Save the date for Middlesbrough Art Week, the North East’s leading contemporary art festival now in its 9th edition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MIDDLESBROUGH, UK — 30 July 2026
The annual ten-day celebration of contemporary art will feature projects installed in the new Auxiliary building for the first time. Artists exhibiting across MAW26, An Island of Neighbours, include Jeremy Deller, Larry Achiampong, Sky Hopinka, Morag Myerscough, Andy Holden and Catherine Bertola.
Daisy Collingridge, Walking With Clive, 2025. Photo Credit: Robin Zahler.
Middlesbrough Art Week 2026, the North East’s leading contemporary art festival, returns for its ninth edition with an ambitious programme of artist and community exhibitions, performances, workshops, talks, and public interventions happening across the town from September 24th to October 3rd 2026.
This autumn, as the international art world turns its attention to Middlesbrough for the Turner Prize, Middlesbrough Art Week (MAW26) returns with a programme deeply rooted in Middlesbrough's cultural landscape. The festival presents ten days of exhibitions, installations, performances, screenings, talks and public events across the town and, for the first time, in The Auxiliary’s exhibition space, bringing together internationally renowned artists alongside some of the most exciting emerging voices working today.
Presented by The Auxiliary Project Space, MAW26 takes place under the title An Island of Neighbours. The festival explores what it means to be open, connected and actively involved in the cultural life of our places. MAW26 invites people to meet artists, make work, share ideas and discover the remarkable creative communities that exist across Teesside.
MAW26 makes a deliberate commitment to championing regional artists alongside internationally recognised voices. While the programme features leading artists including Jeremy Deller, Larry Achiampong, Sky Hopinka, Morag Myerscough, Andy Holden, Catherine Bertola, Margaret Tait, Saundra Pearl Sharp and Daisy Collingridge, the festival places equal emphasis on supporting artists from across the North East through commissions, exhibitions, open calls, professional development and ambitious public programming. During a moment when Middlesbrough will welcome visitors from across the UK and beyond, MAW26 ensures the spotlight also falls on the artists, organisations and communities that have shaped the town's cultural identity over the past decade.
MAW26 continues its long-standing commitment to championing artists from the North East and creating meaningful opportunities for emerging and regional practitioners. Across more than ten venues, audiences will encounter new commissions, artist film, painting, sculpture, installation, publishing, family activities and large-scale public artworks throughout the town centre.
A major addition for 2026 is Little Boro, a temporary creative village built from shipping containers in the heart of Middlesbrough. Acting as the social centre of the festival, Little Boro will house artist studios, exhibitions, independent publishers, workshops, talks, family activities and live events, creating an accessible space where audiences can meet artists, make work and spend time throughout the ten-day programme.
Continuing one of Middlesbrough Art Week's defining programmes, the Northern Open Call Exhibition (NEOC) returns with a new cohort of artists selected from an open submission process spanning the North of England. Designed to provide meaningful professional opportunities for emerging and early-career artists, NEOC has become one of the region's leading platforms for discovering new contemporary practice. This year's exhibition features new work by Catherine Bertola, Izzie Beirne, Mia Wilkinson, Susan Loughlin and Rachel Deakin, and will be exhibited in the refurbished Auxiliary gallery after £1.3million investment from DCMS and TVCA, creating a dialogue between established practitioners and the next generation of artists working across installation, sculpture, painting and expanded media.
Recognising the renewed energy surrounding contemporary painting in the region, MAW26 presents a major exhibition dedicated to painting across the North East. Bringing together established and emerging practitioners, the exhibition celebrates the diversity of painting being produced across the region today while challenging outdated perceptions of what painting can be. Selected by leading North East painters Deb Covell, Bobby Benjamin, Errol Theunissen, Sarah Cooney and Katie Thomlinson, the exhibition offers a timely snapshot of one of the country's most vibrant painting communities.
Middlesbrough Art Week 2025 Closing Party. Photo credit: Rachel Deakin.
As day turns to night, Middlesbrough Art Week partners with Industrial Coast to present a series of internationally recognised electronic and experimental music events, extending the festival beyond the gallery and into the town's nightlife. The programme features performances from Headless Horseman, Phase Fatale, Ancient Methods, Broken English Club and Wes Baggaley, bringing some of the most influential names in contemporary industrial, techno and experimental electronic music to Teesside. Closing the festival, Headless Horseman headlines a special collaboration between Industrial Coast and Middlesbrough Art Week at The Auxiliary Project Space, transforming the venue into a celebration of sound, performance and collective experience. Next door, a unit becomes home to a series of immersive audio-visual installations and performances by Daisy Dickinson, E-Da Kazuhisa, Akihide Monna and Koichi Yamanoha, extending the festival into the surrounding industrial landscape.
Alongside these major strands, audiences can experience artist film screenings, family programming through Summat for the Bairns, the Artists & Practice Symposium, and exhibitions presented in partnership with organisations including Platform A, Cleveland Art Society, MIMA and the Dorman Museum. The festival is further enriched by a programme of talks, workshops, performances and community-led events taking place across Middlesbrough throughout the ten days.
