National Association for the Visual Arts

What National Association for the Visual Arts does

The National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA) is a Sydney-based, non-profit Company Limited by Guarantee founded in 1983, operating as the national peak body for the Australian visual arts, craft, and design sector. It serves individual visual artists, craft practitioners, designers, arts workers (curators, administrators, producers, installers, conservators), arts organisations, and specific equity-focused segments including First Nations artists and d/Deaf and disabled artists. NAVA operates a tiered membership model through its website visualarts.net.au, offering four tiers: a free account (NAVA Free), Premium (monthly or annual), Premium Plus (annual, bundled with insurance coverage including $20M Public Liability and $5M Professional Indemnity), and Organisation membership (three staff logins). Its core product is the Code of Practice for Visual Arts, Craft and Design (sixth edition, 2022), an industry standard-setting document endorsed by the Federal Government in the National Cultural Policy 'Revive'. The organisation generated revenue through membership fees, tax-deductible donations (as a Deductible Gift Recipient), and grant administration, including the Freedman Foundation International Curator Scholarship.

NAVA delivers value through a portfolio of digital services including the Code of Practice website (code.visualarts.net.au), an Opportunities database, a What's On event-listing platform, Artist Files profiling service, NAVA Grants, and a Digital Membership Card. The underlying technology is a standard web-based platform with third-party integrations for payment processing (Pin Payments), analytics (Google Analytics), and authentication (Facebook Login via OAuth 2.0). NAVA's go-to-market relies on its website, organic social media (Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, LinkedIn), email newsletters, workshops, symposia, and earned media through advocacy campaigns. The organisation operates with 24 employees from a Potts Point postal address, with a 'Quiet Fridays' policy indicating a four-day operational week. Recent strategic activity includes annual updates to Payment Standards, AI-related advocacy for artists' rights, and ongoing partnership with government and legal experts (Terri Jinke and Company, Arts Law Centre of Australia, Accessible Arts NSW) to maintain the Code of Practice's authority as the sector benchmark.

Name

National Association for the Visual Arts

Legal name

National Association for the Visual Arts

Website

https://visualarts.net.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA) is a Sydney-based non-profit peak body founded in 1983 that serves Australian visual artists, craft practitioners, designers, and arts organisations through tiered membership, the government-endorsed Code of Practice, insurance bundles, grants, and policy advocacy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Potts Point

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: NAVA generates revenue through tiered membership subscriptions including Premium Plus (with insurance), Premium, and Organisation memberships, as well as a free tier (NAVA Free). Membership fees provide access to professional resources, insurance coverage, and member benefits.
2. Donations: NAVA accepts tax-deductible donations as a Deductible Gift Recipient under Item 1 of the table in section 30-15 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997. Donations of $2 or more are tax-deductible.
3. Insurance Services: Premium Plus Membership includes insurance coverage with Public and Products Liability ($20,000,000), Professional Indemnity ($5,000,000), Property in physical or legal control ($250,000), and Personal Accident up to $1000 per week.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

NAVA delivers tiered membership subscriptions (Free, Premium, Premium Plus with bundled insurance, and Organisation) that give Australian visual artists, arts workers, and arts organisations access to professional resources, the government-endorsed Code of Practice, a daily-updated grants and opportunities database, event listings, and industry-standard payment rate guidance. Premium Plus uniquely bundles six types of professional insurance (Public/Products Liability, Professional Indemnity, Property, Personal Accident). NAVA also serves as the national peak body, providing advocacy, sector research, and the Code of Practice that sets ethical and payment standards across the Australian visual arts, craft and design sector.

Product overview

NAVA operates as a membership organisation offering a tiered portfolio of products and services for the Australian visual arts, craft and design sector. The core offering consists of four membership tiers (NAVA Free, NAVA Premium, NAVA Premium Plus with insurance, and NAVA Organisation) that provide access to professional resources, guides, the Code of Practice, grant databases, and event/opportunity listings. Central to the portfolio is the Code of Practice for Visual Arts, Craft and Design (sixth edition, 2022) - an endorsed industry standard document covering ethical practices and payment rates. Additional offerings include NAVA Grants, the Artist Files profiling service, the Opportunities database, and What's On event listings. Premium Plus members receive bundled insurance coverage including Public Liability and Professional Indemnity. The products function as a unified professional development and advocacy ecosystem for visual artists, craftspeople, designers, and arts organisations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NAVA Premium Plus Membership

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and supporting.

