A wild debut: Hayden Rees brings 15 first-time wildlife images to Creswick’s ART on ALBERT
A new photographic exhibition at ART on ALBERT Gallery in Creswick is turning quiet country streets into a destination for art and nature lovers, as local talent Hayden Rees unveils 15 wildlife images never before shown to the public.
The special show at 86 Albert Street marks a significant moment for Rees, who has chosen the volunteer-run, not-for-profit gallery as the venue to present his wildlife photography for the first time. According to details circulating around the opening, the collection features 15 carefully selected images that capture Australian fauna in candid, dramatic and often intimate moments — from birds in flight to mammals in their natural habitat.
The timing of the exhibition aligns with ART on ALBERT’s mission to provide a dedicated space for local and regional artists in an area where exhibition opportunities have historically been limited. By dedicating a full show to wildlife imagery, Rees adds a contemporary, nature-focused thread to the gallery’s rotating program of paintings, prints, ceramics, textiles and mixed-media works.
In a coup for the regional gallery, Melbourne’s most famous photographer, Lord Murray Schoorman, accepted a special invitation from Hayden Rees and attended on Sunday 20 September 2026 to browse the collection. Lord Schoorman, the Melbourne-based owner of Peak Hour Images, a long-standing member of the Melbourne Press Club and the National Press Club of Australia, and a well-known celebrity and red-carpet photographer, is a high-profile figure in Victoria’s media and entertainment scene.
His presence in Creswick underlined the growing profile of ART on ALBERT and signalled broader recognition for Rees’ wildlife work within Melbourne’s professional photography community. For local visitors, seeing a photographer of Schoorman’s stature take time to engage with a regional exhibition added an extra layer of excitement to the opening weekend. Speaking exclusively to this masthead, Lord Schoorman said “It is with great pleasure I am here today, I’m thrilled to be supporting my dear friend Hayden, who is undoubtably a very talented individual indeed. Look at these beautiful captures of our Australian wildlife, doing what they do best – not much, just chilling!”
Creswick itself provides a fitting backdrop for an exhibition that blends art, nature and community. Lying just north of Ballarat in Victoria’s Central Highlands, the town grew up during the 1850s gold rushes and retains a strong sense of its goldfields heritage in its streetscapes, historic buildings and local stories.
In recent years, Creswick has also cultivated a reputation as a creative hub within the Goldfields region. ART on ALBERT, which reopened as a volunteer-run gallery after a period of uncertainty, has become a focal point for that energy, offering artists from Creswick and surrounding districts a place to display and sell original work. With opening hours from Thursday to Monday, 10am to 4pm, the gallery at 86 Albert Street has quickly established itself as a must-visit stop for residents and tourists exploring the area’s art, history and natural surroundings.
For Hayden Rees, the show represents more than a personal milestone; it is a statement about the power of wildlife photography to connect people with the natural world, especially in a regional setting where such encounters are part of everyday life. For ART on ALBERT, hosting a dedicated wildlife exhibition broadens the gallery’s artistic range and reinforces its role as a platform for diverse local voices.
And for Creswick, the arrival of a photographer of Lord Murray Schoorman’s calibre, drawn by invitation to a small-town gallery, speaks to the town’s growing cultural confidence and its ability to attract attention well beyond the goldfields.
ART on ALBERT Gallery is located at 86 Albert Street, Creswick, and is open Thursday to Monday, 10am–4pm.
