A year in a subsidised studio in North Sydney, at $45 a week or free, for artists who live in Sydney
If you live in Sydney and need a studio for 2027, North Sydney Council has room for up to 11 artists across three sites. Applications close at 10am on Monday 9 November 2026.
Two of the residencies are fully subsidised: one at the Coal Loader in Waverton, and a First Nations residency at Alfred Street.
Primrose Park and the Coal Loader in Waverton start on 2 February 2027, for 12 months. Alfred Street in Milsons Point starts on 2 March 2027, for 11 months. Start dates can't be moved.
Rent at Alfred Street and Primrose Park is $45 a week, paid quarterly. Every studio, including the free ones, has a $200 refundable deposit for the keys (a key bond). Applying is free.
Residents get paid opportunities to share their work with the community and a structured professional development programme funded by the Council. There are also paid exhibition opportunities with Art Atrium 48, an independent gallery in Milsons Point.
The First Nations residency is for First Nations artists or artist collectives. It includes cultural support from Cammeraygal Elder Auntie Jeanie Moran and mentoring through the year. The Cammeraygal People are the Traditional Custodians of North Sydney.
The Coal Loader residency, on a heritage-listed former industrial site, is for socially engaged, interdisciplinary work with a focus on ecological and sustainable practice. It suits collectives and artist educators, and public programmes at its Artisan Markets are an expected part of it.
Check the space against your practice. Alfred Street is on one level and wheelchair accessible, Primrose Park is open plan and suited to visual artists, and the Coal Loader studio has no sink and is partly open to the weather. Loud equipment, toxic materials and processes that need extraction fans aren't allowed.
- ·Aged 18 or over and living in Sydney. Artists who live in or are closely connected to North Sydney, or whose project is locally based, are especially encouraged.
- ·Individuals, collectives or joint applicants. One person applies and signs for the group.
- ·All art forms are welcome, as long as your practice suits the space.
- ·You can't apply if you were a resident at Primrose Park, the Coal Loader or Alfred Street in the last two years (2025 and 2026). No retail, commercial production or business run from the studio.
- ·If you're selected, you'll need a current New South Wales Working With Children Check and $20 million public liability insurance. You also deliver at least one public programme during the year.