St Kilda Esplanade Market
An open-air artists' gallery by the sea since 1970, where an Academy Award-winning animator once sold hand-painted t-shirts for five years.
About this market
St Kilda Esplanade Market opened in December 1970 under the name "The Art Bank," created as a cheaper alternative to a traditional gallery exhibition for local artists and sculptors. Around twenty artists, including James Egan and Ruth Epps, took part in that first market. More than fifty years later, it's still running every Sunday along the same stretch of the Esplanade.
Melbourne's open-air gallery by the sea
The founding rule has never changed: every stallholder has a hand in making what they sell. Today that means more than 90 artists and craftspeople, working across painting, pottery, leatherwork and jewellery, set up within sight of Port Phillip Bay. It's less a shopping trip than a rotating outdoor exhibition that happens to let you buy the work.
Market at a glance
The market has quietly launched a few real careers over the decades. It's a genuinely low-pressure place for an artist to test whether their work sells before committing to a gallery or studio, which is part of why it's kept its handmade-only reputation for over fifty years.
Academy Award-winning animator Adam Elliot, director of the Oscar-winning short Harvie Krumpet, sold hand-painted t-shirts at St Kilda Esplanade Market for five years before his film career took off.
Good to know before you go
It's Sunday-only, so there's no midweek option if a visit needs to fit around a specific day. Being right on the Esplanade, it pairs naturally with a walk along St Kilda Beach either side of browsing the stalls.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What day is St Kilda Esplanade Market on?
- Sunday only, 10am to 5pm.
- Is everything handmade?
- Yes, that's the founding rule. Every stallholder has a hand in making what they sell, which is why it's often described as an open-air gallery rather than a general market.
- How did it start?
- It opened in December 1970 as 'The Art Bank', an exhibition space for local artists and sculptors who found traditional gallery exhibitions too expensive. About twenty artists took part in the first market.