For details about this coach trip to Watts Gallery Arists' Village on 1st October 2026 please go to the  Visits section on this site.

The Arts Society Southampton successfully nominated Blue Apple Theatre company for a £300 drama grant donated by Hampshire and Isle and Wight Area Arts Society. The Hampshire-based theatre group runs performances by people who have a learning disability. The grant went towards tee shirts emblazoned with the group’s logo - as modelled in the photo. The company’s next performance is Treasure Island at the Theatre Royal, Winchester, on June 10th.

Our Southampton society matched the Area donation with £150.00 grants to two drama groups as suggested by members/visitors: The Geriactors whose performers are all over 65 towards microphones and, at the other end of the age scale, Southampton-based Gantry Youth Theatre were the other recipients.

Members and friends of the Society one again enjoyed a delicious three-course lunch at the East Avenue Restaurant,  Eastleigh College School of Hospitality and Catering. The meal was prepared and served by the students. This event is an annual favourite.

Photos can be viewed on our Facebook page.

A group of 16 enjoyed a visit to Petworth House on October 1 2025 . For the first time in 20 years, a specially curated selection of JMW Turner’s artistic studies of Petworth are being  exhibited in the very place that inspired him. These rarely seen works give a fascinating insight into Turner’s methods. The exhibition  includes oil paintings and works on paper on loan from The Tate Gallery and several private lenders.

Julie Penfold, visits secretary commented, "We visited the Turner's Vision at Petworth special exhibition to mark his 250th anniversary. Beautiful paintings, particularly the watercolours. We had an introductory talk in the main house which put the paintings in context and explained Turner's connection with Petworth. We were also able to view some of the rooms in the house which are used by the family and not usually open to the public. We enjoyed the grounds as well and the spectacular autumn colours.".

Visit to Whitchurch Silk Mill

Wednesday 25th June 2025 

Another successful trip enjoyed by 22 members and friends who were treated to a guided tour which included a history of the mill and seeing some of the machines in action,followedby an excellent lunch and free time to explore the Riches to Ribbons exhibition. 

More photos can be found on Facebook: search The Arts Society Southampton

Before this month's talk, The Society's AGM will be held at 7pm and all are invited. Documents appertaining to this, including a summary of the year's activities and the annual accounts, can be found by clicking on Our Society/Documents. A  Power Point show of highlights from the Society's year will be followed at 7.15 by a presentation to the three winners of this year's GCSE art student awards as chosen by our May audience.

Printed copies of the Society's art talks for the 2025-26 season will be available at the June talk and all the following monthly lectures, as well as at various distribution points later in the year.

Members and visitors are requested to pick up a few copies for friends, and neighbours and if possible to distribute to book groups, art and film clubs, U3A meetings etc to help spead the word.

You can view the 2025-26 programme by clicking on Documents  in the Our Society tab.

This event is now full but if interested please add your name to the waiting list via Ticket Source booking logo on the home page; this will take your contact details in case of cancellations.

. The theme for the day is New York and our speaker, Mary Alexander, will take us on a journey through time to explore the people, ideas and fortunes that created the great art collections, buildings and visual environment of the city. She will reflect on how the constantly changing city sees and re-imagines itself. 

The event on Friday April 11th is being held in Thornden Hall's Conference Room and the cost of £37.00 includes a buffet lunch to make the day more of a social occasion.

For more information, click on the Whats On button, then the Special Events  button

To book, go to the homepage and click on the TicketSource logo.

Queries to Ticketsourcesouthampton@gmail.com

Gail Alexander

Special Interest  Day Organiser

The Arts Society Southampton has a Facebook page created by member Kerry Brotherwood. She'll post news and updates not just about TASS events but other art-related happenings and events being run by  Arts Societies in the area.

