Jacky Winter Gardens

Jacky Winter Gardens Jacky Winter Gardens is a guesthouse and creative retreat set amidst a half-acre of stunning gardens and natural bushland in Belgrave, Victoria.

Jacky Winter Waters welcomes its August contemplative resident, Dean Mundey. Dean is an artist and speech writer focusin...
11/08/2026

Jacky Winter Waters welcomes its August contemplative resident, Dean Mundey.

Dean is an artist and speech writer focusing on sustainability, climate change and social inequality, whose work calls on a deep attention to place. Often reading and drawing, with a pot of tea close to hand, he has engaged with several traditions in his contemplative practice.

Our August artist-in-residence at Jacky Winter Gardens is Wanda Gillespie, a contemporary artist specialising in sculptu...
11/08/2026

Our August artist-in-residence at Jacky Winter Gardens is Wanda Gillespie, a contemporary artist specialising in sculpture, installation, and public art. Known for her interactive abacus sculptures and wood-carved figurative works, Wanda’s practice explores history, time, truth, and mysticism, drawing from ancient artefacts and nature’s mathematical harmony.

“I walked the beaches, back and forth for hours each day, trying to dislodge the rod in my sternum. Muttering aloud to m...
28/07/2026

“I walked the beaches, back and forth for hours each day, trying to dislodge the rod in my sternum. Muttering aloud to myself, seeking what has not had time to breathe and questioning my thinking. I miss the rhythm. I experienced every weather, outdoors and from within the cosiness of the space. I was held by the landscape - and rested in the comfiest bed.”

Beautiful words and photos by Jacky Winter Waters’ June contemplative resident Ilona Nelson (The Art Room | Independent Art School, Parallel Projects). Read the full acquittal via our website.

Ben Juers is not a fern, but that didn’t stop him from enjoying the bustling natural metropolis of Jacky Winter Gardens....
20/07/2026

Ben Juers is not a fern, but that didn’t stop him from enjoying the bustling natural metropolis of Jacky Winter Gardens. Ben’s full (and delightfully cheeky) acquittal is up on the website now.

📷 Tatanja Ross • Melbourne Photographer

Our July artist-in-residence at Jacky Winter Gardens is Zoe Jones (Zoe Jones - Artist 👋), a process-driven, material-led...
14/07/2026

Our July artist-in-residence at Jacky Winter Gardens is Zoe Jones (Zoe Jones - Artist 👋), a process-driven, material-led textile artist based on Bunurong Country. Working with weaving and rug-hooking techniques, she uses recycled, natural, and found materials - often marked by wear, repair, or use - to create tactile works that explore memory, material inheritance, and the sensory relationship between body and fibre.

During her residency at Jacky Winter Gardens, Zoe will develop a series of small sculptural works in collaboration with Melbourne-based clothing label Kuwaii, weaving together textile remnants to create a textural, tailored, and layered body of work.

Our contemplative resident for July is Kelly Gellatly, an independent curator, writer, arts advocate and editor. Kelly h...
14/07/2026

Our contemplative resident for July is Kelly Gellatly, an independent curator, writer, arts advocate and editor.

Kelly has curated groundbreaking exhibitions of the work of leading Australian and international artists and has an extensive publishing history on contemporary art, Australian modernism and photographic practice. She is the former Director of the Ian Potter Museum of Art at the University of Melbourne, former Curator of Contemporary Art at the National Gallery of Victoria and has also held curatorial positions at the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra and Heide Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne. 

Kelly intends to use her time at Jacky Winter Waters to work on a book she is writing for Hardie Grant, about Australian artists and the beach.

“...it rained and rained and then it rained some more. Perfect autumnal rain. The gardens became all mist and damp leave...
29/06/2026

“...it rained and rained and then it rained some more. Perfect autumnal rain. The gardens became all mist and damp leaves and glowing trees, and I half expected a fox in a waistcoat carrying a lantern to wander past at any moment…” ✨🦊

Read Heidi McKinnon’s full acquittal, full of misty weather and tiny garden things, on the Jacky Winter Gardens website now.

📷 Tatanja Ross • Melbourne Photographer

“Arriving at the Jacky Winter Waters contemplative residency I became instantly immersed in what would be a week of memo...
23/06/2026

“Arriving at the Jacky Winter Waters contemplative residency I became instantly immersed in what would be a week of memorable meditative moments in nature. There were views of the ocean from every window and birdsong in every room. I was constantly inspired to create.”

Scroll through to see a beautiful selection of photography, poetry and artwork by our May resident Robyn Cairns, all created during her stay. You can also read Robyn’s full acquittal via the Jacky Winter Waters website.

🪶

Jacky Winter Waters welcomes its June resident, new media and photographic artist Ilona Nelson. 

With over 25 years of ...
16/06/2026

Jacky Winter Waters welcomes its June resident, new media and photographic artist Ilona Nelson. 

With over 25 years of practice, Ilona has exhibited widely, been selected for numerous art prizes, and featured in a range of publications. She is also the curator of Parallel Projects and co-director of The Art Room.

Working primarily across performance, photography, and film, her practice extends into installation and textiles. Her work centres on honesty and truth, and the search for these qualities within the paradoxes of lived life.

During the residency Ilona will be reflecting on what it means to be in practice, in work and life, and how to find your way back to your practice after a hiatus.

Jacky Winter Gardens’ artist-in-residence for June will be Ben Juers! 

Ben is a cartoonist, designer, writer and bookse...
16/06/2026

Jacky Winter Gardens’ artist-in-residence for June will be Ben Juers! 

Ben is a cartoonist, designer, writer and bookseller. He co-runs GLOM PRESS, an award-winning risograph printer and publisher based in Naarm (Melbourne). His work has appeared in Kuš, The Comics Journal, Sydney Review of Books, The Lifted Brow and Overland.

He will be using his time at Jacky Winter Gardens to work on a new graphic novel! ✨🖋️

Address

Belgrave, VIC
3160

Telephone

+61405648917

Website

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