Exciting opportunity for artists to help celebrate Chichester Districts past and present
Local artists are being invited to create new art exploring Chichester Districts past and present as part of an upcoming Culture Spark community art exhibition.
The commissions will be funded and co-ordinated as part of the Culture Spark programme, a Chichester District Council initiative established in 2021 in partnership with Chichester Festival Theatre and Pallant House Gallery.
Individual artists, artistic partnerships, collectives and artists working with community organisations are invited to create artwork inspired by a selection of artefacts from The Novium Museum and Fishbourne Roman Palace. Artists will be able to apply for one of five £750 commissions.
Invited artists are required to live within the Chichester District area, with the aim to celebrate the rich history of the local area through a range of art forms and mediums.
The selected artefacts have been chosen to represent three themes: Impression, Colours and Animals. Artefacts include an iron horseshoe designed to be tied on to the horses foot rather than nailed, fragments of ceramic jars with hundreds of fingerprints, and a thousand flowers glass made with rods of coloured glass associated with burial.
On 12 October 2026 at 10am, interested artists and partnerships are invited to Fishbourne Roman Palace for an open viewing of artefacts with the curator of Sussex Past.
People should confirm their interest and whether they will be attending by emailing culturespark2022@gmail.com
For those unable to attend but who wish to make to a proposal, there will be a list of objects and a synopsis of the stories available that can be obtained by emailing the above address.
Artists are asked to provide proposals for their commission in the Deep Time and The Floating Palette commission by emailing a CV and examples of their previous work to culturespark2022@gmail.com by 9 November 2026.
The completed works will be displayed in the Curation building at Fishbourne Roman Palace and The Guildhall, Priory Park as part of the Chichesters Creative Spark Festival in Spring 2027.
Councillor Adrian Moss, Leader of Chichester District Council, says, I am delighted that the Culture Spark programme is once again calling on the incredibly talented artists in our district to celebrate the heritage and present-day character of the local area.
The successful commissions will be a creative way to explore how local organisations such as The Novium Museum and Fishbourne Roman Palace continue to keep the history of our district alive, and I am looking forward to seeing how these fascinating artefacts will be translated into contemporary pieces of art through a range of artistic mediums.
I hope that as many interested artists or partnerships as possible explore this exciting opportunity to contribute to a project that connects the district's heritage with artistic creativity.
If you would like further detail about the commission or would like to apply, please email Culture Spark atculturespark2022@gmail.com.