Richard Lewer paints to make sense of the world. The Melbourne-based artist and 2026 Archibald Prize winner works quickly and instinctively, distilling news headlines, personal memories, overheard conversations and everyday observations into deceptively simple images. In his work, the personal sits beside the political, humour beside grief, and the monumental beside the mundane.

Now, Lewer is turning that attentive eye to our neighbourhood, creating a new work in response to the James St community.

To celebrate the collaboration and the opening of Lewer’s new solo exhibition, Don’t Forget to Breathe at Jan Murphy Gallery, Art on James in partnership with Jan Murphy Gallery will host an intimate evening with the artist on Thursday 29 October.

Begin at 5PM with an after-hours viewing of Lewer’s exhibition at Jan Murphy Gallery. 
From 6:30PM, continue to Harveys Bar + Bistro for dinner with Lewer where he will be joined in conversation with Dr Lisa Slade, Hugh Ramsay Chair of Australian Art History at the University of Melbourne.

Tickets are $175 and can be purchased here.