MyAspire
Dorset Art by Andy Smith
2026 has already been a busy year but there is more to come!
After my Walford Mill exhibition and participation in Dorset Arts Weeks, the summer has definitely arrived and everywhere you look there are art displays and Open Call exhibitions to be seen. Where better to dodge the extremes of a heatwave than an air conditioned art gallery!
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Coming up soon will be the Sherbourne Open which always has an impressive level of content. I will be entering 3 of my paintings in July. Blandford Open returns this year to the Corn Market and my work will be on show there in August.
Dorset Arts Week
May 2026
Dorset Arts Week is always a fabulous two week event and from this year will be held every year. My friends and I thought it would be worth joining in in order to showcase our five varied art styles - we became the Heath Edge Collective! Despite baking temperatures we were delighted to welcome almost 300 visitors, despite our remote location and the unexpected heatwave that kept many indoors.
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It was a delight to talk to people who were genuinely interested in all our work and we received lots of flattering and encouraging comments!
Walford Mill
April 2026
This year, I found myself back among the dark trees but with a greater understanding of light and a whole new tool-set - Oils! Seeking out scenes that capture that dazzling light with my camera phone I have used vivid, vibrant colours on canvas board or 6mm MDF, setting out to prove that my style has evolved and that I am Not out of the woods yet!
I was in residence at Walford Mill throughout the show and was delighted to talk to the strem of visitors passing through.
Wimborne - Dorset Town of Culture Feb 2026
A one-day exhibition at Allendale House to celebrate the launch a year of cultural events. It was a great evening attended by the Mayor, local businesses and invited guests. My painting Black Lace and Sunlight was one of the works displayed.
Gallery Upstairs
Open
December 2025
Before Christmas, I was delighted to hear that both of the paintings I submitted for consideration were accepted for the Open Exhibition, held at Upton Country Park, Poole. It was a great display with a wide variety of entrants and I was happy to see mine arranged amongst such splendid work.
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Not sure that the timing was right for art sales however as, despite a steady footfall, very few pictures were sold.
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In Our Nature
June 2025
In June, I entered my painting, Sunsplash on the Drovers' Path, for inclusion in the exhibition being staged at Durlston Castle, near Swanage. I was delighted to be accepted by the Dorset Visual Artists' panel. I spent a couple of glorious sessions manning the desk in the Fine Foundation Gallery while the light streamed in and the sea sparkled beneath the summer sun.
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I was even more delighted when I heard that my painting was one of those that had sold!
Walford Mill
April 2025
This exhibition was an invitation to let me lead you from dark beginnings into a promise of light. The path is a journey out of the long shadows and into the explosion of vibrant colours which I have painted for these bold forest and garden landscapes. Bright acrylic paintings which draw you into their embrace and tempt you to follow that trail, climb that stair, round that corner and find that reward.
I was in residence at Walford Mill throughout the show and was delighted to talk to the strem of visitors passing through.
Sherborne Open Call
July 2024
Last year I visited the Sherborne Open Call exhibition for the first time and was very impressed by the standard of work and the quality of the presentation. This year I decided it was worth me entering and I submitted two of my large 600mm x 600mm paintings.
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I was delighted that one of them, Beech Avenue at Badbury, was sold and now has a new home in Maidstone.
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Poole Lighthouse Open Call
April 2024
A friend tipped me off the The Lightouse Art Centre in Poole was holding an open call exhibition. I applied and was very pleased to be selected as one of 50 Dorset artists to be displayed. This was a great pleasure as I was sharing a room with several artists who have helped me in get started on my painting adventure.
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Some beautiful works were exhibited and am happy to say the Autumn on Flood Corner was sold.
Walford Mill April 2024
My 2024 exhibition, On Reflection, took place at Walford Mill in my home town of Wimborne. There has been so much rain in 2024 and our rivers have struggled to stay within their banks. Everwhere I looked there have been flooded fields and massive puddles, reflecting the sky and the trees - hence my chosen theme. During April, I had exclusive use of the Mill's exhibition space in what is a fabulous riverside location. The works on display mostly depicted local scenes aimed to catch the eye of townsfolk visiting the Mill as familiar spots. Over 4 weeks there was a respectable footfall and I am very pleased that 11 of the 18 paintings shown were sold with a commission to re-paint one of them.
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The Mill Craft Centre is a great place to visit at any time of course!
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Hatch Gallery June 2023
My very first Solo exhibition, The Dark Embrace of Trees, was held at Hatch Gallery in Christchurch. The exhibition space was small but beautifully light and airy and owner @Jo Dyson was a great help to me. I managed to get a reasonable footfall despite the space being hidden away upstairs. I was delighted to sell 11 of the 20 paintings I exhibited with two other commissions to provide copies.
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It was an excellent learning experience. The show brought home to me the impact of a collection of similar works, sympathetically displayed and how this attuned viewers so much better than a collection of unconnected images.
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Thank you Jo for the opportunity!
