The Brimbank LGBTQIA+ History Exhibition packed up at the end of May, its displays of old photographs, handwritten letters and community banners quietly returned to lenders. On 4 June 2026, it all comes back out for one final day.
The free exhibition, backed by the Australian Queer Archives and mounted under Brimbank City Council’s LGBTQIA+ Action Plan, ran from 10 April to 29 May at the Hunt Club Community & Arts Centre on Ballarat Road, Deer Park. The extra June showing – listed after the Midsumma Westside programme formally ended – gives anyone who missed the run a midweek chance to walk through a history that otherwise sits in cupboards and personal collections.
Material on display spans Victorian-era hidden lives through to contemporary Pride celebrations. The council put out a community call for items in early 2026, asking residents to lend or donate stories, objects and memories of local LGBTQIA+ experience. The result is a collection as local as the suburb itself, mapping a queer presence in Melbourne’s west that archival records rarely centre.
The exhibition first surfaced at an opening night gala on 22 January at Bowery Gallery in St Albans, part of the Midsumma Festival precinct. That event included local performances and formal acknowledgements of history makers before the main display moved to Deer Park in April. Bowery Gallery and the Hunt Club anchor Brimbank’s Midsumma Westside programming, which extends the state’s largest queer arts festival beyond the inner city.
Visitors on 4 June can turn up anytime between 9:30am and 4:30pm. Entry is free and no booking is required. The centre is at 775 Ballarat Road, a short walk from Deer Park station on the Melton line. Ballarat Road buses also stop nearby; drivers should plan for limited on-site parking.
While you’re there, Bowery Gallery in St Albans continues to run exhibitions aligned with the council’s cultural calendar. Brimbank libraries are also running Pride at the Library events through June, with details available on the libraries’ website.
The council’s LGBTQIA+ Action Plan 2024–2028 commits to regular community history projects, and this exhibition is among the first to turn that commitment into a space that residents can walk into. For those who want to see what a local non-metropolitan queer history looks like in 2026, the Hunt Club door opens one more time.
Quick Facts
Brimbank City Council
Local government authority responsible for the City of Brimbank in Melbourne’s western suburbs. It delivers community services, arts and cultural programs, and maintains an LGBTQIA+ Action Plan 2024–2028 to support inclusion and events.
Australian Queer Archives
National organisation preserving and promoting Australia’s LGBTQIA+ history through collections, exhibitions and research support. It partnered with Brimbank City Council to develop the local history exhibition.
Hunt Club Community and Arts Centre
Multi-purpose community venue at 775 Ballarat Road, Deer Park, hosting arts exhibitions, events and programs. It served as the primary location for the Brimbank LGBTQIA+ History Exhibition in 2026.