WASTE 2 ART | Western Plains Cultural Centre

APPLICATIONS
OPEN

Our Annual Waste 2 Art community art exhibition invites schools, community groups and individuals to transform rubbish into art and design, in this innovative competition.

The purpose of Waste 2 Art is to encourage everyone to reduce, reuse & recycle, and change our attitudes about the things we throw away. This year's focus theme is Shrink Your Footprint. All artworks this year must fit inside a shoebox. They should not be made from the shoebox itself, rather they should be made from any material you choose as part of the theme.

Applications open

12 February - 3 April

Artwork drop off:

20-24 April, 10am to 4pm

Exhibition open:

2 May - 9 August 2026

Official Opening:

9 May 2026

Category Winners: $200

APPLY NOW

SCHOOL CATEGORIES

Primary School

Any student, class or group in Primary School from Kinder to Year 6.

2 Dimensional - Poster/Painting/Collage /Drawing
3 Dimensional – Sculpture/Installation
Functional – Furniture/craftworks/wearable objects made from recycled materials

Secondary School

This is High School from Year 7 to Year 12 entries.

2 Dimensional - Poster/Painting/Collage /Drawing
3 Dimensional – Sculpture/Installation
Functional – Furniture/craftworks/wearable objects made from recycled materials

Any student can make their art at home, they just need to select Primary or Secondary.

Contact our Education Officer Rebecca.Walker@dubbo.nsw.gov.au today and book your school into a Waste 2 Art workshop!

EDUCATION PACK

THINGS TO CONSIDER

Watch the below video from NetWaste's Bill Tink to get some ideas about this year's theme!

While entries don’t always need to fit the theme, we encourage you to use this theme to build awareness and educate on the sustainability within this area.

Watch the video above on things to consider when creating your artwork!

This year there is a size limit for all entries. The size limit will allow transportation of winners from local competitions to the Regional Showcase in Broken Hill, so all entries must fit inside of a shoebox. The artworks don’t need to be made from a shoebox itself, rather made from any material you choose as part of the theme. The final artwork must then fit inside the shoebox. All entries must include set up directions of your work

COMMUNITY CATEGORIES

Community

This category is open to anyone who is not a previous winner or professional artist, this category allows anyone to enter knowing they are not competing with professional artists or previous winners.