Check it out here and hopefully give us a like 😊

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572924567310

And...If you have any news or would like to share an event you think others might be interested in please let us know via info@theartssocietysouthampton.org.uk

It was a beautiful sunny day when18 Society members and friends enjoyed a visit to the Russell Cotes Museum in Bournemouth on Wednesday, 20th November. The sunshine seemed to enhance the stained glass in the house. The group had an exclusive behind the scenes tour led by very enthusiastic and knowledgeable guides and were able to explore the family's private rooms and servants' quarters. After lunch in the museum café they were free to wander through the house to admire the vast collection of paintings and other objects.  Juliet Penfold, visits organiser, said that  "The Christmas decorations added to the festive atmosphere". Click on the Gallery to see more photos 

25 members and visitors joined in a visit with provate tours to Salisbury Museum and Arundells, the home of the late PM Edward Heath.

See the photo gallery for more images.

Further visits are planned and wil be announced at the Monday talks, via email and on this site.

Our Society was again pleased to award gift vouchers of £50 each to three budding artists studying GCSE art at Thornden School. The winners were chosen by members and visitors to May's lecture from a shortlist compiled by Lisa Willis, Head of Art and co-ordinated by committee member Gail Alexander. 

The presentation was made at the last lecture of the season by Peter Ellinger, Treasurer of the committee, and all the winners were warmly applauded.

This project was devised both to thank Thornden Hall staff for their support to the Society in its move to their site this year, and also as part of an ongoing programme to support arts in the community - your Society is hoping to develop more projects in this area, but we need members' suggestions and support for this to happen. 

Photographs can be seen in the Gallery sction of the website.

Gail Alexander

Please click on Visits tab for more information.

All proceeds from this visit wil go towards Southampton City Art Gallery.

The Southampton Art Society has also agreed to donate, on your behalf, £250 towards the cost of a new frame for the Phillips de Koninck painting in the image.

We look forward to talking to the Conservation Department on our visit to the City Art Gallery on 24th May.

Marsh Awards 2020

Every year the Marsh Christian Trust recognises some of the outstanding contributions made by volunteers of The Arts Society in the field of heritage conservation and arts education.

This year our society was highly recommended.

The Arts Society Southampton is an exemplary Society that lives and breathes the values of the organisation, whilst developing pragmatic solutions to challenges and opportunities for its Members and non-Members.

Their most recent initiative was a project to support the Southampton City Art Gallery, who had been invited to have a pop up gallery at the London Art Fair. The Society committee agreed to provide stewards for the Gallery at the Fair, for six days, 10am-9pm. Not only did they draw on existing Members, they successfully invited new Members to join just to be part of this project. One Member created a resource pack for the other volunteers, giving information about each painting on display. During the Fair, an average of three volunteers is on hand to tell visitors about the Gallery, displays - and The Arts Society.

On the daily commute from Southampton to London (the costs are covered by the Society, as the Gallery could not afford this), Committee members agreed that they would do a Dementia Trail next: showing their versatility to give help where it is needed. The welcome at the pop up gallery, the ideas coming from the Committee members ("why not have a lecture on the art of computer games, followed by one on a traditional subject") and generosity of the Society (under 25s go free) all demonstrate that this Society is pushing in the right direction.

The Arts Society Southampton supported Southampton City Art Gallery at the Contemporary Art Fair in London.  January 2020.

 Each year the London Art Fair showcases a regional art gallery and this year Southampton City Art Gallery was chosen.  27 works of art were selected to highlight the Gallery’s collection of 20th century British art.  The exhibition ran for 6 days in January, 11am-9pm. As the Gallery staff were not able to cover this extensive period, the Arts Society offered to provide information volunteers to be on hand for the duration & to give some guided tours to interested groups.

 Charlotte Scott-Beveridge researched the information required for each label accompanying the art work and Jenny Leonard did additional background research on the artists involved and produced a folder for each volunteer. We held 2 briefing sessions for potential volunteers at the Gallery beforehand with Clare Mitchell, the Curator, and Jenny Leonard giving presentations.

 We had a team of 16 volunteers plus Charlotte, Ez & Jenny from the Society committee and between us we covered all the sessions with at least 2 members present at all times.

 The organisers arranged guided tours of our exhibition for various groups and VIPs. On each occasion a member of the Gallery staff gave an introduction to the history of the City Art Gallery and then an Arts Society volunteer led the tour of the art works.

 The following comments from the volunteers indicate how successful this project was.

“I felt privileged to be at the fair. It was a wonderful experience.”

