Landscape Open 2025

Salisbury Museum is surrounded by landscapes and monuments which have inspired generations of artists. Given this importance, it seems appropriate that the museum is the setting for an open competition that celebrates the evolving relationship that artists have towards the landscape.

The exhibition contains a diverse range of landscapes in a multitude of styles and media, reflecting the multifaceted relationships artists have to place, and the range of talented artists working within the established genre.

80 artworks have been selected for the group exhibition from nearly 2,000 works that were submitted.

The winning artist was awarded £1,000, as well as a solo show at the Salisbury Museum, providing them with an exceptional opportunity for artistic recognition and exposure. Students were also able to win the Student Mentoring Prize, designed to provide them with expert guidance to help steer their artistic practice.

The winners were announced at the private view of the exhibition on Friday 17 October 2025:

Main Prize: Sophie Bartlett 

Student Mentoring Prize: Katharina Wilhelm 

Highly commended: Emily Faludy and Caroline Mackintosh

The selected works can be see here. Most of them are for sale.

The selection panel of judges were:

Alex Langlands, Associate Professor of History and Heritage at Swansea University and Sunday Times Best Selling author.

Adrian Green, Director of the Salisbury Museum, responsible for launching its temporary exhibition programme.

Akash Bhatt, St Martin’s Graduate artist whose work has been shown in a range of exhibitions such as the BP Portrait Award and the Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize.

Louise Balaam, esteemed landscape painter and member of the New English Art Club, whose work has featured in the Summer Exhibition, the Threadneedle prize and the ING Discerning Eye.

Sam Smiles, Honorary Professor at the University of Exeter, whose research and publications are focused on British Landscape painting.

Adrian Green, Museum Director said: ‘Salisbury Museum is delighted to be taking part in this new initiative. We have a long track record in putting on exhibitions dedicated to landscape, which have included works by artists ranging from John Constable to Jeremy Deller. The open feels like the logical next step which will celebrate the best contemporary work inspired by this genre.’

The exhibition is open to the public from 18 October 2025 – 25 January 2026 in the main exhibition gallery.

Image: FIELD by Emily Faludy