Manchester Open 2026 at HOME

Four editions in, the Manchester Open has become both a biennial survey of the region’s creative output and a quiet argument about who gets seen in the art world. The format is open submission, anonymous selection, a panel drawn from practicing artists, community members and art professionals. It levels the playing field, bypassing systems that might favour certain kinds of artists – and the results speak for themselves. As Adeola Adelakun of Black Creative Trailblazers – one of this year’s judges – puts it, “the talent was never missing, only the infrastructure.”

This summer, 420 works fill HOME’s main gallery, chosen from more than 1,500 entries submitted from across all 10 Greater Manchester boroughs. The youngest artist is four; the oldest nearly 80. The range of media – painting, ceramics, photography, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, textiles, digital and moving image – mirrors the range of experience, from first-time exhibitors to established professionals, none of it separated or ranked.

Clarissa Corfe, HOME’s Creative Producer for Visual Art, describes the works as revealing “something of the relationship we have with ourselves, family, community and the natural world, demonstrated through layers of nuance, imagination, wit and resonance.” Go with a friend and you’ll almost certainly disagree over the best works. That’s kind of the point.

The exhibition itself doesn’t try to resolve the question of what’s best – but the awards do. Three artist development packages are awarded in partnership with Castlefield Gallery, alongside a HOME Award offering a solo show in the Granada Foundation Galleries. The Kate Vokes People’s Choice Award – named in honour of a long-standing champion of the exhibition – puts selection directly in the hands of visitors. In 2024, 2,400 people voted.

Entry is free, most works are for sale, and the show runs until early September, giving you plenty of time to come back. With 420 artworks on display, a couple of visits is probably wise.