For the first time in two years Sydney Contemporary is back, and the city is buzzing with anticipation. In the spirit of vernissage, this issue invites discussion around several exhibitions and projects that bookend the art fair. We glimpse Natalya Hughes’ These Girls of the Studio, the artist’s second exhibition with the gallery following her major solo show at Brisbane’s Institute of Modern Art, The Interior. Painter Yvette Coppersmith leads us into her enchanting world of dance, music and art history ahead of her Sullivan+Strumpf debut, Presage. Tony Albert talks public art, creativity and Country, and we have an intimate conversation with Karen Black about the subtleties of her painting process. Plus Dawn Ng, Lara Merrett’s collaboration with Romance Was Born and Maria Fernanda Cardoso.