression.

🖼️ Explore Creative Acts and Rebel Heart with exclusive after-hours access to our exhibitions.
🎨 Join artists Dr Chandrabhanu, Dr Deanne Gilson, Barry William Hale and Bundit Puangthong in conversation as they share the stories behind their work.
💌 Let the collection move you and craft a poem or letter inspired by the rebels of romance from Rebel Heart.
✨ The dome becomes a mesmerising Sonic Temple with soundscapes from Cloudy Ku and Solar Cells & the New Vision System, alongside performances from MaggZ.
🎶 Live music continues with Monica Lim and Concordis Chamber Choir and sets from DJ JNETT and Elbain.


📆 Friday 29 May
🎟️ Book now: https://bit.ly/4ulQppf

🕵️‍♂️ Dust off your deerstalkers and polish your magnifying glasses – it's Sherlock Holmes Day, which marks the birthday of the super-sleuth’s creator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

It's no mystery that Doyle was the mastermind behind Sherlock Holmes, but did you know he toured Australia in 1920 delivering lectures on spiritualism?

🔎 Discover the writer's adventures in Melbourne, his thoughts on the VFL and his war with The Argus newspaper.

Sherlock Holmes and spiritualism: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in Victoria Dust off your deerstalkers and polish your magnifying glasses!

Happy International Tea Day! 🍵

From quiet kitchen tables to historic tea rooms, garden parties and even fern forests, tea has been part of Victoria’s daily rhythm for generations.

Today we’re celebrating the rituals, communities, and moments of calm in our collection.

🔗 Learn more about Victoria's food and drink history in our online research guide: https://guides.slv.vic.gov.au/food

Meet Jeni and Keyne – two of our superstar volunteers since 2019. ✨

You may have encountered their friendly faces greeting you at our Swanston Street entrance.

During National Volunteer Week, we're taking the opportunity to recognise and celebrate the wonderful people who so generously give their time, energy and heart to the Library.

Whether welcoming visitors, supporting programs and events, or assisting behind the scenes, our volunteers strengthen our community and enhance the experience for so many who come to the Library.

This year’s National Volunteer Week theme, 'Your Year to Volunteer', celebrates the many ways volunteering can create connection, purpose and positive impact in our communities.

To all our volunteers: thank you for your passion, dedication and care this week and all weeks! ❤️

How do you uncover treasures in the Library's collection? 📚

Our online catalogue is getting a makeover and we want your input.

State Library Victoria is conducting research to better understand how people use the catalogue and access our collections. Is it easy to find what you’re looking for? How do you search? What would you change?

👉Have your say by completing this quick 10-minute survey and help shape the future of your catalogue experience: https://bit.ly/4nA31q4

Botanical illustrations, hybrid creatures, bandaged limbs and bundles of healing plants.

Bundit Puangthong’s characters and creations live in paintings that grow like wild, untamed gardens built up in layers of acrylic and spray paint.

The Melbourne-based artist weaves it all together in his 12-metre technicolour painting อบเชย Obchey, currently on display in Creative Acts: Artists and their inspirations.

The sprawling three-part mural combines childhood memories and traditional Thai temple painting with Melbourne’s graffiti culture, celebrating the ‘in-betweenness‘ of living amid 2 cultures.

See the commissioned work and the materials that fueled his process, including the Library's collection of bestiaries, botanical texts and manuscripts.

Visit this week to catch the exhibition's last days and discover the unseen inner worlds of artists through nearly 600 items – revealing how everyday rituals, connections and collections are transformed into extraordinary work.

📅 Closes Sunday 31 May.
🔗 Explore Creative Acts: slv.vic.gov.au/exhibitions/creative-acts/

🌈 Today is International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT).

The day marks the date in 1990 that the World Health Organisation removed homosexuality from the Classification of Diseases and raises awareness for the discrimination that LGBTQIA+ people still face today.

Deep dive into the Archives of Sexuality and Gender to explore q***r histories through our collections. Library members living in Victoria can access the database online for free.

Researchers can examine changing gender roles, social movements, activism and more across centuries, ethnicities, religions, political orientations and geographical locations.

Learn more in this online collection spotlight: https://blogs.slv.vic.gov.au/our-stories/ask-a-librarian/online-collection-spotlight-archives-of-sexuality-and-gender/

🌙 Library Up Late returns this month for Rising!

Immerse yourself in a night of inspiration and imagination as State Library Victoria transforms into an after-dark playground of artistic expression.

✨ The iconic Dome fills with shimmering soundscapes from Cloudy Ku and Solar Cells & the New Vision System, alongside performances from MaggZ.
🎶 The Ian Potter Queen’s Hall becomes into a Concert Hall with Monica Lim, plus Concordis Chamber Choir led by Philippa Jones.
💿 Hit dancefloor in The Quad with DJ JNETT’s Italo Disco set, followed by Elbain’s Y2K beats.
🎨 Get inspired by the Creative Acts artists in the Redmond Barry Reading Room and hear the stories behind their work.
💌 Put pen to paper and craft your own poem or letter inspired by the Library’s collection on display in Rebel Heart.

📆 Friday 29 May.
🎟️ Book now: https://www.slv.vic.gov.au/whats-on/library-late-x-rising