Liam Slevin Artistic Director said:
"An Island of Neighbours is about recognising that culture is something we build together, from the ground up. At a time when division, hostility and the rise of the far right are becoming increasingly visible, creating spaces where people from all backgrounds can come together feels more important than ever. For ten days, artists, residents, visitors and organisations will share ideas, challenge perspectives and celebrate creativity. These collective experiences remind us that our differences are something to explore, not fear, and that the places we share are made stronger when we participate in them together."
Jane Tarr, Director North East, Arts Council England said:
“Middlesbrough Art Week 2026 is a key event in the cultural calendar and it’s really exciting that this year’s edition will include installations in the new Auxiliary building for the first time. It’s also great to see local artists included in the programme alongside internationally recognised names. I’m sure that the event will inspire the local community and attract visitors from outside the area to come and experience the thriving creative scene in Middlesbrough.”
Edel O’Reilly Executive Director said
“Middlesbrough Art Week arrives at a defining moment for the area. Middlesbrough's place on the City of Culture longlist, The Turner Prize, and the incredible work happening across the town all point to a place with real cultural confidence. The festival exists to celebrate that momentum while investing in the artists and creative communities that make it possible.”
Full artist lineup:
Akihide Monna / Alex Culshaw / Alia Gargum / Ancient Methods / Andy Holden / Annabel McCourt / Anne Colvin / Anonymous Artist Association / Bobby Benjamin / Bog Heartsease / Broken English Club / Catherine Bertola / Charlie Murphy / Chloe Stevenson / Chris Dobrowlowski / Claire Ong / Cody Sowerby / Daisy Collingridge / Daisy Dickinson / Daniel Carey / Deb Covell / E-da Kazuhisa / Eleanor Jones / Erin Dickson / Errol Theunissen / Eva Ginvalde / Foundation Press / Garth Gratrix / Georgia D'Silva / Gordon Dalton / Grimm Grimm / Headless Horseman / Izzie Beirne / Jeremy Deller / John Ayscough / Julian Micallef / Junior Durrani / Ka Bird / Kate / Kathryn Lunt / Katie Schwab / Katie Tomlinson / Kerry Ann Chappell / Kerry Baldry / Kitty McKay / Larry Achiampong / Lauren Godfrey / Leoni Dingwall / Liaqat Rasul / Liberty Hodes / Liz Wilson / Lucy Joyce / Luke Beech / Margaret Tait / Matthew Roche / Mia Wilkinson / Morag Myerscough / Nel Hume / Phase Fatale / Phil Gatenby / Rachel Clerke / Rachel Deakin / Sandra Lahire / Sarah Cooney / Saundra Pearl Sharp / Sawdust / Sidequest / Sky Hopinka / Sum Place / Susan Loughlin / Wes Baggaley / Zainab Aboharoon / Whippet it Up / Zilan Kuzu
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For Media Information contact: Studio Nicola Jeffs
Siobhan Scott | ss@nicolajeffs.com | +447530791284
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Media assets: Photos and logos available hereMiddlesbrough Art Week was born in 2017 as an artist-led festival powered by The Auxiliary Project Space, a growing team of artists, curators and coordinators, and fuelled by wide reaching partnerships. MAW supports artist ecologies in the North East, connecting artistic practice and ideas with like-minded peers nationally and internationally, and is committed to practise, and not just, preach principles of fair work and social justice.
The Auxiliary Project Space is an artist-led, National Portfolio Organisation based in Middlesbrough that emphasises artistic development, large scale exhibitions, cultural development strategies and community participation. While the organisation is active across middlesbrough and teesside, its home is an 14,000sq ft warehouse, currently under capital development supported by the DCMS Cultural Development Fund and Middlesbrough Development Corporation. In addition to the provision of artists studios, workshops, events and gallery spaces for local and international artists, The Auxiliary is the creative engine powering two further cultural festivals each year; Sonic Arts Week and Middlesbrough Art Week. A founding member of the Middlesbrough Cultural Partnership and an advocate for the visual arts and festival sector, The Auxiliary has been instrumental in transforming the region’s industrial landscape into a hub for artistic and cultural innovation.
Website: https://middlesbroughartweek.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/middlesbroughartweek/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/middlesbroughartweek/
Liam Slevin
Liam Slevin is a creative instigator, sound artist, and artistic director. He is interested in artist communities and ecologies, DIY/T cultures, and building physical and digital spaces for culture and artists to thrive. Alongside Anna Byrne, he co-founded The Auxiliary Project Space C.I.C. (2016) and Middlesbrough Art Week (2017). In addition to devising and managing the artistic programs for both, he has co-led The Auxiliary Project Space through a period of rapid growth, becoming a National Portfolio Organisation in 2023 and undergoing a £1.6 million redevelopment with funding secured from DCMS and TVCA.
He also founded and co-directs Sonic Arts Week, represents visual artists on the Creative Place Advisor Group for TVCA, is a founding member of Middlesbrough Cultural Partnership, as well as an active member of Tees Valley Festival Network.
