Blender Artist Market
A Friday night art market run out of the studios that came up with Melbourne's street art movement, now relocated to Docklands.
About this market
The Blender Artist Market trades on Friday nights at The District in Docklands, 5pm to 9pm, run by the artist studios that grew out of Melbourne's street art movement in the early 2000s. Both the market and the studios have moved from the city to Docklands, which gave the artists more room and put the market on a waterfront precinct rather than in a laneway.
Art, a bar and open studios
The stall list runs to art, homewares and jewellery, with live music through the evening, a fully licensed bar and food trucks nearby. What distinguishes it from a straightforward night market is the open studios: Blender Studios sits alongside the stalls and you can walk through it during market hours and watch artists working, which is not something a market can normally offer. Entry is free. A Friday evening slot means it functions as the start of a night out rather than a shopping trip, and the four hour window is short enough that arriving after eight leaves very little.
Market at a glance
The market runs through summer rather than year round, which suits an outdoor Friday evening on the Docklands waterfront and is worth confirming before travelling in the colder months. That seasonal pattern also concentrates it: a market that runs a limited run of Fridays gets a different crowd from one that turns up every week regardless, and the stallholder list stays tighter as a result.
The market is named after the studios that run it, and those studios have a specific place in Melbourne's art history. Blender Studios began as an artist workspace during the street art movement of the early 2000s, the period that turned Melbourne's laneways into an internationally known open-air gallery. The studios have since relocated their headquarters to Docklands, taking the market with them, and the open-studio component means the market is still attached to a working art space rather than being a set of stalls with an art theme.
Before you go
Friday nights, 5pm to 9pm, through summer. Docklands is on the free tram zone and The District is a short walk from Southern Cross station, which is the sensible way in. Bring a card. There is a licensed bar on site and food trucks nearby, so this works as an evening rather than an errand, and the four hour window rewards arriving at the front of it. Docklands is exposed and the wind comes off the water, so a jacket is worth having even in February. This is Wurundjeri and Bunurong country.
Frequently Asked Questions
- When is the Blender Artist Market on?
- Friday nights from 5pm to 9pm, at The District in Docklands, running through summer.
- What will I find there?
- Art, homewares and jewellery from the stallholders, plus live music, open studios you can walk through, a fully licensed bar and food trucks nearby.
- How much does it cost to get in?
- Entry is free.