SURVIVOR of the 2003 Canberra firestorm, Niki van Buuren is holding her debut visual art exhibition, “Portal”, at Strathnairn Homestead from July 25. The exhibition will feature a series of mixed media and alcohol ink works and explores themes of nature, spirituality and ancient folklore. Van Buuren is a practising neo-pagan, who says the series is “an exploration of our ancient connection to the world around us; examining what we have lost through the advent of modern Western society and how we can reclaim the forgotten knowledge of our ancestors.”

STRATHNAIRN Arts is also presenting “Studio 19: Works by Strathnairn Arts studio holders”, in the property’s Wool Shed, which is used by 25 professional artists and makers with a diverse range of practices. “Studio 19” is the third biennial exhibition, 90 Stockdill Drive, Holt, July 25 to August 18. The official opening of the shows are 4pm, Saturday, July 27. All welcome.

CMAG curator Rowan Henderson is giving a floor talk about the history of activism the role it’s played in Canberra from the early days of the Federal Capital Territory, through the social upheaval of the 1960s and 1970s, to the fight for marriage equality in more recent times. It’s part of the “Join Activism: Forces for change” show. At Canberra Museum and Gallery, 1pm-2pm, Thursday, July 25. As the national capital, Canberra is uniquely placed as a focus for protest on a local, national and international level. Free event, no booking required.

BELCONNEN Community Gallery Springboard series presents: “For Laos”, a fundraiser exhibition of oil mono-prints and watercolour paintings that depict the people and culture of Laos by Brooke Jarvis. All profits will go toward sponsorship programs to support quality and access of education for children in Laos. Opening celebration at Belconnen Community Centre, Swanson Court, 5.30pm-7.30pm on Wednesday, July 24. The show continues 9am-5pm, Monday–Friday, until August 9.

NANCY Tingey has more than 30 solo and 70 group exhibitions to her credit. She is also the founder of Painting with Parkinson’s, which the Parkinson’s Foundation of the US has judged to be one of the most outstanding contributions to the welfare of people with Parkinson’s. Tingey will give a presentation on her work and an introduction to her book “Magic Happens – Painting with Parkinson’s” at Terroux, a rural property near Hall, 2pm-4pm on Sunday, July 28. Bookings essential to trybooking.com

M16 Artspace has the following new exhibitions; the M16 studio artists present their annual group exhibition of paintings, prints, drawings, jewellery and objects, curated by artist Kerry Shepherdson; the works of Canberra Art Workshop; an eclectic series of works produced by the artists from Hands On Studio during 2018-2019; and in Chute Space, “Immersed in Leaves”, by Aya Zissermann and Rosie Vukovljak. Opening 6pm, Thursday, July 25, all welcome, and then the exhibitions continue at 21 Blaxland Crescent, Griffith, from noon-5pm, Wednesday to Sunday, until August 11.

IN 1987 James Rowell graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Victorian College of the Arts, but got sick of being told that the piece of paper represented only “a bachelor of apathy”. He responded by beginning a series of works about science. “Sciency Paintings” are a variety of works featuring electrical circuits, equipment used in empirical chemistry, biological displays and iron load stones that are used for investigating the properties of electricity. At Canberra Contemporary Art Space, Manuka, opens 6pm, Thursday, July 25, then continues 11am-5pm, Friday-Sunday, until August 4.