This year, NAIDOC week is ringing in its 50th anniversary, celebrating five expansive decades of the movement with the theme ‘Fifty Years of Deadly’: A tribute to the people who built this movement and the communities who keep it thriving.
Running from Sunday, July 5 through to Sunday, July 12, NAIDOC week marks an opportunity for Australians to come together and celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Here are just some of the community events across Sydney this week and beyond that we'll be attending.
Tony Albert: Not a Souvenir
Running until October 19 | MCA
Catch the latest exhibition from the formidable Tony Albert (Girramay, Kuku Yalanji and Yidindji peoples). Not a Souvenir brings together Albert’s work across sculpture, photography, installation, painting, and assemblage alongside new commissions. Curated by renowned Indigenous curator Bruce Johnson McLean (Wierdi people), this exhibition sits in dialogue with the MCA’s iconic location amidst The Rocks and its role in both local Australian history and the tourist imagination.
National Indigenous Art Fair 2026
July 3–5 | The Cutaway Barangaroo
Returning for its seventh annual edition, National Indigenous Art Fair invites you to once again experience, shop, and meet First Nations artists. This vibrant two-day market and cultural festival boasts an exciting lineup of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists from some of the most remote communities across Australia. Plus: Live music, dance, weaving circles, bush food tastings, and fashion showcases.
Fifty Years of Deadly
July 4, 12:00–3:00PM | Bondi Pavilion, Garu Courtyard
NAIDOC week returns to the shores of Bondi with a three-hour showcase of established and emerging First Nations artists curated by Awesome Black. An afternoon of live music and DJs celebrating contemporary culture, featuring a lineup of Lemonise, Bow and Arrow, and Stiff Gins.
Burramatta NAIDOC
July 8, 10AM–4PM | Crescent Park
Discover First Nations music, food, dance, and culture at a free outdoor festival in Parramatta Park. Round up the family, pack your picnic rug, and head down to Crescent Park to celebrate the traditions and contemporary culture of Parramatta with the likes of Dean Brady, Stiff Gins, Akala Newman, Uncle Col Hardy, Charlie Needs Braces, Fringe Dwellers, El beauty, DJ Naian, Jannawi Dance Clan & Muggera Cultural Enterprise.
Eora NAIDOC Inner City Family Fun Day
July 9, 10AM–2PM | Carriageworks
A day of celebration, commemoration, and protest organised by the Eora NAIDOC Community Group and hosted at Blacksmith’s Workshop, Carriageworks. Catch traditional and contemporary Aboriginal performances, live music, and Jarjum and youth activities as well as a free community BBQ.
In Conversation with Judi Morison & Zohra Aly
July 28, 12:30–1:30PM | Henry Carmichael Theatre
The iconic author Judi Morison is joined by Zohra Aly for a conversation about the secrets and stories we inherit, in celebration of her latest book Secrets. Described as a powerful family saga about a matriarch with only months to live who garners a decades-old secret, the themes of Judi's novel will be transported off the page in this insightful conversation about family, storytelling, and country.
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