Image: Source: Supplied by Midsumma.
Honour lives, remember history, and tour together through the AIDS Memorial Garden at the old Fairfield Hospital. This tranquil space commemorates those affected by HIV/AIDS and the hospital’s legacy, inviting reflection, learning, and connection as community members share their personal stories.
The Garden was born in the 1980s when the Victorian AIDS Council (VAC) and Fairfield Hospital envisioned a respite for patients living with HIV/AIDS and their families. Built by volunteers, donors, and with support from the VAC, Northcote City Council and the hospital, the Garden opened on 22 April 1988. Nestled in native bushland behind the former nurses’ quarters, it offered peace with rockeries, a gazebo, local native flora, and Victorian-style garden seats donated by families who had lost loved ones.
After Fairfield Hospital closed in 1996, the garden fell into disrepair. In 2024, Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE purchased most of the site, partnering with Thorne Harbour Health/Gay Men’s Health Centre to restore it as a place of remembrance and community.
Join a guided tour this Midsumma Festival to walk paths of resilience and witness a living tribute to the souls of our community who met loss with courage. Carry their stories forward, and connect with a moment of queer history that still resonates today.
AIDS Memorial Garden Tour
23 January | 12-4pm
AIDS Memorial Garden – Melbourne Polytechnic College, Fairfield
