Bow Arts

Bow Arts We nurture London’s diverse creativity & talent - creating opportunities to work & enjoy the arts Opening hours: Tues to Sun, 10am-5pm.

Bow Arts was established in 1995 as an artist studio provider and is the home of the public and free contemporary art space, the Nunnery Gallery. Established by Marcel Baettig and with the support of Marc Schimmel, Bow Arts moved into its now renowned Bow Road premises, formed of two adjoining buildings, and started providing artists’ studios on the site. In 1996 The Trust became a registered educ

ational charity and a company limited by guarantee. The educational programme, run by Bow Arts, offers employment opportunities to artists that allows them to pay their rent and develop creative skills at the same time. At present, Bow Arts houses over 500 artists in eleven artists across east and south east London. Bow Arts also supports artists through our sponsorship of the London’s Artist Quarter and Artist Studio Finder websites. The Nunnery Gallery and Carmelite Cafe are based at 181 Bow Road, London E3 2SJ. The Bow Arts offices are located at 183 Bow Road, London E3 2SJ. Open: Mon to Fri. 9am-5pm. Tube: Bow Road
DLR: Bow Church

Discover more about our artist residencies in schools.We collaborate with schools to bring artists into classrooms for i...
18/06/2026

Discover more about our artist residencies in schools.

We collaborate with schools to bring artists into classrooms for inspiring, long-term residencies where students can learn and create alongside a professional artist.

Since September 2025, artist educator Reza Ben Gajra has been at Grafton Primary School in Islington, leading an ambitious, whole-school programme that’s reached all 480 pupils.

Reza has taken a creative, connected approach to learning - using art to explore everything from feelings and robots to the environment, Canaletto’s paintings, traditional tales, Anglo-Saxon armoury and Japanese culture. Along the way, pupils have experimented with a wide mix of techniques, including stop-motion, silhouette animation, sculpture, drawing and painting.

Working closely with class teachers, Reza delivered weekly sessions across the school, building strong relationships with students and becoming a familiar, inspiring face in every classroom.

Read the full story in this month’s blog and learn how each year group has grown in their skills, confidence and creativity every step of the way.
https://bowarts.org/projects-stories/artists-in-schools/?utm_source=hootsuite&utm_medium=facebook&utm_term=bow%20arts&utm_content=3b7deada-dd1d-4d78-8d11-c2b3a3eae007&utm_campaign=ELAP2628

📸Grafton Primary School projects

We are proud to be a member of Own Art!Own Art is an affordable art scheme that allows buyers to spread the cost of a an...
16/06/2026

We are proud to be a member of Own Art!

Own Art is an affordable art scheme that allows buyers to spread the cost of a an artwork across 10 interest-free instalments.

You can browse works for sale this weekend at our Bowfest: Bow Road Open Studios!

Visit the Nunnery Gallery to explore the works of 25 artists at the Bow Open exhibition, or purchase artwork directly from Bow Road studio artists.

Explore some of the works for sale in the Bow Open exhibition:
1. Mark Beldan, ‘Yellow Sofa’ (2022) £1200 (Own Art: £120 a month for 10 months)
2. Alison P. O'Reilly, ‘Grandma’ (2026) £950, (Own Art: £95 a month for 10 months)
3. Eleanor Burkett Grasslands, Sedges and Hedgerows (2024), £640 (Own Art: £64 a month for 10 months)
4. Lucile Haefflinger Woolwich Market (2025) £1,000, (Own Art: £100 a month for 10 months)

You can find out more information about Bowfest and the Bow Open exhibition on our website, link in bio.

📸Image credit: Rob Harris

About Own Art
0% APR. 10 monthly payments. Minimum spend £250. Creative Sector Services CIC trading as Creative United delivers the Own Art scheme and is not a lender. Credit is available on eligible works, subject to status and affordability, and is provided by Mitsubishi HC Capital UK PLC.

Bow Open Workshop: pressed flowers making with Roxana GutilaInterested in preserving flowers? 💮Join artist Roxana Gutila...
13/06/2026

Bow Open Workshop: pressed flowers making with Roxana Gutila

Interested in preserving flowers? 💮

Join artist Roxana Gutila as she guides you through a pressed flower workshop that links to her work inside the 2026 Bow Open exhibition, ‘Spring Impression’ (2026).

