Exhibiting nearly 150 works by over 120 artists, Petersfield Museum and Art Gallery’s South Downs Open (22 October 2024-1 February 2025) is a spectacular way to celebrate the beauty of the South Downs. Visitors will be able to enjoy paintings, drawings, prints, photography, sculpture, textiles and ceramics that draw inspiration from across the South Downs region, from Old Winchester Hill in Hampshire to Beachy Head, in East Sussex.
South Downs Open has been selected from an open call to artists. Petersfield Museum and Art Gallery was delighted to receive hundreds of submissions, which reflects the inspiration the South Downs has for so many.
South Downs Open is a selling exhibition and a chance to acquire high-quality, affordable art from artists across the region.*
"It has been a great pleasure curating an exhibition with my fellow judges that showcases the incredible creative talent in Hampshire, Sussex and beyond."
Louise Weller, Head of Collections and Exhibition
The South Downs are a range of chalk hills spanning the counties of Hampshire, West Sussex, and East Sussex. Renowned for its rolling landscapes, chalk cliffs and diverse wildlife, this area is characterised by a mix of farmland, ancient woodlands, heathland and grassland, as well as historic towns and villages. The region is also well-known for its archaeological sites, including ancient hill forts and remnants of Roman and medieval settlements.
I was so impressed by the breadth of work, from watercolour to woodcut and the woven to the whittled; they all in different ways voiced a strong message about landscape, nature and the beauty of the South Downs.
Alison Crowther: Artist
Few landscapes have spoken so potently to generations to transpose their inspirational and spiritual qualities into art. As Robert Macfarlane wrote, when thinking about the work of British artist Eric Ravilious, ‘this was the terrain – with its combination of human workedness and extreme age – that shaped his temperament and his sensibility.’
The selecting panel included Alison Crowther, a contemporary sculptor working in English oak based in the South Downs, Tiffany Francis–Baker, a Hampshire author and illustrator and Louise Weller, Head of Collections and Exhibitions at Petersfield Museum and Art Gallery.
It was such a pleasure to be on the panel for the South Downs Open. Faced with the difficult task of choosing between so many outstanding pieces, I am confident the forthcoming exhibition will sparkle with a diverse range of extraordinary talents from across this beautiful corner of England.
Tiffany Francis–Baker: Author
*Please note artworks purchased from South Downs Open will not be available for collection until after the exhibition concludes in February 2025.