Free public art workshops this summer!
The University of Southampton, in partnership with UP Projects, John Hansard Gallery and Turner Sims, are developing a series of major public art commissions for Building 75, a cutting-edge new teaching and learning environment. Read more here
There are free opportunities to take part and contribute to the commissions by artists Katie Schwab and Rhona Byrne!
Campus Textures with Katie Schwab | Free Family Drop-In Day
Join artist Katie Schwab for a hands-on family activity exploring textures and mark making on campus.
Date: Tuesday 4 August 2026, 11am – 2pm
Location: SUSU, Building 42, Highfield Campus, University Road, SO17 1BJ
All ages welcome
- Pick up free drawing packs and explore the campus through texture and mark making.
- Collect rubbings from the outdoor landscape using crayons and paper
- Discover the textures of the Highfield Campus
- Contribute to a large collaborative floor drawing
- Help inspire a new public artwork for the Building 75 development
Sign Up for your free place
Please sign up for a place here
Email info@upprojects.com with any questions about the drop-in day.
About Katie Schwab’s Play the Campus commission
Katie’s commission will invite playful movement through interactive artworks and site interventions. Inspired by architect Basil Spence’s textures and works by Tadek Beutlich in the University Art Collection, the project reimagines sports and game markings as lines across the new paving.
Welcome Voyage – 3 Day Workshop Series with Rhona Byrne
Join artist Rhona Byrne for a three-day exploratory voyage through Southampton’s maritime history, landscapes, and stories. This workshop series invites participants to explore journeys, materials, and port infrastructures of care and movement through drawing, walking, sailing and shared experiences across the city and port.
Dates: Thursday 16 July, Friday 17 July and Saturday 18 July, 10am – 1pm daily
Open to ages 18 and above
Various locations around Southampton
Advanced booking required. No previous experience necessary
Welcome Voyage Programme
Day 1 – Thursday 16 July
Meet at John Hansard Gallery, 142 Above Bar St, Southampton SO14 7DU. Learn about logbooks and sea journals; hear about the movement of materials in and out of Southampton port; take a walking tour of the old city and visit God’s House Tower.
Day 2 – Friday 17 July
Meet at the National Oceanographic Centre, European Way, Southampton SO14 3ZH. Participate in a port exploration and a three-hour research trip aboard the Callista Research Vessel.
Day 3 – Saturday 18 July
Meet at SeaCity Museum, Havelock Rd, Southampton SO14 7FY. Enjoy a tour of the museum and join a reflective workshop at John Hansard Gallery.
Sign up for your free place
Please sign up for a place here
Email info@upprojects.com with any questions about the Welcome Voyage.
About Rhona Byrne’s Welcome Voyage
The commission will feature two artworks marking key entrances to Building 75, exploring themes of arrival, belonging and welcome. Using ship cradle sculptures and hydrodynamic-inspired paving designs, the project reflects ideas of care, movement and hospitality.
