The Australian National University's main gallery displays specials exhibitions and items from the ANU's art collection. On permanent display is the collection's highlight: the nine large luminous painted panels that comprise Riverbend, where Sidney Nolan’s famous stylised Ned Kelly is hidden within the muted pinks, greens and browns of the Australian bush.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Canberra attractions

1. National Film & Sound Archive

0.48 MILES

Set in a delightful art-deco building (look for the stained-glass platypus in the foyer dome), this archive preserves Australian moving-picture and sound…

2. Canberra Museum & Art Gallery

0.49 MILES

This local museum is worth it for the Sidney Nolan paintings alone – 141 works, including canvases from his Ned Kelly series and Burke and Wills…

3. Glebe Park

0.75 MILES

This spacious green park is filled with leafy elm trees that turn a lovely golden yellow in autumn. There's a playground for kids and lots of paved paths…

4. Black Mountain

0.84 MILES

On the western side of the city, the forested slopes of Black Mountain (812m) provide some easily accessible bushland perfect for bushwalking and mountain…

5. Australian National Botanic Gardens

0.86 MILES

On the lower slopes of Black Mountain, these sprawling gardens showcase Australian floral diversity over 35 hectares of cultivated garden and 50 hectares…

6. National Capital Exhibition

1.05 MILES

This small but fascinating museum tells the story of how Canberra came to be Australia's capital. Displays include reproductions of the drawings entered…

7. Nerang Pool

1.05 MILES

This lovely pool is a serene spot in Commonwealth Park, with an abundance of bird life and some beautiful landscaped gardens.

8. Captain Cook Memorial Water Jet

1.11 MILES

Built in 1970 to mark the bicentenary of British explorer James Cook's landfall, this memorial near Regatta Point consists of a 6-tonne column of water…