In little more than a month the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) will open Melbourne Now, the largest and most ambitious exhibition in its history – incorporating a line up of more than 300 artists, architects, designers and creative practitioners.

“Melbourne has a dynamic creative identity,” says gallery director Tony Ellwood. “Through several key themes such as the poetics of place, history and memory, independent production, play and participation, visitors to Melbourne Now can explore the complexity of the city’s creativity in a major exhibition over the summer months.

“Although it is still [a month] until the exhibition officially opens, the NGV is fully focused behind-the-scenes as we… prepare for this landmark contemporary art exhibition.”

Melbourne Now will present major new commissions and a range of new works by emerging and established artists. Visual arts projects encompass the broadest range of contemporary art disciplines and practices, from painting, sculpture, drawing, ceramics and contemporary jewellery, to photography, video, sound, performance, installation and online projects.

More than 30 NGV and guest curators have contributed to specific areas such as architecture, design, dance and sound programming, as well as artists who have been invited to respond to the NGV Collection, or to develop dedicated exhibitions within the exhibition.

As well as a diverse exhibition offering, located at the entrance to NGV International will be Community Hall, an architecturally designed space created by the architectural firm McBride Charles Ryan. This highly participatory space will serve as a workshop, stage, platform and catwalk, hosting a rotating programme of more than 600 events throughout Melbourne Now.

For the full list of artists and to view a short film about the exhibition, visit the NGV website.

Melbourne Now will be on display at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia and NGV International from 22 November 2013 – 23 March 2014.