Artist Opportunities

Dorset Visual Arts commits to providing a variety of opportunities for artists to develop new work by collaborating with rural partners, broadening cultural experiences and engagement for community groups and audiences.

Commissions and bursaries provide important support for developing creative practice, enabling artists to try new approaches and ideas along with mentoring, marketing advice and other help to build confidence, inspire different approaches and present new work. Many bursaries blend creative practice support as well as showcase opportunities to help position work in front of new audiences.

Open Calls provide important opportunities for artists to show work alongside other selected artists and to have their work seen by wider audiences.

Keep an eye on our Latest News and Updates and social media for Artist Opportunities as well as our monthly member newsletter

FLOW is the headline commission for Dorset Art Weeks 2026, awarded to Debbie Lee RWA. The commission is supported by DAW headline sponsor Hall & Woodhouse and in partnership with the Countryside Regeneration Trust. FLOW explores and maps the stories of the River Stour, with the work featuring at Venue 38 during Dorset Art Weeks

CONNECTIONS is a project programme with commissioned artist Laura Eldret linking community groups along the North Dorset Railway. Supported by Dorset Council Community and Culture funding, the project outcomes will be shown at the Threshing Barn at Bere Marsh Farm, Shillingstone, in autumn 2026.

In autumn 2025, Droves & Downs awarded bursaries to four artists to explore the hidden stories of Cranborne Chase. The project was delivered in partnership with Cranborne Chase National Landscape and supported by Dorset Council Community and Culture funding. After showing at Shaftesbury Arts Centre in November 2025, the project moved to The Museum of East Dorset in spring 2026, featuring in Dorset Art Weeks (venue 69) and also as part of Wimborne Town of Culture.

Along with b-side, Dorset Visual Arts have offered a Platform Bursary for 2026 to Darcy Miller. The award supports an emerging or established artist based in Dorset who would like to develop and experiment with a change of practice. In partnership with Visual Arts South West, the bursary includes:

£1k artist fee (this can be used on travel, materials or other resources that support your work)
Mentoring from b-side and DVA
VASW Practice in Place Blog
90 minute mentoring session with VASW Director
Free one year membership to DVA – DVA Membership includes: Artist profile page of DVA website, monthly member newsletter, access to exclusive DVA showcase opportunities, development resources, support, networking and more
Potential to create a piece of work to be shown at the 2026 b-side festival

In 2025, DVA ran In Our Nature, Biophilia and The Dorset Open, a major new Open for Dorset in partnership with Dorset Museum & Art Gallery.

All Open Calls invited submissions either exclusively from DVA Members or as part of a wider opportunity for other creatives, all raising quality and ambition of visual arts experiences for audiences in the county.

Residency details will follow later in 2026