Make a Date for Melbourne Festival…
Art & Architecture Trail
We would like to say THANK YOU to everyone who joined us for Melbourne Festival this year, the support of our Artists, Hosts, Volunteers, Sponsors and Visitors is greatly appreciated we look forward to seeing you all soon!
We are counting down to 19 & 20 September 2026
In 2025, 65 hosts welcomed 172 regional artists and nearly 6,000 visitors to Melbourne for the Art & Architecture Trail. Melbourne Festival is a fantastic event thanks to the support of our hosts, helpers, volunteers, and artists. And, entry has remained at £5 per adult since 2008. Melbourne Festival puts art at the heart of South Derbyshire, if you missed the 2025 Festival make sure you follow us on social media to ensure that you don’t miss any of the exciting activities, events and celebrations for “Melbourne Festival Coming of Age in September 2026!
Come and see for yourself!
THE CALL FOR ARTISTS IS NOW CLOSED IT WILL REOPEN MID-FEBRUARY 2026. Thank you to all artists who supported us in 2025.
PEOPLE & PLACES
at Creative Melbourne Gallery
Creative Melbourne is the home of Melbourne Festival.
Our current exhibition PEOPLE & PLACES features an extraordinary collection of original artwork - paintings, prints and mixed media works by an impressive line-up of artists, whose work includes a collection of stunning pieces created by Melbourne Festival Artists.
PEOPLE & PLACES opened on Wednesday 7th October with fresh look at the people and places around us. The exhibition features two overlapping exhibitions sitting alongside each other in the Gallery.
PEOPLE features the work of three inspiring artist TRACEY COVERLY whose stitched portraits of celebrities and friends are guaranteed to draw you in, contemporary oil portraits by MATTHEW LYONS who may spot you as a muse for a future piece and PAUL & JASON SKELLETT, better known as STUDIO SKELLETT with their thought provoking ceramic sculptures.
On the other side of the gallery step into PLACES inspirational landscapes to step into. The exhibition includes collaged landscapes by GILES DAVIES, acrylic landscapes by STEVE MCLOUGHLIN and oil landscapes by PETER WATSON.
The exhibition is open until Saturday 8th November, when the Gallery becomes a hive of activity making the final preparations for GLISTEN as we tiptoe into the festive season.
In addition to our featured artists don’t miss the stunning work by our studio artists Sujata Aten, Michelle Holmes and Patrick Twiss-Prentice.
Open Wednesday - Saturday 10am to 4pm until 6th September
We look forward to seeing you at
Creative Melbourne, Church Street DE73 8EJ soon!
Creative Melbourne is at the top of Church Street, just off Melbourne Market Place so why not make a day of it - visit the gallery, the fabulous independent shops and cafes in the Market Place and pop down the hill to Melbourne Pool and see Melbourne Hall and the 900
JOIN OUR VOLUNTEER TEAM!
Would you like to meet new people, learn new skills, or feel you could help in some way??
You may have an interest in art or would like to be part of an organisation that helps the local and wider creative community.
We are looking for new volunteers to expand our friendly team of volunteers who help at our Creative Melbourne Gallery and at Melbourne Festival. Flexible hours morning or afternoons, one session a month or more! Full training will be given.
Or just call 07765 819 428, email us, or drop into Creative Melbourne Gallery
SPACES TO CREATE…
Creative Melbourne Gallery and Studio launched Spaces to Create, a new mentored artist development programme, in 2023. The programme aims to promote the creative industries in South Derbyshire by supporting creatives in becoming self-sustaining small businesses.
Phase One of the programme ended in May 2024, and we recruited our next group of artists in September 2024.
This opportunity is not solely for visual artists: our 2023/ 2024 artists included a poet, a digital creative, and a photographer.
Spaces to Create is open to creative people who can utilise the hotdesking space and benefit from supported development. We have now launched Phase 2 Applications.
The six artists who participated in the Pilot Project took up hotdesking residence in our newly launched space above the Gallery. This opportunity is not solely for visual artists; you could be a writer, digital creative, photographer, game designer, or producer. We are open to creative people who can utilise the hotdesking space and benefit from supported development.
Spaces to Create aims to promote the creative industries in South Derbyshire by supporting creatives in becoming self-sustaining small businesses. Please contact us at info@melbournefestival.co.uk if you would like to find out more!
We would like to thank South Derbyshire District Council for their support for Spaces to Create.
Thank you for visiting our website. Melbourne Festival & Creative Melbourne are both part of Arts Melbourne CIC