Drive still strong as Worthing’s Colonnade House marks ten years

Worthing’s Colonnade House celebrates ten years of operation at the heart of Worthing this autumn.

And yes, there is satisfaction. But there is also a sense of unfinished business, says manager Richard Manders – and that's what keeps driving it forward.

“Everything is always about pushing forward to whatever is next, to whatever art projects we want to do, but it is good to take the time to recognise what we have here and what we have achieved since 2016 and also within the wider network. I think to celebrate together is really important, and it's a good excuse for a party!

“It was initially between Worthing Borough Council and Adur and Worthing Trust, and the idea was to turn this 1800s building into a creative hub. They identified that there was not a secure local space for artists in a public-facing gallery and so this was the plan.

“The building has had lots of uses over the years. It's a really old building. Supposedly Jane Austen visited it in her time. And it has been patched and mended a lot but maybe our beautiful staircase has lasted from that time – though partially the building was rebuilt in the 1930s.”

But it has now found its place in the town as a creative pulse of Worthing – a place for artists, makers, designers and innovators to collaborate and connect.

On the ground floor there are two gallery spaces, and on the upper three floors are ten studios available to rent to people working in the creative industries. Exhibitions change regularly so there’s always something new to see. You can also come and chat to the artists about their inspirations and processes, and you might even catch them making some new work.

Colonnade House also hosts networking events, talks and workshops for local creatives to connect, share skills and be inspired.

And it’s all in a good place as it celebrates ten years.

“I started in 2016 as the assistant and I have stayed here ever since. Across that first September, we were still bringing things together as well as opening the space. The studio space upstairs opened first.

“Because we are a community-facing creative space, we were going out to established spaces and introducing ourselves – not as competition but as a space that other organisations could use. We built on the studio spaces upstairs and then we were putting on gallery shows. Quite quickly it became every week that we were putting on exhibitions. There are amazing artists and amazing exhibitions, and as soon as they found that this was their space, they were wanting to be here. What I love about it now is that everyone belongs as much as anyone else, and it is all these amazing groups and people that come together that make this space come alive.”

The venue has survived the pandemic and it has also survived a van crashing into the building, plus the funding model has changed: “If you ask anyone in an arts project whether it is plain sailing, they will tell you that of course it isn’t but we continue and we sail on.

“We have taken the lease on the shop space next door, and we will turn that into a workshop space. We're getting in people right now and the work is beginning. We are hoping for October that the majority of the work can be done and that it could be open before the end of the year with a particular focus on youth art.”

And so they look to the future: “There is a feeling that we are not finished yet, and that's what I love about the place. There is a feeling that we're always looking for the next collaboration and the next thing we want to do and the next thing that we want to work on. There's a sense of what is not appearing in town and how we can platform it. And so we go on.”