https://linktr.ee/VisualArtsScotland

Visual Arts Scotland, The Mound, Edinburgh (2026)

21/08/2026

APPLY NOW

The deadline to submit works for our Annual Open Call, an exhibition by Visual Arts Scotland taking place at the Royal Scottish Academy building on the Mound, is fast approaching!

Our Annual Exhibition offers the opportunity for emerging and established practitioners to showcase new and unseen work and engage with a wider public; to generate debate, to test out and exhibit challenging and ambitious ideas within the context of Scottish and international culture.

There is no theme for the open call. A theme will be curated for the exhibition based off submissions received.

The exhibition runs through January 2027, with exact opening dates to be confirmed in the autumn.

How to Apply:
- All applications should be made via OESS. The link to the OESS page can be found in our bio.
- Artists should ensure they have their own valid insurance for their work for the entire duration of the exhibition, including transportation to and from the venue.

Eligibility:
- We encourage submissions from VAS members and non members alike.
- We welcome works in all mediums
Key Dates:
- Deadline for Applications: 28 August 2026
- Exhibition Dates: TBC (January 2027)

Fees:
- All Vas Members can submit up to 3 works free of charge, with the subsequent 4th or 5th submission costing £10 per submission. Members can submit a maximum of 5 works.
- Non members will be charged £15 per work submitted. - Non members can submit a maximum of 5 works.
There will be a flat £15 hang fee for all selected artists payable to Visual Arts Scotland.

The Exhibition will be administered by Visual Arts Scotland who will take a commission fee of 40% (35% for Professional Members) on all sales.

More information on this open call can be found on our website. We look forward to receiving your submissions!

20/08/2026

WORK WITH US

The Programme & Membership Co-ordinator plays a central role in the day-to-day running of
Visual Arts Scotland (VAS), supporting our membership and the delivery of our annual
programme of exhibitions, opportunities, residencies and events.

Working closely with VAS Office Holders, Council, curatorial committees, freelance
colleagues and external partners, you will provide the administrative co-ordination that keeps
our membership and programme activity running effectively.

This is a varied and people-facing role for someone who is highly organised, resourceful and
comfortable balancing different priorities throughout the year.

Contract: Freelance
Hours: Average 24 hours per week for a 12 Month period, with potential for rolling contract to
be reviewed.
Fee: £18,720.00 equivalent to £15 per hour
(Successful applicant is responsible for their own tax & NI requirements)

Working pattern: Flexible, with a mix of studio, programme-based and remote working
Reports to: VAS Office Holders & Visual Arts Scotland Council
Start date: September 15th (negotiable)

The VAS Studio (Drill Hall, Edinburgh) is our organisational hub and we are keen for the
Programme & Membership Co-ordinator to use it as their main working base, alongside
some remote working and attendance at exhibition venues and programme locations.

This is a freelance role averaging 24 hours per week across the year. Hours will vary in line
with VAS’s programme, with busier periods around open calls, selection, exhibitions and
events balanced by quieter periods. Some evening and weekend working will be required
during key programme activity.

For more information about your responsibilities and person specification- please visit our website (link in bio)

Application Deadline: Friday 4th September, 5pm

19/08/2026

APPLY NOW

The deadline to submit works for our Annual Open Call, an exhibition by Visual Arts Scotland taking place at the Royal Scottish Academy building on the Mound, is fast approaching!

Our Annual Exhibition offers the opportunity for emerging and established practitioners to showcase new and unseen work and engage with a wider public; to generate debate, to test out and exhibit challenging and ambitious ideas within the context of Scottish and international culture.

There is no theme for the open call. A theme will be curated for the exhibition based off submissions received.

The exhibition runs through January 2027, with exact opening dates to be confirmed in the autumn.

How to Apply:
- All applications should be made via OESS. The link to the OESS page can be found in our bio.
- Artists should ensure they have their own valid insurance for their work for the entire duration of the exhibition, including transportation to and from the venue.