Experiment using a mini flower press to preserve your flowers, then design and frame your delicate floral creations and take them home with you!

🗓️ Saturday 11th July, 2:00pm to 5:00pm
📍Bow Arts Trust Courtyard, 183 Bow Road, London, E3 2SJ
🎟️Tickets required! Standard ticket: £25, Concession: £20
🔗Book your space today on our website.

📸Roxana Gutila’s workshop at Rum Factory Open Studios. Photo by Hydar Dewachi.

Bow Arts’ event of the summer is just 1 week away!Visit our Bow Road artist studios to meet over 100 artists, designers,...
12/06/2026

Bow Arts’ event of the summer is just 1 week away!

Visit our Bow Road artist studios to meet over 100 artists, designers, and makers as they exhibit their practice to the public.

As well as the artist studios, there will be lots of activity to get involved in across the two days of Bowfest, including:

🎨 A makers’ market with local artists selling artworks, gifts, and more
🖼️ A guided exhibition tour and drop-in visits to the Bow Open exhibition at the Nunnery Gallery
🎶Live jazz music in the Bow Arts Courtyard
🖍️A free, family-friendly Bow Families drop-in art workshop
🥤Refreshments including freshly made falafels from Falafel Time, and a range of drinks and snacks from our Nunnery Café
& more!

Bowfest: Bow Road Open Studios
📅 Fri 19 June 6-9pm, Sun 20 June 11am-4pm
📍 Bow Arts Trust, 181-183 Bow Road, London, E3 2SJ
🎟️ Free! RSVP on our website, link in bio

Image credit: Bethany Parkinson

Delve into a world of creativity this July at the artist-led Leyton High Road Open Studios!See inside 18 unique artist s...
11/06/2026

Delve into a world of creativity this July at the artist-led Leyton High Road Open Studios!

See inside 18 unique artist studios connect with these talented artists to experience their works up close:

Miguel Lobo Soriana, Haydn Albrow, Melina Merlin, Harriet Jones, Jekaterina Kazakevica, James Fearon Gold, Iella Attard, Elicia McKenzie, Lesley Sharpe, Lee Milne, Sean Orr, Natasha Awuku Williams, Ellen Sampson, Tessa Garland, Dominika Prinzova, Magnus Ayers, and Alice Sherlock.

The Leyton High Road studios will also be a part of this year’s Leytonstone Arts Trail, a celebrated community-led festival that transforms Leytonstone and its surrounding areas into a vibrant arts festival. You will be able to see us within the whole Arts Trail community on the Leytonstone Arts Trail website later in June.

🔗 You can find out more information on our website
📅 Saturday 11th July 2026, 11am-5pm
📍 Leyton High Road, 452 High Road, London, E10 6QE
🎟️ Free! Drop-in

📸Bethany Parkinson

Our final Teacher CPD session of the season is just around the corner. To celebrate the Nunnery Gallery’s Bow Open 2026,...
10/06/2026

Our final Teacher CPD session of the season is just around the corner.

To celebrate the Nunnery Gallery’s Bow Open 2026, we’re inviting teachers and art educators to a special evening featuring a Private View and workshop with artist Yuliya V Krylova.

Bow Open is our annual showcase of bold, exciting work from Bow Arts artists - this year made even more dynamic through our collaboration with young curators from Mile End Community Project.

Join us for a relaxed evening exploring the exhibition, connecting with fellow creative educators and taking part in a drop-in workshop packed with ideas for participatory art and hands-on activities you can bring straight into your classroom.

We’d love to see you there!