Edel O Reilly
Edel O'Reilly is an Irish curator and organiser and is Executive Director for The Auxiliary and Middlesbrough Art Week. Informed by a background in artist-led initiatives and collaborative production models, she has worked across Ireland, the UK and Europe. In Belfast, she worked as a co-director at Catalyst Arts and was an associate member of Array Studios. Following post-graduate studies at the Dutch Art Institute, she worked as Curator of Exhibitions at Aalto University, Finland focusing on the strategic development of the university's exhibition activities. She has previously worked within the exhibition, gallery and project teams at Belfast Exposed Photography, Frieze Projects London, Temple Bar Gallery + Studios, Dublin, Boers-Li Gallery, Beijing.
Programme Collaborators:
Penny Payne
Penelope Payne is a North East-based artist working across sculpture, site-specific installation and performance. Her practice explores overlooked histories of women's labour, drawing on materials including salt, tar, cloth and glass to create poetic works rooted in place and memory. A graduate of Newcastle University Fine Art, she has exhibited at MIMA, Collateral Venice, Cheeseburn Sculpture Garden and The Factory, Iceland. Payne has curated the Northern Open Call for Middlesbrough Art Week since 2023.
Holly Willats
Holly Willats is an independent curator, writer and researcher based on the North York Moors. She runs the project, Art Licks (2010-ongoing) which has encompassed festivals, a long-standing magazine, exhibitions and most recently, artist residencies. Holly likes to work with artists on projects that promote DIY culture and community building. Holly has worked freelance for arts organisations such as Invisible Dust, Delfina Foundation, MIMA, and Artquest.
Stella Hall
Stella Hall FRSA is a freelance festival producer, curator and cultural strategist with over four decades of experience leading major arts programmes across the UK. She has held senior roles including Director of Warwick Arts Centre, Festival Director of Preston Guild 2012, Creative Director at NewcastleGateshead Initiative and co-founder of the award-winning Festival of Thrift. Hall is recognised nationally for her work in place-based cultural programming, sustainability and community-led creative practice, and continues to mentor artists and cultural leaders across the sector.
Kypros Kyprianou
Kypros Kyprianou is an artist, researcher and educator whose interdisciplinary practice explores systems of knowledge, language, ecology and technology through installation, moving image, publishing and collaborative research. Working across contemporary art, architecture and design, he develops projects that investigate how people relate to environments, infrastructures and one another. Alongside his artistic practice, Kyprianou has taught extensively in higher education and has exhibited and developed projects internationally through artist-led, institutional and research contexts.
Anne Colvin
Anne Colvin is an artist working across film, installation, painting and poetry. Her practice explores memory, ecology, deep listening and liminal space, creating poetic works that combine moving image, material experimentation and sound. Recent exhibitions include LÁ Art Museum, Iceland; Mills Art Museum, California; C.A.R. Media Art Fair, Germany; and solo exhibitions in Cornwall, Dundee and Glasgow. Her work has also been presented at SFMoMA, MASS MoCA, BALTIC, GoMA Glasgow and Berkeley Art Museum.
Industrial Coast
Founded by Steve Kirby in 2018, Industrial Coast is a Teesside-based artist collective, independent record label and producer of experimental music, contemporary art and interdisciplinary events. Under Kirby's direction, the organisation has become a nationally recognised force in underground culture, presenting internationally acclaimed artists alongside emerging regional talent in unconventional spaces. Rooted in a DIY ethos and Teesside's industrial identity, Industrial Coast champions ambitious, artist-led practice while helping establish Middlesbrough as one of the UK's most exciting centres for experimental culture.
MOTHEROTHER
MOTHEROTHER is an inclusive network for artists with parenting and caregiving responsibilities. Founded in 2023 by artist Sue Loughlin, MOTHEROTHER began as a two-year research, curatorial and social practice project aiming to activate change within the North East regional cultural ecosystems for those with caring roles. Supporting parents and carers via social gatherings, artist networking events, exhibitions and direct artist support, MOTHEROTHER has evolved best practice methodologies in order to increase the capacity and profile of artist parents and carers. MOTHEROTHER was shortlisted for and highly commended by the 2025 Creative Health and Wellbeing ‘Practicing Well Award’.https://www.motherother.org/
Funders:
About Arts Council England
Arts Council England is the national development agency for creativity and culture. Between 2023 and 2026 we will have invested over £467 million of public money from Government, alongside an estimated £250 million each year from The National Lottery, to support individual practitioners, arts organisations, museums and libraries, and to help ensure that people in every part of the country have access to culture and creativity in the places where they live. Visit our website to learn more about our work.
The Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation
Inaugurated in May 1985, the Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation (UK Charity No. 290766) focuses on enhancing mutual knowledge, collaboration, and appreciation between the UK and Japan. Financed by an initial endowment from the Japan Shipbuilding Industry Foundation (now The Nippon Foundation), the Foundation is a purely grant-giving organization. It supports reciprocal educational exchanges, exhibitions, and research in several core areas: Arts & Culture, Humanities & Social Issues, Japanese Language, Medicine & Health, Science, Technology & Environment, Sport, and Youth & Education.