The Westward Ho and Bideford Art Society is widely known and respected, with historic links to the Burton Art Gallery & Museum in Bideford, North Devon.

The Annual Open Exhibition is the most important event and showpiece for the Society, with more than 300 selected works by Members, Associate Members and others on display. This year also celebrates the Society’s centenary year.

Organised as a fundraising event by the Friends of The Burton, the Annual Open exhibition offers an opportunity for local artists, both amateur and professional, to exhibit alongside each other.

An annual open submission exhibition for University of Nottingham staff and members of the public with a connection to the University.

An annual event held in the Lady Bay district of Nottingham in which members of the community open their homes to the public as temporary exhibition venues. Artists and makers from across Nottinghamshire are selected and invited to display their work in these unconventional spaces.

The event attracts visitors from far afield and provides an excellent opportunity for a diverse range of people to engage with artworks, take part in artist-led workshops, and build community ties.

For this year’s festival, I was involved in a project titled ‘Contemplations’, curated by Paul Liptrot, in which a group of artists were selected to exhibit together. The work was exhibited in the central space of a church, and was curated to reflect the exhibition title’s theme of thoughtfulness, stillness and meditation.

Lady Bay Arts Festival

‘Strata 1’ was an exhibition of five artists, all of us both members of Fishergate Point Studios and Loughborough University fine art graduates.

We were further linked by a shared passion for act of painting; our contrasting styles displaying the incredible flexibility of paint as medium.

A common theme underpinned the exhibition, with all of our work sharing an exploration of the ‘unseen’ and the ephemeral, both in the environment and in the human condition.

The opening night featured a set from Nottingham's burgeoning ambient-rock trio Eyre Llew, nominated for two UMA Music awards.

An annual open submission exhibition for University of Nottingham staff and members of the public with a connection to the University.

Djanogly Prize Winner - ‘Old Line’, Philip Clarke, 2017, pencil on paper

An annual event held in the Lady Bay district of Nottingham in which members of the community open their homes to the public as temporary exhibition venues. Artists and makers from across Nottinghamshire are selected and invited to display their work in these unconventional spaces.

The event attracts visitors from far afield and provides an excellent opportunity for a diverse range of people to engage with artworks, take part in artist-led workshops, and build community ties.

Lady Bay Arts Festival

A exhibition curated by the members of Bohunk Studios (now Fishergate Point Studios). This was an opportunity for all our studio holders to come together and showcase their recent work.

In an environment where we are often working in isolation hidden from public view, this exhibition was an opportunity for both visitors and ourselves, to gain an insight into the broad range of arts and crafts being practiced at the studios.

The opening night featured a set from Nottingham's burgeoning ambient-rock trio Eyre Llew, nominated for two UMA Music awards.

This was the second exhibition by the 'Fresh Meat Collective'; a group set up by myself and fellow Loughborough University fine art graduates. This show was curated by 'Fresh Meat' member Andrew Allen, who conceived of the idea to stage an exhibition at The Byron; a disused, 1930's Art Deco cinema in Hucknall, Nottingham.

Alongside the collective members, artists chosen from a process of open submissions were also invited to exhibit. The intention was to include a variety of artists from diverse backgrounds at different points in their careers, with work including painting, installation, sculpture and film. The exhibition intentionally interacted with the unusual interior of the cinema, breaking away from a traditional gallery setting and allowing the artists to engage with the unconventional space.

Within the exhibition there was also a programme of artists' talks, live music, and a selection of films displayed on the cinema screen.

The Sunday Times Watercolour Competition is an annual exhibition of contemporary watercolour painting, open to submissions from all artists working in the medium. After two rounds of judging I was lucky enough to have my piece selected for the exhibition at the Mall Galleries in London.