Forget the galleries and museums—some of Birmingham’s best art is hiding behind closed doors. But for two weekends every year, Birmingham Open Studios (BOS) welcomes the public inside for the city’s biggest annual arts trail, for free. Now in its ninth year, BOS brings together artists from across Birmingham.
Birmingham Open Studios 2026 will welcome thousands on September 26 & 27 and October 3 & 4, 11am-5pm each day, into the spaces where art is actually made. From painting, jewellery and sculpture to glass, textiles, doll-making and traditional blacksmithing, the 2026 trail offers an extraordinary range of creative practices.
You will meet the artists, and buy their work, everywhere from Cradley Heath to Shirley, Erdington to Barnt Green, and in between. Many participating artists will be demonstrating their work, offering visitors a rare opportunity to see techniques and processes normally behind closed doors.
“I’ve been a proud ambassador of Birmingham Open Studios for years now, and think it’s a brilliant and unique way of seeing the incredible art our city has to offer,” said Joe Lycett. “It’s the best opportunity to nosey round people’s studios, homes, print presses, sheds and more to see what incredible (and sometimes quite weird) things they’ve made.”
This year, BOS has aimed to welcome more disabled artists and artists from low-income households, thanks to financial support from WMCA. While a refugee women’s craft group, Shelanu, will also be taking part, adding another perspective to the diverse creative community represented across this year’s trail.
“Birmingham Open Studios is about changing the way we see and experience art in our city,” said BOS Founder Owen de Visser. “There are no red velvet ropes and no expectation that art can only be experienced in galleries or traditional exhibition spaces. We open the doors to the places where art is actually made, and we open doors for artists to develop their practices and businesses too.”
The 2026 event also sees BOS continuing to expand the range of organisations and groups involved. For the first time, educational facilities are participating in the trail, including a group exhibition courtesy of Coventry University Fine Art, and the Royal Photographic Society’s Central Region.
To learn more about participating artists and studios, grab a guidebook from select local galleries, libraries, and cafes, or download the free mobile app by heading here.
