CLOSING DOWN...‘no viable path forward’! Bungendore Wood Works Gallery
28 March, 2025: An era is ending with the shock news that Bungendore Wood Works Gallery will close in early June 2025. For 40 years, BWWG has been Australia’s premier exhibition venue and retailer of handcrafted furniture and objects in wood. It’s been pivotal in launching and sustaining the careers of hundreds of makers. It’s been the place for seeing and buying fine woodwork in Australia. While Bungendore Wood Works Gallery has been an endeavour of passion and a vocation for its founder and long-time artistic director David Mac Laren, it’s now the end of an age.
David Mac Laren, founder and artistic director of Bungendore Wood Works Gallery
Bungendore Wood Works Gallery has maintained its diverse range and high standards over the years, and even recorded ‘a modest profit’ in recent difficult years has. However, a satisfactory way forward since David Mac Laren’s retirement has not been found.
In its announcement today, the Gallery notes: ‘This decision has not been made lightly. After decades at the helm, Artistic Director and founder David Mac Laren OAM is ready for a well-deserved retirement. While he has explored succession options, sustaining a gallery of this scale has become increasingly challenging in today’s economic climate. Despite our best efforts, we have not found a viable path forward.’
Makers and artists have been notified of the Gallery’s closure in early June. Until then, you still have a chance to visit Australia’s premier gallery for wood at 22 Malbon Street, Bungendore, NSW.