Hull Open Studios 2026: A Browse route through the city’s creative spaces
Hull Open Studios returns on Saturday 2 May with free entry, talks, workshops and more than 30 artists and studios opening their doors across the city…
Hull Open Studios: a route through the city’s creative spaces
This Saturday, Hull’s artists, makers, studios and creative spaces open their doors.
Here’s how to turn Hull Open Studios into a proper day out.
Hull Open Studios is one of those days that works best when you leave a bit of room to wander. On Saturday 2 May, more than 30 artists and studios are opening up across the city, with free entry, talks, workshops and a chance to see what usually sits behind closed doors: works in progress, materials, tools, half-finished ideas, studio shelves, print tables, sketches, ceramics, conversations and the quieter everyday labour of making.
That is the value of it. This is not just a show-and-sell trail. It is a chance to step inside the spaces where Hull’s creative work actually happens — from Humber Street and High Street to Francis Street, Beverley Road, Princes Avenue and beyond.
Whether you are an artist, a student, a regular gallery visitor or just curious about what happens inside the city’s studios, Hull Open Studios is a useful snapshot of the people and places shaping Hull’s visual and creative culture right now.
Start around Humber Street
For a simple first route, start around Humber Street, where several spaces sit close together and give a good introduction to the day.
Humber Street Gallery is the natural starting point. Alongside the wider trail, the gallery is hosting the Hull Open Studios Talks programme, with two sessions through the day: Studio Exchange from 12–1pm with Dinosaur Kilby, Sarah Pennington and Dan Russell, followed by Studio Support from 3–4pm with Adele Howitt and Wes Foster.
From there, you can move between Studio Eleven, Juice Studios and nearby Old Town stops without the day feeling too planned. Juice Studios is especially strong for anyone interested in process: it is opening its studio spaces with resident illustrators, painters, printmakers and designers, and visitors can expect works in progress, tools, sketches and original pieces available directly from artists.
Also nearby, IFA@Bond31 on High Street and Feral Art School on Alfred Gelder Street make this part of the route a good city-centre loop for people who want a mix of gallery, studio and independent creative education.
Add the Francis Street loop
If you want the day to feel less like a straight gallery visit and more like a proper studio trail, build in the Francis Street and Caroline Place stops.
This area brings together several different types of creative space, including Atelier 8, 25 Francis Street, Hull Artist Research Initiative and Hull Dance CIC. It is a useful reminder that Hull’s creative scene is not housed in one polished district. It is spread across shared rooms, upstairs spaces, working studios and community buildings.
This is where the route becomes more interesting editorially: not just what is being shown, but how artists in Hull find space, share space and keep making work in a city where creative infrastructure matters.
Make time for the next generation
One of this year’s strongest additions is Hull School of Art & Design at Hull College, which is opening studios and workshop spaces as part of the trail.
For visitors, it is a chance to see student work across different disciplines and get a look at how creative practice is being developed in the city now. For Browse, it also makes the day more than a weekend listing. It connects the public trail to the next wave of Hull artists, designers and makers.
If you are building your own route, this is a strong stop for anyone thinking about creative study, early-career practice or where Hull’s future creative workforce is coming from.
Head west for print, community and independent spaces
The trail also stretches beyond the city centre. Around Princes Avenue, Artlink Hull / 87 Gallery and Misc Print Co give the day a wider neighbourhood feel, with visual art, print and community-led creative activity sitting outside the Humber Street orbit.
Further stops include The Art Factory at Square Peg Hull, Angela Bell, Ground on Beverley Road, Liz Dees at ScrapStore Studios and Lewis Hart at Salter House.
You do not need to do everything. Pick a route that makes sense for your day: a compact city-centre loop, a studio-heavy route, a student-and-maker route, or a slower west Hull trail with time for food, coffee and a proper look around.
Hull Open Studios gives people a reason to look at the city differently.
Studios are not always visible from the street. A lot of creative work happens upstairs, behind shutters, down side streets, in shared buildings, in education spaces and in rooms people rarely get invited into. Opening those doors changes the relationship between artists and audiences. It makes the work feel closer, more human and more rooted in place.
It also matters for the independent economy. Buying a print, commissioning a piece, joining a workshop, following an artist, talking to a studio provider or simply understanding where the work is made all helps build the kind of local cultural ecosystem that does not happen by accident.
So use the map, but do not overplan it. Start somewhere, follow the doors, ask questions and let the route show you a version of Hull that is usually working quietly in the background.
Browse route suggestions
The easy city-centre route
Humber Street Gallery → Studio Eleven → Juice Studios → IFA@Bond31 → Feral Art School → Hull School of Art & Design
Best for: first-time visitors, families, casual gallery-goers, people who want a walkable route.
The studio-process route
Juice Studios → Atelier 8 → 25 Francis Street → Hull Artist Research Initiative → Hull Dance CIC
Best for: artists, students, makers and anyone interested in how work is made.
The neighbourhood route
Artlink Hull / 87 Gallery → Misc Print Co → The Art Factory at Square Peg Hull → Ground → Angela Bell
Best for: people who want to move beyond the city-centre trail and connect Open Studios to Hull’s wider creative geography.
The talks-and-context route
Humber Street Gallery for Studio Exchange, then nearby studios, then back for Studio Support.
Best for: people who want more conversation around practice, support and how creative careers actually work.
BROWSE Before you go
Check the official HULL OPEN STUDIOS MAP before setting off:
Some stops are individual artist spaces, some are studios and some are wider creative venues, so opening arrangements and access may vary. Wear comfortable shoes, leave room between stops and bring cash or card if you want to buy work directly from artists.