• Precarious Movements: Choreography and the MuseummajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNAVA partnered with Precarious Movements research project which models best practice in commissioning, curating, conserving, presenting and interpreting choreographic work. Partner organisations include UNSW, National Gallery of Victoria, TATE UK, Art Gallery of NSW, and Monash University Museum of Art.
• Terri Janke and CompanycoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFirst Nations legal experts who advised on the development of the 6th edition of the Code of Practice, particularly regarding Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP) rights.
• Arts Law Centre of AustraliacoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArts law organisation that advised on and created videos for the Code of Practice, particularly on copyright, moral rights, Indigenous and Cultural Intellectual Property topics.
• Accessible Arts NSWcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDisability arts organisation that advised on accessibility and inclusion in the Code of Practice revision, with advocates from the Disability Focus Group.
• RMIT School of ArtsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAcademic institution that participated in consultation for the development of the 6th edition of the Code of Practice.
• Pin PaymentssupportingTechnology or IntegrationThird-party payment service used by NAVA for processing online credit card payments. Pin Payments handles payment encryption and token storage for secure transactions.
• Australian Government (Creative Australia)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNAVA's Code of Practice is endorsed by the Federal Government in the National Cultural Policy 'Revive: a place for every story, a story for every place'. The Australian Government Visual Arts and Craft Strategy logo appears on the NAVA website.
• State Library of NSWsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerNAVA records are held by the State Library of NSW, indicating an archival partnership for historical preservation of the organisation's materials.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Live Performance Australia: Australian peak body for the live performing arts sector. Comparable operating model (membership, advocacy, sector standards) with adjacent but distinct focus on performing rather than visual arts.
• Australian Museums and Galleries Association (AMaGA): National peak body representing Australian museums and galleries. Comparable in operating model (membership, advocacy, sector standards) and intersects with NAVA in arts workforce policy and gallery engagement standards.

Regional players

• Creative New Zealand / Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa: National arts funding and development body for New Zealand. Comparable to NAVA in being the country's peak arts body but operates in a different market with combined government funding and advocacy roles.
• National Association of Visual Artists (US) / NASAD: U.S. body that accredits art and design schools and programs, also engaging with visual arts professional standards. Less of a direct peer in service delivery, but comparable as a sector standards and accreditation body for visual arts.
• a-n (The Artists Information Company): The UK's national artists' membership organization providing advocacy, resources, and professional support. It is the closest international analog to NAVA in mission (visual arts advocacy, payment standards, member resources) but operates in a different geography.
• Visual Arts Network of South Australia (VAN SA): South African regional arts development organization. Comparable in mission (visual arts advocacy and sector support) though operating at a regional rather than national scale in a different market.

Broad incumbents

• Australia Council for the Arts (Creative Australia): The Australian Government's principal arts funding and policy body. It is a key NAVA partner but also a more established, government-funded incumbent with broader scope across all art forms that NAVA cannot match in resources.

Direct peers

• Craft Australia: Australian national advocacy body specifically for the craft sector. Highly comparable to NAVA in mission (peak body, advocacy, member resources) and directly overlapping in the craft-practitioner member segment NAVA serves.
• Regional Arts Australia: Australian peak body supporting arts in regional communities. Comparable in operating model (national peak body, advocacy, membership, professional development) with strong alignment to NAVA's mission on artist sustainability.
• Design Institute of Australia: Australian peak body for design professionals. Comparable to NAVA as a membership-based professional association serving the design sector with advocacy, standards, and member services.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/NAVAvisualarts
• Facebookfacebook.com/NAVA.VisualArt
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/national-association-for-the-visual-arts
• Instagraminstagram.com/nava_visualarts

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about National Association for the Visual Arts