The Centre

43. Wax & Wish - Vasilisa Forbes

WAX & WISH is a visual series by filmmaker & artist Vasilisa Forbes exploring the intimate world of the waxing salon; blending visual art, ritual and body politics. There is a bond and complicity created between the two subjects in this encounter on the waxing table, a secret is shared two fold. The vulnerability of the client, her discomfort and the sharing of intimate stories are all interlinked. A part of the series is shown within a salon setting, reflecting back to the origin of the concept. The series examines our relationship with self-care in a way that is playful & whilst initiating discussions about contemporary beauty standards. 

YBL MARGATE - 54 HIGH ST, MARGATE CT9 1DT

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sun 10am–7pm

44. Winter Swimming - Margo Mcdaid

New Swimmer print and original work available for the duration. There will be 20% discount on these works.

MARGO IN MARGATE, 36 THE HIGH STREET CT9 1DS

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sun 11am–4pm

45. Briny Fabriques - Alexandra Mann

Costume Designer and Stylist Alexandra Mann makes her Off-Season debut with textile wall hangings and suspensions in collaboration with legendary outfitters WerkHaus. Alexandra will show reverse appliqué works utilising both hand stitched and hand printed techniques that are usually reserved for her clothing, accessories and cushions. Silhouettes are drawn freehand and inspired from nature and by subverting traditional still life forms, creating a love letter to Margate, the ‘beautiful briny’ sea and celebrating the cultural richness and diversity of the UK today.

WERKHAUS 30 HIGH STREET MARGATE CT9 1DS

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

24hr a day

46. Cluster Fuck - Annie Nichols

'Cluster Fuck' A sprawling tablescape of ceramics and plaster, rooted in historical dining rituals. White sugary-glazed pieces are arranged on a table, draped in a pleated, paper tablecloth, strewn with luscious, red pomegranate kernels, eyes, teeth and copper sardines.

This unruly gathering plays on the impulse of collecting: desire, acquire, categorise, gate keep. Personal and political symbolism weave through the work. Teeth speak to anxiety, discomfort and decay, kernels of rebirth and renewal, bloodshed and violence. Copper points towards extraction, value and power. The result is both inviting and unsettling. 

'Eat My Words' A light and sound installation—a neon-drawn reconstruction of Annie’s kitchen, a digital map of her kinetically recorded body movements in the space and the sounds of her making a cake.

The exhibition marks the end of Annie’s ten years in her studio and home, offering a rare chance to experience the space before the building is redeveloped.

12 EATON HILL, MARGATE, CT9 1UT

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sun 2–6pm

47. Not Not Eggs, Roosa Tulvio

NOT NOT EGGS is a tactile dreamscape of desire, existing somewhere between fertility and rot, action and silence. It is an ode to the babies that were never to be, to the body that incubates and blooms, and to the hands that create something out of nothing. The exhibition transforms the Schwartzman Gallery into an immersive spatial installation through projections, sound, and textiles. The projections were created in collaboration with TheBioCosmos.

Materials used in the fabrication of the installation have been collected over the past two years from pre- and post-consumer waste, as well as from former commercial projects. Material-led practice and ecological thinking form part of a longer-term shift in Tulvio’s work. With a background in art fabrication and design, Tulvio embraces slowness and handcraft in her personal work as deliberate counterpoints to fast-paced, consumption-driven production culture.

THE MARGATE SCHOOL OF ART, SCHWARTZMAN GALLERY, 31- 33 HIGH ST, MARGATE CT9 1DX

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

PV Fri 5–7pm,  Fri-Sun10am–7pm

48. Sensitive Chaos: Variations - Julie Sumner

Sensitive Chaos: Variations is a solo exhibition of paintings by Julie Sumner, developed from an ongoing enquiry into the flow of universal connection and invisible energies made visible. Rooted in embodied responses to the sea, wave movements and shapes, music and dance, the works explore how subtle sensations translate into drawn line and restrained colour interactions. Housed in the gentle ambience of Nature’s Nook cafe and wellness shop, the viewer can sit with the paintings whilst sipping a cup of ceremonial cacao or other delicious food and drink. 

NATURE’S NOOK 60 HIGH STREET MARGATE CT9 1DT

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sun 9am–6pm

49. Off Register - Steven Alan, Catherine Chinatree, Leigh Clarke, Moyra Derby, Benedict Drew, Jo Murray, Vicki Salmi, Chiara Williams.

