Drawing Together
News
ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ part of collaborative exhibition exploring the Bath Academy of Art
Wednesday, 26 August, 2026A major new collaborative exhibition exploring the history of the Bath Academy of Art will open in September at The Young Gallery in Salisbury.
Drawing Together: Bath Academy of Art at Corsham brings together artworks from ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ collections, Chippenham Museum and The Young Gallery for the first time. Featuring painting, photography, print and sculpture, from artists including Gillian Ayres, William Scott and Walter Sickert, the exhibition explores teaching, learning, creative practice and everyday life at the Academy.
Founded in 1852 as the Bath School of Art, the institution relocated to Corsham Court in 1946 after its premises were damaged during the Second World War. The exhibition marks the 80th anniversary of this move, which transformed the small Wiltshire market town of Corsham into an important centre for art education and creative experimentation.
Artists, designers and teachers associated with the Academy helped shape post-war British art and art education, establishing a distinctive creative community. That community continues today, partly through BSU’s School of Art, Film and Media, which evolved from the Academy at Corsham. Yet the Academy’s presence across Bath and Wiltshire – and the region’s connections to many significant artistic figures of the twentieth century – remains relatively little known.
More than 40 BSU students from various courses have been involved with the project through bespoke workshops, discussions, interpretation and creative responses. Working as collaborators within the curatorial process, the students have brought new perspectives to the works of art, histories and ideas explored in the exhibition.
The exhibition will evolve as it tours to Chippenham Museum and BSU’s Michael Pennie Gallery, with each venue presenting a different aspect of the Academy’s history and legacy.
Helen Cobby, exhibition project lead and Curator of ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ Collections, said:
“It has been enormously valuable, and a real pleasure, to work so closely with colleagues at the Young Gallery and Chippenham Museum, and with ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ students. The students have been active collaborators in the curatorial process, bringing fresh and lively perspectives. As the exhibition evolves across its three venues, we hope it will reveal the continuing significance of the Bath Academy of Art and create new connections between its collections, communities and legacies.”
Dr Emily Dunbar, Curator and Gallery Manager at the Young Gallery said:
“Working in collaboration with staff and students across ºÚÁÏÕýÄÜÁ¿ and Chippenham Museum has brought the distinctive history of Bath Academy of Art to life in a new way, offering a valuable insight into this creative institution. It is a unique opportunity to see artworks from these different collections together for the first time.”
Drawing Together: Bath Academy of Art at Corsham is free to visit and no booking is required. It will be displayed in Gallery 2 at the Young Gallery from 11 September until 21 November 2026. Additional exhibitions are planned at Chippenham Museum later this year and at the Michael Pennie Gallery at BSU’s Locksbrook Campus in 2027.
A short documentary film about the exhibition has also been created, which you can .
Image credit: Corsham Court, by Helen Harris, Photograph, 1982 © Helen Harris