Aesthetica Art Prize 20: Defining the Future of Contemporary

16 May 2026—19 September 2026Free

Woodend Gallery

Part IV: Transformation

This show spans photography, film and installation to offer visitors an insight into the contemporary art scene. It highlights how those featured in the Aesthetica Art Prize are a benchmark for innovation, critical debate and artistic discovery.

Antonia Luxem, Liz Miller Kovacs, Rebecca Reeve and Seb Agnew present works that challenge the everyday, turning the lens on our disconnected relationship with the landscape, ecological destruction, the objectification of femininity and queer identity.

Artists: Antonia Luxem, Liz Miller Kovacs, Rebecca Reeve and Seb Agnew.

Aesthetica Art Prize 20: Defining the Future of Contemporary Art marks two decades of pioneering contemporary art, bringing 50 international artists to four galleries across North Yorkshire – Skipton Town Hall, Mercer Art Gallery, Scarborough Art Gallery and Woodend Gallery.

Showcasing painting, photography, sculpture, video, mixed media and immersive installation, the exhibition explores urgent global themes; from the climate crisis and colonial legacies to identity, technology and social inequality.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the Prize reflects on its role in launching careers, shaping discourse and amplifying new voices. These exhibitions highlight art as intervention, offering powerful, transformative encounters that challenge perception and imagine new futures for contemporary practice.

Image: Liz Miller Kovacs, Supernatural

Part I: Future(s) 
25th April – 27th September 2026 
Skipton Town Hall, Skipton
 
Part II: Perception 
2nd May – 6th September 2026 
Mercer Art Gallery, Harrogate

Part III: Intervention
16th May – 19th September 2026
Scarborough Art Gallery

Gallery Opening Times

Monday – Thursday | 9am – 4pm
Friday | 9am – 3pm
Saturday | 10am – 3pm

(Last entry 30 minutes before closing)

 

Free

Woodend Gallery is wheelchair accessible, with an accessible toilet and changing facilities.

For more information about Woodend Gallery head to the venue page: https://scarboroughmuseumsandgalleries.org.uk/visit/woodend-gallery-and-studios/