The Sefton Open 2026
In collaboration with Southport Palette Club
28 March – 30 May 2026
Guest Blog by Martin Dawber
Gearing up for its centennial exhibition, the Southport Palette Club is one of the oldest surviving art societies in the region.
An annual fixture and fitting in Southport’s lively art scene, although the Palette Club was established in 1921, because of the intervention of World War II, 2026 will mark the centenary of its much anticipated Sefton Open Exhibition at The Atkinson.
Celebrating the creativity and artistic talent across the borough, the Sefton Open takes over The Atkinson’s art gallery in an eclectic salon-style hang and features a wide variety of works from individual artists and local groups. Each year the Sefton Open attracts thousands of visitors to The Atkinson.
It has always been a juried exhibition. Priding itself on the diversity of the submitted artwork, each artist’s entry is judged entirely on its own merits.
Established by local landscape painter and Southport School of Art graduate, Percy Lancaster RI, ARE, RBA (1878-1951), 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 RI ROI RCamA (1866-1929) best-known for his ploughing scenes and other representations of farming life, and fellow academicians of the Royal Cambrian Academy, Henry Percy Huggill ARE, RCamA (1886-1957) and portrait painter, John Archibald Alexander Berrie (1887–1962).
They were headed by Southport born Club President, Philip Connard, CVO, RA, RWS (24 March 1875 – 8 December 1958), a post he held until his death.
The enduring association between the Palette Club and The Atkinson was cemented at this time when H.P. Hugill ARE, ARCA, then curator of the Gallery, was appointed the group’s first Chairman.
During the early years the exhibition would display up to 180 works but has 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 also embraced the digital world and went online for the first time.
Photo by Martin Dawber
Birkdale based professional artist and current Chairman of Southport Palette Club, Peter Owen, reports: “The Southport Palette Club’s annual exhibition continues its proud tradition of showcasing outstanding painting and this year is no exception. Alongside this strong foundation, there has been a notable increase in submissions across printmaking and three-dimensional work, with particularly impressive ceramic pieces featured.
The selected works highlight both the diversity and the exceptional quality of creative practice taking place across Sefton, offering audiences a vibrant and compelling snapshot of the local arts scene”.
Other than its Council, the Palette Club has no other members and holds no meetings: “It is simply an executive committee which meets to organise one annual exhibition.”
The Council of nine is self-perpetuating. When a member resigns, moves away or dies, the Committee nominates a new member.
Every year the call out attracts hundreds of submissions from ever-hopeful artists all vying for the coveted space on The Atkinson’s gallery walls.
Although early exhibitions contained less than 200 works, with a number of artists contributing more than 20 paintings each, inevitable changes have taken place with each new show.
Increasingly valued as a showcase for local talent resident, working or educated in Sefton or the Liverpool City Region, since 1926 the scope of the exhibition has 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.
Over the years, the escalating popularity of the event saw the hanging space expand into other galleries in The Atkinson but necessitated each artist being rationed to entering a maximum of three works for pre-selection by the Committee.
When The Atkinson was out of bounds in early the 2010s while the Southport Cultural Centre was being developed, the Club moved briefly to Bootle Town Hall and Greenbank High School in Hillside.
Returning to The Atkinson in 2014, since 2015 the juried exhibition now forms part of the all-embracing Sefton Open which also provides a window for assorted art groups based throughout the borough including Ainsdale, Birkdale, Formby and Kew.
Although The Atkinson lost some of its previous gallery space when the museum artefacts from their home in the Botanic Gardens were transferred to Lord Street, by 2022 the Palette Club was fully occupying three galleries displaying in excess of 500 works of art.
“It’s another amazing year for The Sefton Open with 699 artworks on show, and for the first time every piece is for sale,” reports Jemma Tynan, The Atkinson’s Exhibitions and Learning Officer. “There is something for everyone as local artists have entered a wide variety of media and themes, including ceramic, print, textile and photographic work alongside oil, acrylic and watercolour paintings. We’re proud to be working with the Southport Palette club to present their centenary exhibition and celebrate reaching such a historic milestone”.
All of the artworks are available to purchase, ranging from £25 to £3,000 and savvy visitors will be supporting local artists by investing in their work. 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.
This year’s Sefton Open runs 28th March – 30th May 2026. Entry is free and the Atkinson is open Monday through Saturday 10.00am – 4.00pm.
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