Culture, Dorchester, Events & Entertainment | Posted on October 17th, 2025 | return to news

Dorset art competition opens this weekend

The Dorset Open showcases over 100 selected works aiming to capture the essence of the region’s landscape, people, history and culture.

A brand-new art competition exploring Dorset’s landscape, people, history and culture will open for public viewing this weekend.

Visitors to the Dorset Museum & Art Gallery in Dorchester can see over 100 artworks selected for The Dorset Open. The competition is the first collaboration between Dorset Visual Arts and Dorset Museum & Art Gallery, with support from Dorchester Arts, Arts in Hospital and Evolver Magazine.

The Dorset Open provides a new opportunity to showcase the best of the region’s creative talent in a world-class gallery space. There is a total of 11 prize categories to be won, with a top prize of £500. The categories recognise outstanding artistic achievement and celebrate creativity across experience levels, backgrounds, and perspectives.

One of prize categories highlights artworks addressing the Climate and Ecological Emergency, through work that either employs sustainable artistic methods or whose subject matter explores environmental threats or concerns.

Entries were carefully reviewed by a professional judging panel of five experts including curator and gallerist Freeny Yianni, Simon Barber, editor of Evolver Magazine, sculptor Ian Middleton, Arts in Hospital curator Suzy Rushbrook, and Jack Dickson, artist and participant in BBC Extraordinary Portraits.

Paul Newman, creative director of Dorset Visual Arts, said: “We were delighted by the overwhelming interest and the exceptional quality and diversity of submissions for The Dorset Open. The judges dedicated considerable time to their deliberations, ultimately selecting works that showcase the wide range of artistic expression and media employed by artists in their creative interpretations of our beautiful region.

“We’re looking forward to seeing the selected works, installing the exhibition and opening it to visitors who we are sure will be equally inspired.”

Claire Dixon, executive director of Dorset Museum & Art Gallery, added: “It is fantastic to have this opportunity to welcome artists to showcase their work in our world-class exhibition gallery. Working collaboratively with Dorset Visual Arts enables us to benefit from their expertise to bring this exhibition to current and new audiences and celebrate the ways in which our region inspires creativity.”

The Dorset Open exhibition runs from 18 October to 30 November. For details, visit https://www.dorsetmuseum.org/whats-on/the-dorset-open/