Old Grocery Art Space
Contemporary Creativity in a Victorian Setting
48 High Street Wivenhoe
May 2026
12 Printmakers
Thursday 21 May to Tuesday 26 May
Established in 1984 by professional artists in Colchester, 12PM will exhibit at Old Grocery for the first time this week with a dynamic showcase of contemporary printmaking. Comprising experienced artists and educators, the group features members of the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers, the Printmakers Council, and the Society of Wood Engravers.
While rooted in East Anglia with strong links to local creative hubs like Gainsborough House and Cuckoo Farm Studios, 12PM artists exhibit widely, from the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition to international venues. United not by a single style but by technical mastery and individual creativity, the group explores a rich diversity of methods—from traditional etching, wood engraving, and lino cutting to modern silk screen, collagraph, and monoprint.
Join us at Old Grocery to experience this formidable collection of artistry and constant experimentation.
June 2026
Blackwater Polytechnic & The Grange Projects
Spacetime: Awkward;-)
The Blackwater Polytechnic is an exhibiting collective and informal educational establishment based in North Essex. It began when artists Ben Coode-Adams and Freddie Robins started converting a sixteenth century timber framed barn to live and work in. There was a need to retrain in order to be able to complete the project as envisioned, so the Polytechnic was born. The Polytechnic combines construction, farming, forestry, art, craft and collecting with a strong focus on the local and collaboration. We believe that people are only interesting in conversation with each other.
Blackwater Polytechnic has been self-sufficient and self-sustaining since its inception. We have established our own rigorous theoretical aesthetic framework based on expediency, matter-of-factness, substance and a gung-ho ‘let’s get this party started’ attitude. We think it is interesting and new. We equate quality with hard work, attention to detail, very fine sanding and beautiful knitting.
We are strongly rooted in our locale. Essex is a county with a rich Utopian history. People come here to make things better. Successions of pioneers have built their own dreams on the margins of everything. Here people respect fiercely each other’s right to an individual vision. We do our own thing and come together over shared kinship, and dirt, shooting, horses, cars, and bikes, heels, short skirts, fish pedicures, ale, and giant car-boot sales. We may look a bit like you. We are not you.
Saturday 13 June 12-5pm
Sunday 14 June 12-5pm
Thursday 18 – Sunday 21 June 12-5pm
Phil Davis Presents
‘CONSPIRATORS’ Exhibition
23 June – 29 June
10am to 5:00 pm everyday
Three things to make better artists:
Risk Taking – Breaking the Habit – Liberation
PhiL Davis
A self confessed flaneur and Conspirator, author of ‘Damage in Art’ and ’Sensational Tales’ will be giving homage to the Ford Capri, ’The Car You Always Promised Yourself’.
Paul Warren
Maverick Designer, Artist, Croft Builder, Cultural Survivalist, Jazz Musician and Conspirator. Paul will be showing work using ‘Roof Lead’. Herculean, groundbreaking pieces that could be seen in a Greek mythological play. Paul’s work goes beyond digital, pokes fun at AI. He will also be talking about his search for freedom.
Joe Lichtenstein
Artist, Theatre Director, Animator, Polymath and Conspirator. Currently, U.K. Tour Director for ’The Spy Who Came in From the Cold’. Joe’s showing some rare collectable paintings – so it’s a great opportunity to invest now! Joe leads the new young post Brit artists, his work hangs globally.
July 2026
Ian Longhurst
Tuesday 30 June – Friday 3 July
10am-5pm Everyday
Ian Longhurst, a Suffolk-born self-taught artist, has nurtured a lifelong passion for native bird life. Growing up surrounded by birds, he developed his artistic skills while working as a builder. Inspired by his memories and experiences, Ian uses photography to ensure accuracy and create atmosphere in his paintings. He particularly enjoys working with gouache and incorporates unique elements like fence posts and ironwork to enhance his bird depictions. Available for commissions, Ian offers custom work featuring individuals’ favorite garden birds, along with certified limited edition prints for those seeking more accessible options.
Antony Johae & Sue Wallace-Shaddad
An Evening of Poetry – Friday 3 July 6.30-8.30pm
Antony Johae and Sue Wallace-Shaddad will read from their recent work. Respectively , Lines on Lebanon (a prose memoir)and Once There Was Colour (a collection of poems on war-torn Sudan), both published by Palewell Press.
