A special feature of every year for the Art Gallery of Western Australia is its celebration and promotion of youth excellence. The most promising art students from Western Australian secondary schools are exhibited in the Year 12 Perspectives exhibition (the photograph to the left was taken during the Year 12 Perspectives 1995), which includes an extensive programme of workshops, floor talks, teaching resource packs and professional development days.

With a sponsorship from IFAC, the exhibition is poised to change its focus, shifting from regional to the national. Just as the exhibition has inspired and celebrated the young artists of Western Australia (for example, see the image below "Everyone is Forensic" by Jensen Tjhung, oil on canvas, 3 parts), so it will embrace the work of other young people throughout Australia, the Indian Ocean Rim and eventually the Asia Pacific region.

To encourage cross-cultural exchange and awareness, an annual scholarship has been established, with exceptional young artists competing for the opportunity to study in Japan. These initiatives will foster the building of bridges between cultures and future channels of exchange as well as providing young artists of exceptional talent a platform upon which to develop.