1 -30 November
Walk the Woodland Path Kit Glaisyerpresents an exhibition, a series of recent paintings inspired by Lewesdon Hill, West Dorset. You can also explore his continuing series of Eggardon Hill panoramas, Drip Figures, and his popular Café Royal paintings The gallery is open on Saturdays 10am – 4pm or by appointment. Bridport Contemporary, 11 Downes Street, Bridport, Dorset DT6 3JR. 07983 465789 www.kitglaisyery.com @kitglaisyer
2 – 12 November
In Our Element Inspired by the ever-changing landscape of West Dorset, four artists and makers have united to present their recent work: sculpture, woodturning, textiles, photography, printmaking, collage and painting. Jillian Hunt, Alison Bowskill, Jools Woodhouse and Guy Woodhouse. 10am-5pm every day. The Malthouse Gallery, The Town Mill, Lyme Regis DT7 3PU. More info: www.joolswoodhouse.com.
7 November – 24 December
Present Makers 2026 Exhibition of hand-crafted, contemporary gifts including jewellery, ceramics, textiles, prints, wood and glass as well as unique Christmas cards, and decorations showcasing the work of South West designer makers. Tuesday to Saturday, 10 to 5. Thelma Hulbert Gallery, Dowell St, Honiton EX14 1LX. thelmahulbert.com / 01404 45006. Free admission.
Until 14 November
At the Still Point of the Turning World David Inshaw, Lise Herud Braten and Petter Southall at Sladers Yard Contemporary Art & Craft Gallery, West Bay, Bridport, DT6 4EL. Open Wednesday to Saturday 10am – 4.30pm Tel: 01308 459511 Website: sladersyard.co.uk. www.instagram.com/sladersyard.
Until 20 November
Nothign is Perfetc: The title, deliberatly misspelt comes from one of Benji Weeratunge’s (Hot Noodle) large-scale mixed-media paintings. A Camden kid raised in the thick of the punk rock eighties, he spent more than twenty years as a professional dancer, choreographer, artistic director and TV personality, a career that took him from working with the choreographers behind Michael Jackson and Beyoncé, to sharing stages with Kylie and Pharrell, to becoming one of the resident stars of Fama ¡a bailar!, Cuatro’s prime time dance academy. Then lockdown grounded him. What came out instead were the acrylics and the spray cans, and a body of work with the whole of that other life buried inside it. A lifetime of moving in front of crowds, now moving across canvas. You can feel it in every piece. Nothign is Perfetc brings together eleven of those works, built up in acrylic and spray paint, with hand-drawn text, comic-book cut-outs and dozens of small phrases and images tucked beneath the surface. Some are sayings that carried Benji through moments in his life. Others are borrowed or half-remembered, or things people once said to him that he never forgot. The title is taken from one of the paintings and misspelled on purpose. “There’s never a perfect time,” says Benji. “There’s never the right amount of material, or the right size portfolio, or the exact right thing to say. It’s the fact that it’s all imperfect that makes it perfect.” He is wary of explaining too much about any single piece: “If I tell my story on a piece I’ve already planted seeds about what that piece means to them, instead of what it directly speaks to them.” Original works and limited-edition prints are available to buy. Visitors can register for updates and events at https://oliveandwilde.myflodesk.com/hotnoodlexows. Olive & Wilde Studios, 28 South Street, Dorchester DT1 1BY. Tue–Fri 10am–5pm, Sat 10am–2pm.
Until 30 November
Marking Out the Boundaries Day Bowman & Henrietta Irving. Bold abstract paintings explore the boundaries and disruptions of the English landscape, alongside sculptural basketry inspired by vanished medieval ponds, hidden hollows and landscapes transformed over centuries. The two artists, who only met twelve months ago, find a deep connection with the materials they use and the resultant shapes and forms that are created. Henrietta will be making coiled raffia vessels and paper pieces on the theme of Timelines. She is inspired by changes in landscape and buildings over the centuries at Athelhampton in Dorset. Traces of medieval fishponds are still visible in the grounds, if you know where to look. The current buildings form part of what was a much larger complex. Wings and rooms were repurposed or demolished to suit the needs and aspirations of the owners. Henrietta’s work will consider these changes, gradual dereliction or deliberate destruction and replacement, in three-dimensional form. The exhibition at Athelhampton House will open with a dance performance choreographed by Lizzi Kew Ross www.lizzikewrossandco co.uk where the dancers weave their way from the Great Hall in and around the staircase up to the gallery. Athelhampton House & Gardens, Puddletown, Dorchester, Dorset DT2 7LG. 01305 848363.
Until 5 December
Christie Brown: Significant Beings – Works from 1986 to 2026. This exhibition celebrates four decades of work by figurative sculptor, Christie Brown (b.1946). Brown’s practice is informed by an interest in our relationship with objects and the significance and relevance of museum collections and archaic artefacts to contemporary art. Archaeology presents a fragmented narrative of past lives and holds parallels with the practice of psychoanalysis where layers are carefully stripped away to reveal hidden information. Her work references these archaic traces as well as the mythology, narrative and symbolism associated with clay. The figures move between single objects as part of a series and site-specific installations, often in response to museum collections. The figures are free built using press-moulded sections, which explore ideas around repetition, and heavily reference mimetic forms such as dolls, puppets and statues. Writing on the exhibition, Edmund de Waal comments, “In celebrating this gathering of major work by Christie Brown we are grateful for her sustained attention to the spaces where story-telling is revivified, bodies are inhabited, our fears and our delights are brought into magnificent focus.” Messums West, Place Farm, Court St, Tisbury, SP3 6LW.
Until April 2027
Bridport Ichthyosaur The remains of a massive 10-metre ichthyosaur were found by Belgian fossil hunters on a secret local beach. It was a fearsome marine reptile that dominated the oceans roughly 175 million years ago at the very end of the Jurassic Period. While smaller ichthyosaurs typically hunted fish and squid, larger apex predators like this specimen actively preyed upon other marine reptiles. Visitors can expect an immersive experience, including a film of the fossil’s story, a Virtual Reality (VR) experience, and a series of expert talks throughout the winter. Bridport Museum, South Street, Bridport, Dorset, DT6 3NR.
