Sixty artists take over Brighton landmark in new exhibition

The Kellie Miller Arts Gallery has transformed the former Dockerills hardware store on Church Street into a creative hub.

Its first Open Call show mixes new local talent with established artists.

Gallery owner Kellie Miller opened the “beautiful building” to the community to celebrate its place in Brighton’s history.

The new show launched on February 13 (Image: The Argus)

She said: “As a standalone independent gallery, there are only so many people the gallery can represent.

“We felt it important to share the opportunities this beautiful building presents with the greater artistic community, so we invited artists from across the region to submit.”

The building has deep local roots, from the Prince Regent’s estate to decades as a family-run hardware store.

It now holds paintings, photography, textiles and sculpture.

Brighton artist Jim Naughten is among the picks, after showing work at the National Portrait Gallery and the Wellcome Collection.

He is showing pieces from his Biophilia series, an AI project that looks beyond surface beauty.

The exhibition mixes experienced and newly emerging local artists (Image: The Argus)

Also on show are textured abstract paintings by Rosalind Lymer and Neolithic-style ceramic vessels by Dee Harvey.

Dean Grossmith’s urban black-and-white photos sit alongside Sam Beck’s mixed-media work.

Crowds packed the venue for a lively launch party on Friday, February 13, starting the six-week run.

The exhibition is open daily and free to enter. It runs until March 30, 2026.

A spokesperson for the gallery said: “Culminating in an outstanding representation of Sussex artistic talent, the exhibition showcases the variety and diversity of original art, particularly in a region with such a rich and evolving artistic history.

“Painting, photography, original print, textiles, sculpture and ceramics have been selected from 60 artists ranging from emerging to those more established.”

The gallery showcases work over two floors (Image: The Argus)

Later this year, the gallery will stage shows by painter David Hayward and sculptor Anna Barlow.

In 2025, the gallery moved from Market Street to 3 Church Street, a shift it said would double its floor space.

Dockerills, the family-run hardware shop that previously occupied the unit, traced its roots to 1915 and closed its last Church Street store in September 2024.