Adelaide Arcade will play host to eight uniquely creative exhibits during the 2025 South Australian Living Artists (SALA) Festival this August, in spaces like the arcade’s historic tea rooms.

From vintage reimagined to light painting, the exhibits celebrate creativity, community, inclusivity, sustainability, and self-expression.

Adelaide Arcade General Manager, Andrew Jonats, says working with traders to bring SALA visions to life is part of the precinct’s ongoing commitment to supporting local makers.

“We have retailers promoting artists with disability and sustainable artistic practice,” says Andrew.  “SALA is such a great fit for a lot of the arcade’s traders and we’re proud to assist in bringing these exhibits to life.”

Presenting a diverse and thought-provoking experience for audiences, the eight exhibitions showcase the artistic talents of South Australian creatives.

The Adelaide Arcade Tea Rooms will host Perspective Pie by Stephnie Robertson from 18-31 August, a striking large-scale installation crafted from 100 per cent recycled plastic. Featuring a giraffe emerging from the underground tea room space, concepts of the lofty, distant creature are reimagined as we meet it eye to eye. It encourages the viewer to
reflect on the importance of perspective, sustainability, and shared responsibility for the environment.
Stephnie, an Adelaide-based visual artist, uses her signature practice of working with recycled soft and single-use plastics to great effect, which are manipulated with heat and hand-formed into bold sculptural
forms.

Bearded Dragon Gallery, in Gay’s Arcade since 2018, showcases South Australian artists living with disability or barrier in exhibit The Intrinsic Passion: Igniting the Heart. Opening 31 July at 6pm, works explore the forces that sets hearts in motion; each piece is a glimpse into the unseen rhythms of the soul. At OmMade Meet the Maker, local light painting artist, Denis Smith, brings his craft back to Adelaide with portraits of makers from the store’s collective. Works in Making Light, from 31 July to 31 August, use the incredible light painting technique – an intensely hands-on
process that reflects the care and intentionality of the makers he photographs.

Denis has spent over a decade mastering the art of creating long-exposure images using handheld lights and custom tools. An opening night on 30 July will give attendees the chance to meet the makers and
see a demonstration of technique from Denis himself. A thoughtful creative exhibit will be Zu Design’s SAcred from 1-31 August, celebrating the connection between South Australian makers and the place they call home. Each piece reflects what inspires their work; from architectural beauty to natural landscape, or deeply personal
stories rooted in South Australia. Dulcie’s Vintage Reimagined will see the titular shop present their finest upcycled fashion pieces throughout August. A—and what we throwaway. This vibrant reminder of how creativity can transform what we wear features sewing machine setups, embroidery demonstrations, and volunteer makers at work. These amazing volunteers, all over 50, have been creating incredible clothing from fabric scraps for the last two years.
Alexandra Lingerie will feature Flaunt It plus-size burlesque costumes; dazzling and bold, as beautiful as those who wear them. I’ve Never Seen the Sky Before runs from 1-24 August, an exhibition of wearable art inviting you to revel in the joy of self-expression, creativity, and the transformative power of costume.

At Pink Shorts Press, artists Helen Bennetts and Cathy Charnock present Yarns — an exhibition of handwoven textiles and baskets created using fibres steeped in history and meaning that will be run from 1-29 August.Blending traditional and contemporary techniques, the artists work withyarns that are bought, inherited, recycled, and foraged, each material carrying its own unique story. Yarns invites audiences to slow down, look closely, and reflect on the textures, narratives, and connections woven through every thread. And visual artist, Tana Lampard, presents a hopeful and empowering exhibition of textile and mixed media work called T’Arts Collective.

Created using natural pigments, paper, and cloth, her one-of-a-kindwearables and wall pieces are symbols of collective strength, resilience, and possibility running from 27 July – 30 August. T’Arts

Collective will also feature a rotating ‘Meet the Artist’  window display, showcasing different works each day based on which artist is in-store. Guided by themes of resilience, renewal, and collective strength,

Tana’s work offers a hopeful vision for the future. Her pieces often take the form of one-of-a-kind wall hangings and wearable art, blurring the line between function and expression. Whether stitched, dyed, painted or printed, her compositions reflect a deep connection to the natural world and a reverence for slow, intentional making.
SALA Festival runs across August.