Our Fellows at the Melbourne Art Fair 2026

The ISS Institute is proud to see three George Alexander Foundation Fellows presenting work at the 2026 Melbourne Art Fair. Across the Fair, including within FUTUREOBJEKT and Mars Gallery, their practices demonstrate how deep material research and specialised skills translate into contemporary design and artistic innovation.

Jordan Fleming (2025 George Alexander Foundation Fellow)

Presented within FUTUREOBJEKT, Jordan Fleming’s lighting and mirror works reflect her deeply responsive, material-led practice.

With a background in cabinet making and interior design, Jordan founded her studio in 2018. Rooted in traditional furniture-making yet boldly experimental, she allows materials to guide each piece, treating them as collaborators rather than passive mediums. The resulting works transcend function. Lighting becomes sculptural encounters and expressive presences that invite intimacy and interaction within the spaces they inhabit.

At the Fair, Jordan also joined Conversations in Design – From Creativity to Capital: Scaling Practice in a Global Economy, contributing to the discussion around how designers navigate structural challenges, from manufacturing and logistics to financing and global engagement, whilst maintaining integrity and ambition.

Ella Saddington (2022 George Alexander Foundation Fellow)

Also presented within FUTUREOBJEKT, Ella Saddington (Cordon Salon) continues the trajectory of her 2022 Fellowship research into medieval and early modern European armour-making.

Drawing on traditional metalworking processes and cold-forming techniques, her recent lighting works recontextualise historically protective materials within contemporary design. Strength and delicacy sit in balance, as material history is reshaped into refined, sculptural forms.

Meagan Streader (2025 George Alexander Foundation Fellow)

Melbourne-based artist Meagan Streader presented her works with MARS Gallery. Her multidisciplinary practice explores how light shapes space and human experience. Working across sculpture and installation, Meagan examines the emotional and social resonance of architecture, revealing how light, history and time converge within the environments we inhabit.

By subtly altering perception, her work invites viewers to reconsider their spatial relationships and the invisible forces that shape memory and meaning.

Together, these Fellows exemplify the impact of international research and specialised skills development within Australia’s contemporary art and design landscape. Their presentations at Melbourne Art Fair highlight the value of investing in material knowledge, experimentation and global exchange. Congratulations to the Fellows for their incredible work and dedication!