The Sefton Open 2024
Saturday 23 March 2024 – Saturday 4 May 2024
Monday – Saturday. 10am – 4pm
THE ATKINSON
Lord Street,
Southport
PR8 1DB
By Martin Dawber
The entries are now in for one of the North West’s premier and most historic art exhibitions, which opens in Southport at the end of the month.
Each year the call out for the Sefton Open attracts hundreds of submissions from ever-hopeful local artists all vying for the coveted space on the gallery walls.
Arriving in all shapes and sizes, from giant, wall hugging canvases to postcard size miniatures, knitted recycled rubber installations to life-size, bronze cast bust sculptures, these have now been whittled down by the selection committee and will go on display at The Atkinson Art Gallery on Lord Street in Southport from Saturday 23 March 2024 until Saturday 4 May 2024.
“It’s another record-breaking year for Sefton Open with more artworks submitted than ever before,”reports Stephen Whittle, The Atkinson’s Principal Manager.
“The variety of media on show is really pleasing with lots more photographers, textile artists and printmakers entering their work. We’re very excited to be working with the Palette club to present an exciting exhibition with something for everyone”.
A private view of a Southport Palette Club exhibition in 1981
Monopolising the first floor galleries at The Atkinson, the exhibition is supported by their long standing partner, The Southport Palette Club, which was formed in 1921 by a group of artists, including local landscape painter and Southport School of Art graduate, Percy Lancaster, to further the “professional interests of Southport artists by holding an annual exhibition of their works.”
Many of the Palette Club’s founder members were artists of national repute including Joseph Harold Swanwick, best known for his ploughing scenes and other representations of farming life, and fellow academicians of the Royal Cambrian Academy, Henry Percy Huggill and portrait painter, John Archibald Alexander Berrie.
They were headed by Southport born Club President, Philip Connard, a post he held until his death.
The enduring association between the Palette Club and The Atkinson was cemented at this time when Huggill, then curator of the Gallery, was also appointed the group’s first Chairman.
Increasingly valued as a showcase for local talent resident, working or educated in the region, since 1926 the scope of the exhibition was widened to give amateurs, as well as professionals, the same facilities.
The success of these early displays was demonstrated by the ever-increasing number of visitors to the exhibition each season, which continued to grow in reputation throughout the 1920s and 1930s and soon became established as an annual attraction in the town.
During its formative years the exhibition would display up to 180 works, but has since continued to grow in size, stature and variety. In 1938 ceramic & craft works were exhibited for the first time and in 2001 video was also included. In 2020 the exhibition embraced the digital world and went online.
Unlike other academies and societies, the Palette Club has neither associates nor members and is not really a ‘club’ in the accepted sense: “It is simply an executive committee which meets to organise one annual exhibition.”
Birkdale based professional artist and current Chairman of Southport Palette Club, Peter Owen, reports: “Increased submission to the Southport Palette Club meant a rigorous selection which is reflected in the quality of the work displayed in this year’s exhibition.”
As well as the juried entries selected by the Palette Club, the Sefton Open’s eclectic display also provides a window of opportunity for various art groups based throughout the Borough, including Ainsdale, Birkdale, Formby and Kew, to display artwork from their members.
Lancashire based group, ‘One Step On’ who meet each month at Rufford Village Hall, are delighted they will be showing again this year: “One Step On is excited to be part of 2024’s Sefton Open Exhibition. As a small group, we enjoy working to put forward a range of work, which can be a good representation of the textile art world. It is important to us that we are seen in the context of a range of arts and media, to show how relevant and important our contribution is to the whole panoply of artistic endeavour. We feel that it is a privilege to have a small corner in this amazing space.”
The Atkinson on Lord Street in Southport
The Moor Lane Art Group from Crosby are similarly enthusiastic about being part of this year’s Sefton Open: ”Our art group meet once a week in a relaxed friendly environment. We occasionally invite professional artists to come in and provide workshops to help us improve our skills. Taking part in the Sefton Open exhibition at the Atkinson is a great motivator and makes us feel part of a like minded community.”
Attracting thousands of visitors each year, attendees to the exhibition are also encouraged to vote for their favourite artwork on display. The artwork with the most votes will be awarded ‘The People’s Prize’ which will earn the recipient £100.
The majority of the artworks are available to purchase, ranging from £20 to £15,000, and savvy visitors will be supporting local artists by investing in their work.
This year’s Sefton Open runs until 4th May 2024. Entry is free and the Atkinson is open Monday through Saturday 10am – 4pm.
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