Z Open Exhibition Art Work by Young Bradford Creatives

Artwork submitted by young people, to Bradford Council’s museums and galleries service Gen Z Open 2025 competition, will go on display at Bradford Industrial Museum from 7 December 2025 until 8 March 2026.

This brand-new exhibition supported by Arts Council England, will contain work by young creatives between the ages of 16 and 25 who either live, work or study in the Bradford district. All works will be available for purchase. Pick up an original piece by a young artist for Christmas!

Out of the 97 pieces which were submitted by 47 young artists, 69 pieces have been selected to appear at the exhibition, which is being organised by the Bradford District Museums & Galleries’ Young Ambassadors ‘Generation Z’ cohort. These pieces will be displayed in the main gallery space alongside other artwork which has been created by the Young Ambassadors themselves, and two of the judges.

The winners of the three age categories (16-18 years, 19-21 years and 22-25 years) will be announced at a special event on Sunday 7 December between 1pm and 3pm. The prizes are awarded courtesy of Friends of Bradford Art Galleries and Museums.

Visitors to the exhibition will be able to vote for their favourite artwork, with the winner of the Public’s Choice prize announced on Sunday 25 January 2026 at an event between 1pm and 3pm.

Activity and demonstrations will be held in the exhibition by selected exhibitors. Artworks kindly donated by two of the exhibition judges, Ruth Fettis and Lana Jones, will be the prizes awarded to the winners. Which one will you vote for? The judging panel was made up of Young Ambassadors – Fatima Hoi Yan Chan, Maraki Feleke and Atiyya Mirza.

They were joined by Lana Jones Business Support Assistant for Bradford District Museums and Galleries and Suzanne Rennie from the Friends of Bradford Arts Galleries and Museums as well as local artist printmaker Ruth Fettis.

Young Ambassador, Maraki Feleke, said “I have been working on this project with the rest of our cohort since February. It has been a terrific opportunity to collaborate, learn from others, and contribute to something meaningful in the cultural space. It was so exciting to see such a wide range of submissions this year and the incredible creativity that came through in each piece.”