📍 Educators’ Private View: Bow Open 2026 with Yuliya V Krylova
📅 Tuesday 23 June
⏰ 5.30–7.30pm
📌 Nunnery Gallery, 183 Bow Road, London E3 2SJ
💸FREE
🎟️ Click the link to book – booking highly recommended! https://bowarts.org/wp-admin/post.php?post=25481&action=edit&utm_source=hootsuite&utm_medium=facebook&utm_term=bow%20arts&utm_content=33c83923-de4a-43cb-aad8-c2952c32b2b1&utm_campaign=ELAP2628

Boost your knowledge with our artists CPD programme: learn about DIY residencies and building participatory practices, j...
09/06/2026

Boost your knowledge with our artists CPD programme: learn about DIY residencies and building participatory practices, join our cross-disciplinary artists networking in Thamesmead, re-imagine city landscapes with poetry and get insights on bid writing & arts fundraising!

💡WED 8 JUL - Workshop: DIY residencies with Cristiana Bottigella

💡THU 16 JUL - Workshop: building participatory art practices with Lydia Newman

💡THU 6 AUG - Social: artists networking and cross-disciplinary exchange with Studio Current (Thamesmead)

💡SAT 5 SEP - Workshop: re-imagining city landscapes with poetry and wandering with Jazzy Green

💡WED 16 SEP - Workshop: bid writing and arts fundraising with Kim Pearce – an Arts Council England special

Images by Sandra Lam & Jane Lam.

Find out more via the link in our bio.

Are you looking for artist residency opportunities? Rather than relying on competitive or inaccessible opportunities, ha...
08/06/2026

Are you looking for artist residency opportunities? Rather than relying on competitive or inaccessible opportunities, have you ever thought about creating your own residency?

Join art producer Cristiana Bottigella for an interactive and reflective workshop, designed for artists who want to reclaim agency over their time, focus, and working conditions.

🗓️Wednesday 8th July 2026, 6:00pm to 8:00pm
📍Bow Arts Trust Courtyard Room, 183 Bow Road, London, E3 2SJ
🎟️Standard ticket: £7, Concession: £5

Since spring term, our Poplar Consortium teachers have been switching things up 🎨✨ - stepping away from the front of the...
08/06/2026

Since spring term, our Poplar Consortium teachers have been switching things up 🎨✨ - stepping away from the front of the classroom to become learners themselves and develop confidence in their art-skills through our CPD sessions.

By the end of summer term, we’ll have worked with 100+ teachers across our six consortia schools 🙌

Here’s what they’ve been getting up to so far:

🖊️ Lansbury Lawrence – building confidence with drawing techniques, materials and art vocabulary alongside artist Emma Jacobs
🎨 Mayflower – exploring drawing and painting ideas that work across different year groups with artist Amy Barnes
🌊 Wellington – diving into watercolours, colour mixing and brush techniques with artist Heather Libson
📚 Malmesbury – rethinking sketchbooks and creative progression across year groups with artist Julie Vermeille

The feedback? Lots of smiles, new skills… and lots of fun along the way.

Here’s what teachers loved most:

💬 “How to make art less scary!”
💬“Ways of taking the pressure off a blank page.”
💬“I get quite anxious about drawing, but this was so relaxing… I want to apply that to anxious children in my class.”
💬“Gave me amazing ideas to try - thank you!”

Fancy bringing a CPD art session to your school? 🎒

Find how to get involved https://bowarts.org/schools-colleges/teacher-cpd/?utm_source=hootsuite&utm_medium=facebook&utm_term=bow%20arts&utm_content=df07dbe8-68e9-4b32-a191-d1ecba0fce5e&utm_campaign=ELAP2628

Although we’re looking towards our next East London Art Prize (ELAP) with our live Open Call, you can still join us for ...
07/06/2026

Although we’re looking towards our next East London Art Prize (ELAP) with our live Open Call, you can still join us for events from the last ELAP cohort!

Join artist duo dmstfctn for a special last evening live performance of their interactive simulation-based work, ‘Waluigi’s Purgatory’ (2024) that tells the story of an AI that finds itself in a purgatory for AI’s that cheated during training.

Held in the UCL East Cinema, this interactive performance invites the audience the guide the AI through it’s encounters by making choices of its behalf using their phone.

🗓️Thursday 23rd June, 6-8pm
📍UCL East Community Cinema. 1 Pool Street, London, E20 2AF
🎟️ Free, please RSVP on our website
📸 Rob Harris

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183 Bow Road
London
E32SJ

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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+442089807774

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