Tŷ Pawb

Degree Show: Wrexham School of Art 2026
2026-07-03 - 2026-07-17 | Tŷ Pawb, Market Street, Wrexham, LL13 8BB
An exhibition of art & design work by BA(hons) students from:
Applied Art
ceramics • jewellery/metalwork
Design
animation • graphic design • illustration • comics
Fine Art
Photography
Join us for the launch event: 5.30pm – 8pm July 3rd
To be opened by artist Bedwyr Williams
Gallery opening times: 10am-4pm

Exhibition: Anthony Shapland - MURMUR
2026-07-11 - 2026-10-31
A new solo show by Cardiff based artist and writer Anthony Shapland, guest-curated by Marie-Anne McQuay. The exhibition includes a new film and will be accompanied by an integrated reading space and events programme reflecting Shapland’s interest in the intersection between art and writing.
Tŷ Pawb is delighted to announce a large-scale solo exhibition by Cardiff based artist and writer Anthony Shapland, opening Summer 2026. Anthony Shapland is a Welsh artist, founder of artist-led space g39 and novelist. Within his writing and artistic practice, he blends documentary and fiction, drawing on his lived experience of rural queerness and growing up performing straight.
Exhibition runs: 11 July – 31 October 2026
Preview and Press View: 10 July 2026
Shapland was recently selected as one of The Observer’s 10 best new novelists 2025 and Waterstone’s Welsh book of the year for his debut novel A Room Above a Shop (Granta), which tells the story of hidden intimacy between two men living in a South Wales valley in the late 1980s, during the time of Section 28. Continuing to work between the gallery and the printed page, whether in image, text or film, Shapland constructs intimate portraits of lives lived at the edges of rural landscapes, often filmed on location around Bargoed, the town in the Rhymney Valley where he grew up. His ongoing fascination with illusion and mimicry, reflecting the ways in which his protagonists seek to blend in with their surroundings, manifests in his use of the hidden techniques of traditional filmmaking, including props, backdrops, filters, artificial light and Foley sound effects. These cinematic devices in turn set up and then unpack coded narratives. Speaking also to other concealed lives, the artist asks, “What happens when you stay?”
Shapland’s exhibition at Tŷ Pawb will include a new film and builds on recent moving image work, including Starling Seven (2025), in which a montage of starlings copy and repeat man-made noises, and Between the Dog and the Wolf (2019) which encapsulates the artist’s interest in the cinematic illusion of shooting day for night. The exhibition will be accompanied by an integrated reading space and a dynamic public programme.
Shapland’s solo show will be guest-curated by long time peer and associate Marie-Anne McQuay, previously curator of Liverpool Biennial 2025, with Tŷ Pawb Creative Director Jo Marsh.
Anthony Shapland said: “I’m excited to be working at Tŷ Pawb – exploring the space between exhibition and publication, image and word and referring to a life lived in two parts, performed – never what it seemed on the surface. Nothing is what it appears to be, and an early desire to not stand-out, even after coming-out, has had a lasting impact on all of my work – filled with references to stage and backstage, to a performance of life. At Tŷ Pawb I’m keen to blur the line between inside and outside the gallery. “
Creative Director Tŷ Pawb Jo Marsh said: “We are absolutely delighted to be presenting this exciting new body of work by Anthony Shapland here at Tŷ Pawb next year. Anthony is a truly cherished Welsh artist, at a significant moment in his career. This solo exhibition offers us a fantastic opportunity to engage with Anthony’s beautiful, poetic and unique vision and celebrate his significant contribution to contemporary art in Wales. We can’t wait to share it with our visitors. Building on our initial partnership as part of the Venice Biennale 2019, working with independent curator Marie-Anne McQuay on this project, fresh from her role as curator of Liverpool Biennial 2025, is a dream.”
Guest Curator, Marie-Anne McQuay said: “I’ve followed Anthony Shapland’s practice for nearly 20 years and am so delighted to finally work with him on a solo show for Tŷ Pawb, Wrexham. I’m looking forward to sharing his incredible sensibility for observation and detail, which manifests both in his filmmaking and writing, with audiences next year”
Join the Tŷ Pawb mailing list to get regular updates straight to your inbox

MURMUR: Y 'Rhwng' –Gweithdy Ysgrifennu // The Inbetween - Writing Workshop
2026-08-14 13:00 - 15:00 (Europe/London)
MURMUR: The Inbetween – Writing Workshop
What are the stories between places?
Inspired by the work of Anthony Shapland, we will walk through the exhibition and take inspiration from Shapland’s use of in-between places. The Sunrise and Sunsets and the stories that emerge in twilight. This workshop is a space to slow down, look closer and find meaning in the things that often go unseen.
This session is open to young people16 – 25. Under 18s will need a parent to provide emergency contact details on arrival. Our writing tasks will be inclusive and accessible for all levels.
What to bring:
You can expect a guided creative writing session, with gentle prompts and inspiration. Please bring whatever you feel comfortable writing with (pen, notebook, phone, laptop etc.) and a drink. There will be a short comfort break in the middle and you are welcome to take a break anytime you need during the session.
Language:
The sessions will predominantly be held in English, using everyday Welsh but participants are welcome to write and take part in any language they are comfortable using.
Access:
This workshop is located on the groundfloor. There is a ‘Changing Places’ accessible toilet on site. Free parking for blue badge holders is available in our multistorey carpark. If you have any additional access needs, please email teampawb@wrexham ahead of the session.
About Natasha Borton:
Natasha Borton is an award-winning Wrexham-based writer, musician, and theatre-maker. She creates engaging, inclusive creative experiences that encourage people of all ages to explore storytelling, their own imaginations and the rhythm of our everyday lives.
For 2026, Natasha is the Writer-in-Residence for the River Dee with Literature Wales and WWFCymru, and the Artistic Director for Voicebox Wxm, North Wales’ longest-running spoken word platform.
Ffoto: // Photo: Hebert Santos

Exhibition: The Tŷ Pawb Open 2026
2026-11-14 - 2027-02-27
SUBMIT YOUR WORKS NOW!
Our biennial open call exhibition returns for its 5th edition. The 2024 edition featured over 100 artworks, following a record response to our open call, with nearly 450 artists submitting works.
Artists are invited to submit up to three artworks for consideration for display in our open exhibition.
The competition is an opportunity for all professional and amateur Artists to display their work side by side in our award winning gallery and have a chance to win one of this year’s 3 prizes.
Submissions deadline:
4/10/26
11.59pm
Exhibition dates:
14/11/26 – 27/2/27
Prizes
Judges Prize: £1000
Peoples Prize: £500
Trader’s Prize: £500
Entry fee
£18 for up to 3 artworks
£12 for concessions
How to Enter:
1. Please read and make sure you have understood the Terms & Conditions
2. Pay your entry fee (A payment reference number is required to complete the submission form).
3. Complete the submission form.
If you have any queries please contact typawbopen@wrexham.gov.uk
