AIR Open 2024 at Rogue Studios

Now in its seventh year, Air Open is back and it’s even bigger than ever before! Hosted at Rogue Artists’ Studios CIC this year, the exhibition gathers a diverse group of over 40 artists and promises works in anything from the more traditional painting, drawing and sculpture to textiles, video and mixed-media. Don’t expect traditional approaches though, as some of the pieces on display work to push the boundaries of their respective mediums and transcend existing rules.

Deciding which pieces would make it into the final display was not an enviable task, after so many high-quality works were submitted. In fact, alongside the main physical show, Air Open 2024 also features a digital showcase of the longlisted artists. Organisers describe not being able to resist sharing these works with the audience too, so if the show itself hasn’t quite quenched your art thirst, you’re also getting a digital bonus.

Visitors can also cast a vote for their favourite piece and the winning artist will be announced at the end of the show. 

Artist Hang Zhang will also be performing live at Rogue Studios as part of the show, on Sat 7 Sept and Sat 21 Sept so whether performance art is your thing or you’d simply like a Tarot card reading, mark the dates in your diary. 

Highlights include the thoroughly interactive piece Take One, Pass It On (2024) by Alex Aiton which invites viewers to sit at a traditional school desk and take a piece of paper that says “Some people are _ Get over it!” and pin it up on the wall. Situated in the corner of the room you’ll have a private moment to fill out your sheet and leave it for other visitors to read.

Elsewhere you’ll find the small and delightfully disturbing painting Rabbit by Daniel H Bell, while Becky Moon’s Nebulous is a beautiful, stained glass traffic cone. Amelia Frances Wood’s Singing Over The Bones is one of the larger pieces, consisting of a ceramic five tiered water fountain, on a mossy stair set, exploring ideas of collective memory and heritage.

You’ll find all these and much more at Air Open 2024, making the exhibition the ultimate group show: varied, exciting and surprising.