CRATE Studio and Project Space Presents "Off Register" 

A group show featuring the Crate community of studio holders, staff, programmers and trustees. Aimed at regrouping and bringing us together as we begin the lead up to our 20th Anniversary Celebration this summer.

Members of the public are also invited to join us on Sunday 25th between 2pm and 4pm for our first CRATE CRITS, a series of free crit sessions for artists. Starting with 2 artists from the group show, we will take time to experience their work, and discuss it in depth, offering our impressions and constructive feedback.

Featuring; Steven Alan, Catherine Chinatree, Leigh Clarke, Moyra Derby, Benedict Drew, Jo Murray, Vicki Salmi, Chiara Williams.

CRATE CRITS event Sunday 25th, 2pm–4pm.

CRATE STUDIO & PROJECT SPACE 1 BILTON SQUARE, MARGATE, KENT. CT9 1EE

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

PV Fri 5-9pm,. Sat-Sun 10am–5pm.

50. Feast Of Fools - Zoe De Caluwé, Rebecca Elves, Harry Grundy, Kris Lock, Claire Orme, David Price, Julie Sumner, Paul Thiry, Gav Toye, Sara Trillo

Feast of Fools: A group show of Limbo studio residents in Limbo Project Space.

The Feast of Fools was a medieval religious ‘liturgical drama’: a codified version of a winter ceremony where societal and religious roles were inverted for a few days.

“The Fool had special permission to be subversive. The Fool could speak the unspeakable, wear the unwearable, and behave in ways that no one else would get away with.”

LIMBO, 2 BILTON SQUARE, MARGATE, CT9 1EE

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

PV Fri 6–9pm,  Sat-Sun11–5pm

51. Carbuncles - Alexander Brown

An exhibition of artwork by Alexander Brown, whose pieces have featured on album covers for Maribou State, James Blake, and La Roux.

WHERELSE, 21-22 THE CENTER, MARGATE

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sun 5–9pm

52. Past it (Part 2) - Lewis Simpson

PALMS PIZZERIA 16 THE CENTRE CT9 1JG MARGATE

Fri 12–3pm / 5–10pm,  Sat  12–3pm / 5–10pm,  Sun  12–3pm / 5–9pm

53. Pomus with Esme Keenleyside

Esme Keenleyside, currently studying at the Tracey Emin Artist Residency, will be showing a selection of paintings within local wine bar, bottle shop and restaurant- Pomus. The work showing will have been painted across the duration of the residency, as well as works that respond to the venue itself. 

POMUS, 9 THE CENTRE, MARGATE, CT9 1JG

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sat 12–11pm,  Sun 12–4pm

54. Playboy Pay Gap - Mercedes Lucy

Playboy playmate murals alongside magazine pull outs from the 1960s to today.

HIGH DIVE - 121 HIGH STREET, MARGATE, CT9 1JT

Accessible, Not suitable for under 18s

Fri 5–9pm,  Sat 12–9pm,  Sun 12–4pm

55. Front Back - Alice Herrick  Paul Hazelton  Vincent Hawkins

Herrick, Hazelton & Hawkins have come together to show work across two spaces along the theme of collapse. 

Alice Herrick has transformed found materials beyond their original function into pieces of classical or surreal beauty. She gently plays with nature, notions of seaside pleasures, as well as foraging in the depths of the subconscious.

Paul Hazelton drifts from one method of working to another, from the most painstakingly time-consuming processes to the briefest of interventions. He presents work that straddle these two aspects of his practice, from dust to hair to hollowed out driftwood and burnt offerings.

Through the transitional process of making, what begins as an “idea” for Vincent Hawkins gradually gives way to a realised outcome. Process is a teacher, not something prescriptive, but the consequence of process; not linear but symbiotic, by its nature suggesting possibilities for branching out in new directions.

