The Foundations – Portland, Harrie Fasher Studio and Arts OutWest teamed up at the National Art School (NAS) Master of Fine Art (MFA) preview event of The Postgrad Show 2025. Martin and Monica O’Connell, Rich and Kellie Evans, Martin John Oldfield and Nic Mason experienced the work curated across the campus and talked with MFA Alumni at this celebratory exhibition. It is clear; in selecting a 2025 recipient of The Foundations Squatter’s Residency Award, the team cannot go wrong as the work of this cohort is of an exceptional standard. This task will not be easy.
MFA students from NAS welcomed family and friends, collectors, gallerists and Art Industry VIPs into their artist studios and NAS galleries for this Preview event of the NAS Postgrad Show on Wednesday 5 November 2025. The Postgrad Show is open to the public for the period 7-16 November 2025 in the NAS Gallery, Rayner Hof Project Space and Building 25 Project Space along with artist’s studio spaces. It celebrates the evolution and maturation of works by the 2025 MFA cohort produced with a multi-disciplinary approach across the studio traditions of ceramics, drawing, painting, photomedia, printmaking and sculpture.
Previous recipients of The Foundations Squatter’s Residency Award have included Quan Zhu Ma (2024), Alison Smith (2023), Mei Zhao (2022), Sadhbha Cockburn (2022) and TC Overson (2021) who each took up residencies at The Squatter’s Cottage in the following year with TC continuing at The Foundations to coordinate the Squatter’s Residency program and more until 2024.
Images N Mason, 1. Liss Finney, Carry me into gentle ruin, 2. Rich and Kellie Evans, Monica and Martin O’Connell and Martin John Oldfield discussing works, 3. Vicki Potter’s studio space, 4. Alice Martin’s studio space, 5. Cailyn Forrest’s work, 6. Sadie Whelan’s work spilling to the outside, 7. Aldi Difinubun’s work, 8. Fergus Berney-Gibson addressing the NAS Post Grad Show fellow Master of Art graduates and attendees, 9. Jen Lennon’s studio space, 10. Buster Allanson’s studio space, 11. Ellen McCalmont’s work, 12. Martin John Oldfield, Rich and Kellie Evans, Martin and Monica O’Connell and Nic Mason, 13. Luna Gui’s studio space, 14. National Arts School
Links:
Arts OutWest website – The Squatter’s Residency
The Squatters Residency – Arts OutWest
Quan Zhu Ma at The Squatter’s Residency – 2024 recipient of The Foundations Squatter’s Residency Prize to a NAS Masters alumni
Quan Zhu Ma at The Squatter’s Residency, The Foundations, Portland – Arts OutWest
National Art School website – The Postgrad Show 2025
The Postgrad Show 2025 – National Art School
National Art School Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/nas_au/
The Foundations website
Squatters – Artist in Residence – The Foundations Portland NSW
The Foundations Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/thefoundationsportland/