Eligibility:
- We encourage submissions from VAS members and non members alike.
- We welcome works in all mediums
Key Dates:
- Deadline for Applications: 28 August 2026
- Exhibition Dates: TBC (January 2027)

Fees:
- All Vas Members can submit up to 3 works free of charge, with the subsequent 4th or 5th submission costing £10 per submission. Members can submit a maximum of 5 works.
- Non members will be charged £15 per work submitted. - Non members can submit a maximum of 5 works.

There will be a flat £15 hang fee for all selected artists payable to Visual Arts Scotland.

The Exhibition will be administered by Visual Arts Scotland who will take a commission fee of 40% (35% for Professional Members) on all sales.

More information on this open call can be found on our website. We look forward to receiving your submissions!

14/08/2026

Visual Arts Scotland currently has 4 live open calls with submission deadlines fast approaching.

Annual Exhibition at the RSA Building in Edinburgh
Deadline: 28th August 2026 5pm

Cove Park Residency
Deadline: 28th August 2026 5pm

Dalkeith Palace Artists and Makers Market
Deadline: 31st August 2026 5pm

The Whole and The Hole Moving Image Exhibition
Deadline: 31st August 2026 5pm

For more information, and to begin your submissions, please visit our website 📌

We are delighted to be exhibiting once more in the Upper Galleries of the RSA building in Edinburgh in January 2027. The exhibition is a continuation of the longest-running visual art and contemporary craft exhibition that is delivered in partnership with the Exhibiting Societies of Scottish Artists (ESSA). The exhibition provides a platform for contemporary creators in Scotland and beyond.

For this upcoming exhibition we are inviting applications from VAS Members and non-members from across the globe to exhibit across five of these expansive galleries. We welcome submissions in all areas of visual arts and contemporary crafts, including but not limited to painting, printmaking, fine-art photography, drawing, sculpture, ceramics, film & audio, text & book making, textiles, woodwork, metal work and fine metal work, furniture, glass, large works, installation, performance and jewellery. The exhibition aims to celebrate a wide spectrum of practices and disciplines.

Rather than inviting responses to a prescribed theme, we encourage artists and makers to submit work that best represents their current practice. We are looking for thoughtful, ambitious work that demonstrates a considered relationship between material, process and idea, and speaks with authenticity, curiosity and conviction. Through the selection, relationships between materials, ideas and processes will emerge, creating unexpected conversations across disciplines and perspectives, and reflecting the richness of contemporary visual art and craft.

You are invited to submit up to five works in any size which have been completed within the past three years prior to the exhibition (completed 2024 onwards) for consideration.

Deadline: 28th Augus

13/08/2026

Congratulations to all the artists and makers who are graduating from Scottish universities this summer!

Visual Arts Scotland is proud to support emerging talents and has visited many graduate showcases across the country, presenting a broad range of upcoming artists and makers with VAS Graduate Awards. We shortlist students who work in visual arts as well as contemporary craft, continuing to award graduating students in both of these separate categories highlighting the importance of each of these disciplines.

This year will be the largest Graduate Showcase that VAS has ever hosted, in recognition of the huge amount of talent in Scotland and the need to support emerging practitioners in challenging times.

All shortlisted graduates receive a year of free VAS membership and will be part of a showcase exhibition in October at Dalkeith Palace, where we will present the diversity of these artists and makers in dialogue together.

We are delighted to announce the 2026 VAS Graduate Showcase Cohort of fine art and contemporary craft graduates from Napier and Gray’s School of Art are:

Cara Boyce cara_on_film
Lottie Evans
Heather Thompson Heather Thompson
Oscar Nicol Schwartz OscarNicolSchwarz

If you’d like to join our lovely list of successful Graduates at Dalkeith in October then you still have plenty of time to apply for our The Artists and Makers Market. This event will run in tandem with our Graduate Showcase and brings together contemporary artists, designers and craft makers, taking over the ground floor of Dalkeith Palace. Work should be original and for sale directly to the public. We welcome emerging and established practitioners working across all disciplines.

For more information please visit our website,
Deadline for applications: 31 August 2026 📆

07/08/2026

MEMBERS NEWS

Black, White & Grey: A group exhibition exploring a colourless palette. Featuring returning member Vicky Neil and new graduate award recipient Joe Neil.