THE STORE COLLECTIVE, 17-18 MARKET PLACE, MARGATE, CT9 1ES (FRONT WINDOW)

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

24hrs a day

56. Superstitious (Ii) - Annabelle Edginton, Charlie Russell, El(Ena) Hoskyns-Abrahall, Emma Sheehy, Helen Clarke, Leonie Cameron, Net Ember, Samuel Vilanova, Silva Gordon-Valenzuela, Sophie Colley, Stuart Rayner, Sylke Van Der Heiden, Wilhelmina Healy, Zelda Solomon, Zoe De Caluwé

Returning for its second 'Off Season', Superstitious (II) welcomes you back into the fold with fresh faces and old friends. From age old stones to black cats crossing our paths, knocking on wood and ancient craft: we gather to show you our rituals. 'Superstitious' shares a magic we all believe in, one that is known yet unknowable, fact and fiction, intention and chance.

MADRE, 22-23 CECIL SQUARE, MARGATE, CT9 1BA

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

PV Fri 5–8pm,  Fri-Sat 10am–3pm,  Sun 12–4pm

57. Apricity - Kavel Rafferty

The Warmth Of The Summer Sun is a solo show by Kavel Rafferty featuring oil, household paint, and enamel works that paint over and redact flowers, offering warmth and joy against the dark winter months.

PROJECTS KAVEL RAFFERTY, POST OFFICE, 22-23 CECIL SQUARE, CT93XG

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri 12–8pm,  Sat-Sun 12–4pm

58. Give Ground - Open School East Associates 2025-26 and Studio Holders

Give Ground is an invitation from Open School East’s current Associate cohort and studio holders to explore our working spaces — from the top-floor studios to the garden.

Join us for a day of dispersed activities, gathered across a collaborative noticeboard, a publication, and interventions scattered throughout the building.

Together, we present research and works in progress that respond to this year’s theme, Home is where the garden is, and reflect our shared artistic inquiries into civic space, materiality, and site-specificity.

Give Ground is developed in collaboration with artist and researcher Hugh Nicholson.

OPEN SCHOOL EAST, 39 HAWLEY SQUARE, MARGATE, CT9 1NY

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Sat 12–5pm

59. Seeing As Ceremony - Lucy Lyons And Jas Dhillon

Two women artists join to share their perspectives on observation, through the lens of reverence, presence and care.  

Jas works with colour photography and objects imbued with meaning, creating immersive aspects of ritual and ceremony, reflecting on nomadic Nihang Sikh culture, and the associated energies of femininity/masculinity and nature. 

Lucy's detailed consuming drawings complement this need to observe phenomna and experiences of ceremony, culture, ritual and nature deeply. Her work has presence and requires time and contemplation to be fully appreciated.

GORDON HOUSE 10 CHURCHFIELD PLACE MARGATE CT9 1PJ

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

PV Fri 6–9pm,  Fri 12–5pm,   Sat-Sun 11am–5pm

60. Painting Odyssey - Charlie Evaristo-Boyce

This show presents my recent paintings, marking a focused shift into the medium after joining Turps Margate. These works are a personal odyssey exploring my identity through expressive mark-making and fluid strokes.

After a trip to Nigeria, I began playfully weaving my Yoruba heritage into the canvas—telling stories with vivid palettes, rhythmic patterns, exaggerated features, and naive folk-art energy, all carrying unpolished emotional urgency.

Open late on Saturday with DJs and drinks from 6pm.

CHARLIE EVARISTO-BOYCE STUDIO & GALLERY FIRST FLOOR, STUDIO 24, HAWLEY ST, MARGATE, CT9 1QA

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri 12–7pm,  Sat 12–11pm,  Sun 12–6pm

61. Crossing Into Darkness-  A Group Exhibition Curated By Dame Tracey Emin.

Carl Freedman Gallery is proud to present ‘Crossing Into Darkness’, a group exhibition curated by Dame Tracey Emin.

Featuring works by David Altmejd, Georg Baselitz, Louise Bourgeois, Marlene Dumas, Tracey Emin, Laura Footes, Antony Gormley, Francisco Goya, Gilbert & George, Celia Hempton, Anselm Kiefer, Joline Kwakkenbos, Mark Manders, Danielle Mckinney, Lindsey Mendick, Juanita McNeely, Edvard Munch, Hermann Nitsch, Janice Nowinski, Anna Pakosz and Johnnie Shand Kydd.

Crossing Into Darkness brings together a group of artists whose works confront the darkness inherent in human experience, not as something to be feared but as a necessary threshold toward renewal. In times marked by upheaval and uncertainty, this journey feels both universal and deeply personal.

