First ticketed event at art gallery in 12 years hailed a success

The Lisa Gorman and Mirka Mora exhibition, To breathe with the rhythm of the heart, attracted more than 3000 paid visitations.

Cr Debbie Arnott said attendance figures at the gallery between November and January were up 20 per cent on the previous year.

"It's the first ticketed admission event held at the art gallery in 12 years," she said.

More than 200 copies of the exhibition catalogue were also sold.

"I think this is really encouraging. It's a great result and it just is a small step in the right direction of perhaps bigger and better things for the future of Warrnambool and gives us something to aspire to further," Cr Arnott said.

The city council has adopted plans for a $52.5 million revamp of the art gallery on the current site, but progressing the project is reliant on external funding.

The exhibition - which features the work of Warrnambool-born designer and visual artist Lisa Gorman and iconic artist Mirka Mora - made its world premiere at the city's art gallery in November and is set to close on Sunday, March 17.

The exhibition was backed by the state government's Regional Events Fund.

Born in Warrnambool, Gorman is known for her vibrant and collaborative designs for one of Australia's most recognisable fashion labels, Gorman, which she founded in 1999 before departing in 2021.

The gallery was not the only facility lauded by the councillors at the March public meeting.

Cr Vicki Jellie said the city's library was also going "great guns" with attendance at its 684 program sessions up 27 per cent.

A "huge" 19,567 people turned up, she said.

"It just shows that our wonderful learning and library centre is continuing to give," Cr Jellie said.

"We're still celebrating it and it proves what a great facility it is."