23 July - 29 August at Tinker Gallery

Opening Times:
Thursday - Saturday 10am to 4pm
Other hours by appointment

Vicky Neil

06/08/2026

Visual Arts Scotland invites you to join us for the closing event of the VAS Strata exhibition at Wasps Inverness Creative Academy on Monday 31st August 4 - 6pm.

This informal gathering is a chance for exhibiting artists, VAS members, local artists and galleries to meet, connect and celebrate the exhibition. Artwork collection will also take place at the end of the event from 6 - 7pm.

To book your place at the closing event, please sign up via the link in our bio to let us know you are attending and if you will be collecting your work (as per the exhibition information artwork can also be collected on Tuesday 1st September in person or on Wednesday 2nd September by approved courier).

Date: Monday 31st August 2026
Time: 4pm - 6pm Closing Event (followed by 6pm - 7pm slot when attending artists can take home exhibited work)
Venue: Inverness Creative Academy, Stephens Street, Inverness, IV2 3JP

📷:

04/08/2026

MEMBERS NEWS

Artists at Patriothall brings together 32 artists and makers working across painting, printmaking, ceramics, jewellery, mosaic, tapestry, photography and mixed media.

Admission is free, and the venue is wheelchair-accessible. Open daily 11:00 - 17:00

From 8 - 23 August 2026

Patriothall Studios (Fringe venue 607)
Wasps Patriothall
Stockbridge, Edinburgh
EH3 5AY

Sarah Knox

30/07/2026

As we open submissions for our upcoming Annual Exhibition, we are looking back on our 2025 Annual Exhibition and commending our 22 talented prize-winners:

James Birbeck - Scottish Furniture Makers Association Award
Lin Chau - Sally Schofield Award
Anne Plutshack - Anne Redpath Award
Roxy Russell - SSWA Special Award
Wei Lin - Powderhall Bronze Foundry Award
Blake Milteer and Ola Rek - W Gordon Smith Award
Cavan Reed-O’Connor - Open Eye Gallery Award
Joanne Soroka - Craft Scotland Award
Sana Obaid - Boom Saloon Arts and Social Change Award
Vincent Deighan - Stern Award
Liza Green - Leith School of Art Principal’s Award
Lynne Hocking - Richard Coley Award
Molly Kent - Applied Arts Scotland Award
Leigh Bagley - Upright Gallery Award
Lucy Roscoe - Nancy Graham Memorial Book Award
Astrid Wigand - Lily McDougall Award
Aileen Grant - Scottish Art Club Award

Our extensive list of awards offer artists: monetary funds, membership to art bodies, exhibition opportunities and recognition for outstanding work in their chosen field. Press coverage for the exhibition was rife and helped advertise the brilliant work of our lively community to a wider audience.

The Annual Exhibition is Visual Arts Scotland’s flagship exhibition, bringing together outstanding work from across the visual arts and craft. We welcome submissions in all media from artists and makers at every stage of their careers.

The open call for our next Annual Exhibition is now live. For more information please visit our website 📖

Deadline for submissions: 28th August 2026, 5pm

📷: Colin Hattersley

25/07/2026

Join VAS for an in-person visit to the Wilhelmina Barnes Graham Trust, kindly hosted by Trust Director Rob Airey.

Wilhelmina Barnes-Graham (1912-2004) was a Scottish artist, leading member of the St. Ives group of artists and made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of post-war British art. This is a fantastic chance to explore the life, work and archive of the artist as well as connect with fellow Visual Arts Scotland members at the Trust archive in Edinburgh.

Accessibility: There is limited free parking at the venue. The event will be held on the first floor. There is a chair lift but no lift or disabled toilet provision.

The event is free but ticketed and for VAS members only. Tickets will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. Please book your ticket on Eventbrite (link in our bio).

Date: Thursday 27th August 2026
Time: 6 - 8pm
Venue: Wilhelmina Barnes Graham Trust, 77 Brunswick Street, Edinburgh, EH7 5HS

Image Credit: Photo by Simon Norfolk

Visual Arts Scotland

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