CARL FREEDMAN GALLERY, 28 UNION CRESCENT, MARGATE, CT9 1NS

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sun 12–5pm

62. Oils Of Water - Max Oliver

An open studio in the artists home consisting of contemporary, representational local seascapes and sunsets painted in oils. Studio and plein air pieces large and small. Located halfway down Prince's Street between Hawley Square and Carl Freedman gallery, look out for the sign and double orange doors.

DOUBLE ORANGE DOORS, 4 PRINCE'S STREET, MARGATE, CT9 1PF

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sat 11am –6pm,   Sun 11am–5pm

63. The Shape Of Where - Valentina Attolini,  Olya Avstreyh, Ben Coleman, Emmanuelle Guillot ,  Louis Guillot, Olivia Guillot, Pierre Guillot, Katie Huntington, Archie Nash, Archie Rogers, Tilda Tribbeck, Dylan White, Elizaveta Zalieva

The Shape of Where is a multidisciplinary exhibition situated within a church, bringing together artists from Margate and across the UK whose practices explore space—imagined, remembered, constructed, and lived.

Working across painting, photography, collage, and sculpture, the artists question when ‘space’ becomes ‘place’; how place shapes us, and how we in turn give shape to place.

The church becomes both container and collaborator. How does a site layered with ritual, memory, and history alter the meaning of these works? In turn, how do the works reshape our perception of this place? Within this setting, the exhibition considers interior and exterior landscapes—real, imagined, or remembered. Some pieces document physical environments, while others deconstruct and reconstruct space through abstraction, fragmentation, or narrative.

Together, the works question what it means to belong, to inhabit, or to pass through. The exhibition invites viewers to consider place not as neutral, but as constructed, fluid and unstable.

UNION CHURCH (UNITED REFORMED CHURCH), UNION CRESCENT, CT9 1NR, MARGATE

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri 5–8pm,  Sat 11am–6pm,  Sun 12–5pm

64. Struggle - Robert Aberdein

A series of sculptures and paintings which explore the theme of struggle, fragility and the temporary nature of connections.

9A ADDINGTON STREET , MARGATE , CT9 1PN

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri 12–8pm,  Sat 12–6pm,  Sun 12–5pm

65. Teacup And Pancake View The World - Tracey Emin

Teacup and Pancake view the world.

1 UNION CRESCENT

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

24hr a day

66. More Natural Scenes - Dan Bass, Tom Gidley, Jack Hirons

Three-person exhibition of paintings and mixed media works loosely themed around our perception of reality, nature and our place within (or outside) it. In an age of accelerated change what is a natural scene, what could make it more so – and is any scene unnatural? 

30 CHARLOTTE SQUARE MARGATE CT9 1LR

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sun 12-6pm

67. Open Studio - Sophie Von Hellerman

Sophie Von Hellerman opens up her studio to see works in progress.

24 UNION CRESCENT CT9 1NS

Accessible, Not suitable for under 18s

Sat-Sun 11am–1pm

68. Rooms -  Olya Avstreyh & Elizaveta Zalieva

In the historic interior of a 200-year-old traditional pub, the work of Olya Avstreyh and Elizaveta Zalieva creates a space between inner experience and an environment in transition.

Both artists explore fragile, unstable conditions — memory, the body, and identity. In dialogue, their work generates a shared field: a meditation on the state of being “in-between” — past and future, home and loss, becoming and decay.

The exhibition unfolds as a site-responsive, immersive installation across three rooms of the pub, currently undergoing renovation. Construction materials, covered surfaces, and temporary structures become part of a delicate, orchestrated chaos. A secret drinking room will open exclusively from 23rd to 25th January 2026 as a prelude to the London Tavern’s reopening in summer 2026, showcasing its transitional state.

This is a duo exhibition by Olya Avstreyh and Elizaveta Zalieva, both currently participants in the Tracey Emin Artist Residency in Margate, UK.

LONDON TAVERN, ADDINGTON ST, MARGATE CT9 1PN

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri 12- 10pm,  Sat-Sun 10am-10pm

69. Echo Sisters - Asa Ariyoshi Pope

A series of oil paintings that explore identity, loss, and the lingering presence of female friendship. Figures appear both intimate and estranged. Bodies stretching, folding, or slipping from view. Each painting carries the weight of memory, where gestures echo across time, and what is absent feels as tangible as what remains.

