attenborough arts autumn spring programme
Attenborough Arts Centre’s new season launch is their largest yet! The programme features a range of thought-provoking exhibitions, performances, and artist-led creative courses and workshops, delivering on the organisation’s mission of ‘Art For All’.
Earlier this year Attenborough Arts Centre was awarded £899k from the government and Arts Council England’s Creative Foundations Fund for a refurbishment of its 30-year-old building. The designs are being directly shaped by the organisation’s communities and will include a range of new accessibility features including a new Changing Places bathroom for disabled users, power-assisted doors as well as new spaces for artists and communities, optimising both visitor experience and environmental sustainability. The work will begin in November 2026, finishing in Spring 2027.
Due to the upcoming refurbishment works, the venue’s new programme will run from Autumn 2026 to Spring 2027. Attenborough Arts Centre will remain open to its communities throughout, offering a range of exhibitions, performances, creative courses, learning programmes and more, although sections of the building will be closed to the public for periods of time while the work takes place. Attenborough Arts Centre will re-open before the 30th anniversary of the centre’s opening by Lord Richard Attenborough and Princess Diana.
Opening the new season, a new exhibition from Leicester artist Jemisha Maadhavji will launch in Gallery 2. From 9 October 2026 to 14 March 2027, the acclaimed portrait artist will present her latest exhibition, I Dream From Where You Are. The show brings together painting and sculpture, as the work explores portraiture and identity, reflecting upon the artist’s concept of luxury and its connection to nature. Based in Leicester and of Indian heritage, Maadhavji draws on the vibrancy of her diverse neighbourhood. Sari shops, hand-embroidered and block-printed textiles, and Indian confectioners act as a reference point for the vivid colour and intricate patterns in her work. Previously her work was selected for Bloomberg New Contemporaries 2022, and in 2023, she created a portrait of NHS junior doctor, Grace Spence Green, for the BBC series Extraordinary Portraits.
Attenborough Arts Centre’s new season also brings a range of artist-led creative courses and workshops, taking place in the studios and main hall until November and then moving into Gallery 1 during the building works. These includes Digital Art: A Beginners Workshop for iPad and Procreate in a Gallery Setting, where participants can learn the basics of creating digitally with help from Leicester artist Rosie Johnson. Explore the world of music with Jazz Performance, led by tutor Richard Everitt, to gain confidence in improvisation and performing in a jazz group. Later in the season, take part in a Kinusaiga Workshop with local crafter Bonita Keay, to learn a Japanese textile art that resembles stained glass designs. In the winter months, Attenborough Arts Centre will be hosting a range of festive workshops that are perfect for creating unique gifts and decorations for the season including Festive Fused Glass Decorations, Mosaic Robins and Wreath Making Workshops.
Attenborough Arts Centre remains committed to its mission of ‘Art for All’ by offering a range of courses and workshops at different price points, with concessions to ensure greater access to the programme. By working with local artists as tutors, the centre also supports Leicester’s ever-growing community of creatives to further their own practice while imparting their knowledge base.
This autumn the venue has a variety of exciting upcoming performances such ascomedian Lucy Porter’s Let Yourself Go! A festival favourite and mainstay of TV panel shows, Porter returns with a new show about the power of letting yourself go in this hilarious show, 26 September. On Friday 16 October, the centre’s ever-popular takeover event Attenborough Late takes place, so expect an evening of contemporary art, live performances, DJs, food and plenty of opportunities to get involved. Meanwhile, theatre company One Tenth Human will present So Unfair! – an interactive science demo for kids that needs you to take on some big challenges and help them save the day, 24 October. At the Leicester Cathedral, the centre will be working with The Sitar Music Society to present 'String Beats': An Evening of Indian Classical Music and Timeless Melodies. Rooted in Indian classical music, this concert reimagines familiar melodies in unexpected ways, blending tradition with creativity, 25 October.
Even after all of these Creative Courses, Exhibitions and Performances, Attenborough Arts Centre still has more to offer, with its ever-popular Craft & Art Fair, 31 October, that enables visitors to meet and support over 50 makers and artists across the region who will be selling a wide range of art and crafts.
Each weekend Attenborough Arts Centre hosts a range of events tailored by our team to make getting creative and experiencing new opportunities easier than ever. Whether you want to try something hands-on in the Saturday Gallery Art Clubs or connect more with local organisations and artists at the venue’s Sunday Sessions – these programmes are open to all ages and are offered as free or Pay What You Can.
With such a range of events on offer, there is sure to be something for everyone this season at Attenborough Arts Centre!