Horsham exhibition for The Association of Sussex Artists

More than 300 paintings, drawings and items of sculpture and pottery will be on display at the free-to-visit event, all of them available to buy.

Visitors will also be able to chat with the artists about the works on show, none of which have been exhibited in Horsham before.

ASA chairman Tim Wheeler said: “We are so excited to be returning to the Drill Hall for the first time since summer 2019.

“The Covid pandemic meant there was no way we could hold an exhibition in 2020 so there’s a real buzz amongst our members and a real desire to make this year’s event a spectacular comeback for us.

“We are also very excited that leading local estate and lettings agents Brock Taylor are sponsoring our Fine Art Awards again this year, and giving us other valuable support and publicity”, adds Tim.

“As well as prizewinners being selected by an independent panel of judges, there will be two People’s Choice awards, decided by visitors’ votes.”

With Covid rules now eased enough to make the exhibition viable, Tim and his team are confident that visitors will feel safe and comfortable.

“The Drill Hall is a particularly spacious and airy venue,” says Tim.

“But we will nevertheless be taking appropriate precautions and keeping an eye on overall admission numbers each day.

“Sadly the event’s usual private view, an invitation-only evening just before public opening, has been suspended this year.

“It’s always a very busy couple of hours, so it just didn’t make sense to run it this year. Instead we have invited regular supporters to spread their visits out through the course of the week.”

ASA patron Lady Emma Barnard, of Parham House, added: “This year’s exhibition, the 108th since the ASA was first established in 1928, will be all the more joyful for the fact that it was not able to take place last year.

“Indeed, there has only been one other interruption in the Association’s history, and that was during the Second World War.

“It is so good to think that, with a fair wind, those times may be behind us, and it means much to be able stand in the Drill Hall once again, surrounded by beautiful works of art.”

The Association of Sussex Artists’ annual exhibition, showcasing the work of more than 70 individual artists, will be held in the Drill Hall, Denne Road, Horsham, RH12 1JF from August 13 to 21.

The exhibition will be open 10.30am to 5pm daily, except for Saturday, August 21 when the doors will close at 3.30pm.

Entry is free.

For more details of the Association of Sussex Artists and its work, see its website at www.associationofsussexartists.co.uk or find it on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AssociationofSussexArtists.