47 VICTORIA ROAD, CT9 1LW

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Sat-Sun 12-5pm

70. Quaint Honour - Hannah Lees

A sculptural installation suggesting ideas of vitality and virility, repressed sexuality, loss of purpose and the shedding of shame.

THE COAL STORE, 17 ADDINGTON ROAD, MARGATE, CT9 1NH

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri- Sun 12–4pm

71. Small Town Seaside Tales & Cliftontaupia - Jason Wisteria, Giles Evers, Paloma Evers & Galliane

An exploration into the conscious & unconscious mind of a 21st century small town DFL invaded seaside human alongside mythologies based on ancient cultures & civilisations going back to The Epic of Gilgamesh (2100BC) & Helmand (2300BC). A studied investigation into a small minded half- reincarnated community and its tendrils & tentacles in an era of intangible & tangible safety concerns and how new victims are created, heimlich manoeuvred people revel in twittering incessantly like canaries & stool pigeons. In this scenario perpetrators switch sides from being pure hearted angels & are turned on a razors edge into monsters & daemons. Aspects of this show explore bullying, self harm, neuro-divergence, false narratives, siren voices, mermaid dysmorphia & the clinging gastropods that lurk in the dwellings & caves of "Cliftontaupia" (copyright Jason W. Evers 2025). 

The show will feature LED light boxes, paintings, sculptures, music, films, toys & spoken word narratives.  Participants are Jason Wisteria & his late brother Giles, his niece Paloma, his late parents & his friend Galliane. (Biog details will become available)

30 ST PETER'S ROAD MARGATE KENT CT9 1TH

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri-Sun 12.30-6pm

72. All About My Mother - Abigail Ozora Simpson

Ozora Studios is the workspace of artist Abigail Ozora Simpson, known for her large scale ceramic sculpture. Abigail invites you into her studio to view an installation of new work consisting of ceramics and mixed media. "My work is autoethnographic. Personal experience is drawn on and expanded to consider universal ideas. Memories are explored and they might reflect cultural values. I hope that the work might make someone feel; to create an energy field, an atmosphere, a presence. I am interested in philosophy over theory and I endeavour to translate this into forms and embody the work with a tenderness."

OZORA STUDIOS 7 JARRETTS YARD MARGATE CT91BW

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri 12–5pm,  Sat-Sun 10am –5pm

73. Facing - Kirubel Mandefro And Ruby Read

Facing is a duo painting exhibition by Kirubel Mandefro and Ruby Read, presented as a window display at Victoria House. Bringing portraiture into public view, the exhibition invites passersby into an intimate encounter with painted faces that return the act of looking. Structured as a window exhibition, Facing removes the threshold of the gallery, allowing anyone to experience the work at any time.

Across both practices, portraiture becomes a site of attention, vulnerability, and presence. The works explore what it means to be seen and to see another, how a face can hold emotion, memory, and quiet tension. Facing asks viewers to slow down, meet these gazes, and consider the intimacy that unfolds in moments of looking.

80 VICTORIA ROAD CT9 1RD

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

Fri 12–5pm,  Sat-Sun 10am –5pm

74. Asterisms, Jemma Channing, Kate Malyon, Sé Malaïka Nomyo, Charlee M. Piper

Kate Malyon and Sé Malaïka Nomyo will be presenting their short film, Return To Water in the upstairs space. In Margate’s Walpole Tidal Pool, queerness finds form in the rhythm of tides, where identity expands and dissolves with the water. This short follows a swimmer as they reflect on how water becomes a space for transformation and self-discovery. In the downstairs space Jemma Channing will present a collection of ceramics alongside a collection of textile works by Charlee M. Piper. Jemma’s work explores queer nature, folklore and healing. These pieces are accompanied by a zine and an invitation to sit and read about our shared queer, medicinal and natural history. Conversely, Charlee’s work serves as an expression of rage against the exponential growth and prevalence of mass violence committed under the guise of freedom and self defence. Collectively, the different works speak to diverging, but connected queer experiences: an asterism.

SMITH & SUN/THE MARGATE QUEER LIBRARY AND ARCHIVE, 7 THANET ROAD, MARGATE, CT9 1UA

Accessible, Suitable for under 18s

PV Fri 5–8pm,   Fri-Sun 11am–4pm

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