Alexander Boynes has curated a fabulous selection of works for Straight Outta Canberra, which will be on show at May Space, in Sydney, until April 14.

"It was once said the best thing to come out of Canberra was the Hume Highway," he says, "yet in the space of a decade the national capital has gone from being a place where residents said 'Don't tell anyone I'm from Canberra' to now saying 'Don't tell anyone ABOUT Canberra'."

He believes this is due to the city finally developing a personality, independent of what happens up at Parliament House, and the recognition of the rich cultural sector bubbling below the surface.

"Once upon a time the rite of passage for ANU School of Art graduates was to leave Canberra as soon as possible in order to 'make it'," he says.

"The irony is that internationally recognised artists who have called Canberra home - including Alison Alder, Vivienne Binns, Robert Boynes, eX de Medici, Rosalie Gascoigne, Richard Larter, Mandy Martin, Jorg Schmeisser, Ruth Waller - in part made it because they stayed."

Following in these footsteps, Straight Outta Canberra presents a group of ambitious emerging artists who have realised the benefits of an easygoing city that is host to every national institution under the sun. Artists include Tom Buckland, Tony Curran, Sanne Koelemij, Julian Laffan, Cat Mueller, Dionisia Salas, Rebecca Selleck and Rosalind Lemoh.

At May Space, 409b George St, Waterloo. Open Tuesday-Saturday 10am-5pm.

We've got five double passes to the Young at Heart film festival to give away. Dedicated to seniors, the festival boasts an excellent range of films from On Chesil Beach, starring Saoirse Ronan and Bill Hoyle, based on Ian McEwan's acclaimed novel of the same name, and LBJ, starring Woody Harrelson as Lyndon B. Johnson.

Throw in a few foreign films including Return to Montauk, which was nominated for Best Film at the Berlin International Film Festival, and a specially curated retrospective on Leading Ladies, where audiences can re-live the greats on the big screen from Bette Davis in All About Eve, Judy Garland in A Star Is Born and Dame Maggie Smith in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie.

At Palace Electric Cinema from April 2-11. To win one of five passes, email arts.editor@canberratimes.com.au and tell us how many Academy Awards Saoirse Ronan has been nominated for and for which films. Competition closes COB Monday, March 26.

Craft ACT's two newest exhibitions "smash preconceived ideas about craft, mosaics and nature-based residencies," says artistic director Rachael Coghlan.

Transitions features the work of Helen Bodycomb, Pamela Irving, Rachel Bremner, Caitlin Hughes and Kate Butler and explores mosaic as a vehicle for complex artistic expression and conceptual investigation using traditional methods and experimental techniques. In the last two decades there has been a resurgence of the ancient craft of mosaics both internationally and in Australia, with numerous Australian practitioners gaining international recognition. Despite the current surge in contemporary mosaics in Australia it is a little known phenomena. This exhibition seeks to address this imbalance.

Functional Shadows is a solo exhibition by Marilou Chagnaud and narrates a journey between two places: a research period at the Australian War Memorial followed by a residence at Gudgenby Ready-Cut Cottage in the Namadgi National Park. Craft ACT's 2017 artist‐in-residence, Chagnaud presents a new body of work exploring forms, objects and perception dealing with concepts developed during the Second World War around the techniques of camouflage.

At Craft ACT: Craft and Design Centre, London Circuit, until May 5.

Paper, Scissors, Rock is a collection of works on paper by Julie Bradley which draw on the rich layers of meaning and symbolism associated with stones. Within different cultures, stones have been used to represent permanence and strength, to celebrate and memorialise as well as to mark births and deaths, express love and hate. They are also respected for their practical uses, to both build up and to break down.

Using the techniques of stencilling, collage and drawing, Bradley creates works on paper which investigate the idea of connectedness and express aspects of an emotional landscape and states of being. The narrative plays a central role in Bradley's practice, with images acting as a vehicle for her personal story and life experiences.

Paper, Scissors, Rock runs until April 8 at ANCA, Rosevear Place, Dickson.