Exhibit

Current Open Calls for group shows are at this link: open call

Our Two Galleries

There are two galleries at Linwood Arts: Eastside Gallery, which is one of the largest in Christchurch, and the Mini Gallery, which is a fee-free space to exhibit in (more details below).

Committed to artist development, Eastside Gallery primarily encourages and supports the growth and development of new and emerging artists by facilitating accessible and affordable exhibition opportunities.

We run around 7-8 open call shows per year. For the most part they either ask artists to respond to a theme or they are part of our progressive pathway, which is designed to offer artists the chance to showcase their work as they develop their art practice.

Exhibition costs are either free or kept to a minimum in order to ensure accessibility and our commission is a modest 28%.

Exhibitions typically run for four weeks.

All exhibiting artists must reside in Canterbury, drop their works off in person and attend the opening event.

Fee-Free Exhibitions

The following fee-free exhibitions are open to local artists and held annually:

First Steps – an exhibition for artists who are new, or nearly new, to exhibiting.

Te Whare Maire O Nga Punawerewere – Māori art by Māori artists, held around Matariki.

Inner City to East School Seniors – NCEA students from local schools between the Central City to the East of Christchurch. Held around August.

Progressive Pathway Exhibitions

We run the following exhibitions annually to provide a progressive pathway of exhibition opportunities (artists can jump in wherever is most appropriate for their experience and exhibit up to 3 times in each of these shows):

First Steps – Artists who are new, or nearly new, to exhibiting. Usually takes place early Autumn.

Stride by Stride – Artists who have a moderate amount of exhibition experience. Takes place in late Autumn or Winter.

Momentum ‘XX – Eastside’s top show for artists with a substantial or substantive amount of exhibition experience in curated shows, and who are actively committed to developing their art practice. Replaces the old “Eastside Spring” show but is otherwise the same format.

“Stride by Stride” and “Momentum ‘XX” carry a small exhibition fee.

Open call selection will primarily aim to:

• Facilitate artist development
• Provide exhibition opportunities, particularly for new and emerging artists
• Celebrate and support a diverse range of art forms
• Be culturally inclusive whilst celebrating diversity
• For Centre-run shows with a theme, the primary focus will always be on how artworks respond to the theme. Exhibition experience is irrelevant for these types of shows
• Exhibition experience is important for the three Progressive Pathway shows (see previous section)

In the last financial year we exhibited the work of 384 local artists (without cluttering Eastside). In 2024 there were 12,100 onsite engagements with our services.