QUEANBEYAN West Rotary Club has combined with the Art Society Queanbeyan to present the largest amount of prize money, with a first prize of $1500, for an art competition/exhibition by the Art Society in recent times. The huge exhibition of more than 150 works (all for sale with 20 per cent of the further proceeds going to Rotary) is on at the Art Society Queanbeyan Gallery until the end of August.

THE Embassy of Japan in collaboration with the University of Canberra Design Gallery have just opened “Kumamoto Artpolis: Contemporary Japanese Architecture”, a fascinating show that looks at the dialogue between Japanese buildings and communication.
The exhibition runs until August 30 at the Design Gallery, Level A, Building 7 in the Faculty of Design and Creative Practice.

TUGGERANONG residents are getting snap happy as entries for the Smile Photography Competition opened nationally through 62 Centro shopping centres.
Launched in 2006, it is a national photography competition aimed at encouraging local communities to come together and share their magic moments, says Tuggeranong Hyperdome marketing manager Grant Jolley.
First prize for the national winner is $10,000, plus the winner of the Best Local Photo prize at each centre will win a digital camera and photo printer.
Pick up an entry form at Tuggeranong Hyperdome or enter on-line at http://www.smilephotos.com.au. Entries close 3pm August 29.

THERE’S big buzz in Sydney and Melbourne with two very different shows beating a path to huge ticket sales success.
Recently opened in Melbourne is “Wicked” (the untold story of the Wicked Witches in “Oz”) which sold $1 million of tickets on its opening. Meanwhile, in Sydney Cirque Du Soleil is also making waves and getting glowing reviews for “Dralion” which will touch down in Canberra for performances October 23 to November 9.

OVER at the Drill Hall Gallery in City West the exhibition “Recovering Lives” has just opened.
It explores the means by which forgotten or hidden lives can be recovered through unusual archival sources and through creative practices such as visual art, film making and performance.
Artists included in the exhibition are Julie Dowling, Janenne Eaton, Janet Laurence and Dadang Christanto.  It runs until September 21.