 “I feel that the whole venture has been a real success for both the Arts Society Southampton and Southampton City Art Gallery”

 “My short spell as a steward was amazingly good fun. A really happy afternoon.”

 “It was brilliant. I felt extremely lucky to have taken part”

 “I think our show was definitely the highlight of the event. Well done everyone involved; we can be justly proud of our Art Gallery”

 “It’s been quite an experience and I’m not keen on going home yet!”

 “The event was a marvellous advertisement for both the Southampton City Art Gallery and the Arts Society Southampton. A wonderful event. Let’s hope we get the chance to do it again some time in the future”

 Ez Kennedy: Volunteer Coordinator

The Maritime & Local Collections Centre in Southampton has stores of ephemera from the great cruise liners that have sailed from the city for more than a century.  For nearly two years now, six volunteers from the Arts Society Southampton have been working to create a digital record of these items, including food & cocktail menus, deck plans & photographs.

Now, a permanent exhibition, Southampton Stories, at the SeaCity Museum in Southampton includes a section on cruise liners which the Arts Society volunteers have helped to develop. A large display panel explains their work cataloguing more than 3000 items and each volunteer’s personal story is shown alongside some of their own favourite items they have come across during this project.

As individuals living & working in Southampton, the group all have memories of the many cruise liners they have seen in the docks over the years. As they have worked to catalogue the menu’s, they have been (largely) appreciatively evaluating the food and drink on offer, along with voicing their opinion of the artwork & design. Whether it’s art, food or alcohol, Arts Society members have very good taste!

“Southampton Stories” at the SeaCity Museum Southampton continues.

Each year, the Society gives an Art Prize to A Level students at Richard Taunton Sixth Form College.

 This year the prize was shared between Rebecca Talbot for cultural & contextual studies & Alice Collins for textiles. The image shows some of Rebecca’s work. She has done research & practical work into aspects of proportion & is intending to study architecture. Alice is going onto an arts foundation course.

Every year we support students at Richard Taunton Sixth Form College by offering a Young Arts prize. 200 sixth formers study fine art, textiles & photography.

Southampton Arts Society members are invited to their end of year exhibition at the College.

 It is held on Thursday 21 June.

 Drop in between 5- 7.30pm 

THE ARTS SOCIETY SOUTHAMPTON is invited to attend the annual art exhibition at Richard Taunton Sixth form College on Hill Lane Southampton. Each year the society presents an annual art prize to one of the students at Founders Day.

200 young people study fine arts, textiles, graphic design & photography at The College & their work will be on display.

The Exhibition runs from 5.00pm to 7.30pm. Do join us if you can. 

Cynthia Labagnava won the Annual Art Prize presented by SDFAS at Richard Taunton Sixth Form College for the originality of this self portrait made on a sewing machine.

 In addition, this example of Cynthia's work and that of two other students, Leah Pukiss & Julia Gorska were selected to be submitted by our society for consideration by The Royal Society of British Artists for an exhibition at the Mall Galleries. 

 To see the art work mentioned, look under the "Gallery" tab.

All SDFAS members are invited to the Private View of AS and A level work of students at Richard Taunton Sixth Form College on Hill Lane, Southampton.

This will take place:

Between 4.30pm and &.30 pm.

On Thursday 7th July.

The exhibition will showcase the work of students studying Fine Art, Graphics, Photography & Textiles. 

Please come if you can. 

Sam Watkins won the Annual Art Prize presented by SDFAS at Richard Taunton Sixth Form College. Sam's art work, including his seascape paintings is delightful and his small and very detailed textile work of trees and landscapes really quite exquisite. 

In addition, examples of Sam's work and that of three other students, Bethany Kibler, Maisie Prinrose & Julia Gorsky were selected to be submitted by our society for consideration by The Royal Society of British Artists for an exhibition at the Mall Galleries. 

To see the art work mentioned, look under the "Gallery" tab.

Southampton DFAS members are invited to the end of year exhibition at Richard Taunton's College - drop in between 5 and 8 pm. Over 200 students study fine art, photography and textiles at the college. Those that attended last year were struck by the range of creativity of the students' work which was in some cases thoughtful and accomplished showing a maturity of thought and technical ability far beyond their years.