Celebrating female resilience through art, sport & storytelling

We’re inviting open-call submissions for Touchlines of Fortitude – a high-profile physical and online exhibition that will be part of a vibrant programme of cultural arts events running across the Richmond borough this September.

What is Touchlines of Fortitude?

Supported by Arts Council England, Touchlines of Fortitude celebrates the intersection of art, sport and storytelling to celebrate female representation, resilience, empowerment and creativity.

As Touchlines of Fortitude will be taking place with the backdrop of the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, this is a unique opportunity to exhibit alongside a dynamic community of artists, athletes and change-makers at a landmark once-in-a-generation cultural moment for women’s sport. 

We will also be celebrating the most inspirational works from Touchlines of Fortitude - call for writers with awards for the article/essay, story, poem, or any other form of written work.

Touchlines of Fortitude’s guiding theme: female resilience

We’re looking for artworks that explore the many ways in which women rise, persist, endure and transform – whether it’s through sport on the pitch, in a creative studio space, at home or at work, or in the face of personal, social or physical challenges.

Resilience can be quiet or fierce. It can be vibrantly active and dynamic, or it can be calm and passive.

It can take the form of recovery, action, resistance, or healing. This exhibition is a celebration of that strength in all its forms.

Awards

We’re delighted to confirm the prizes for Touchlines of Fortitude Open Call!
Each category winner will receive a £25 Hobbycraft Gift Card, generously provided by our sponsor. These gift cards can be used both in-store and online.

🏆 Category Prizes

• Painting – £25 Hobbycraft Gift Card

• Photography – £25 Hobbycraft Gift Card

• Sculpture – £25 Hobbycraft Gift Card

• Yarn Art – £25 Hobbycraft Gift Card

• Print – £25 Hobbycraft Gift Card

• Ceramics – £25 Hobbycraft Gift Card

• Writing – £25 Hobbycraft Gift Card

• And finally, our Overall “Best in Show” winner will receive a £100 Hobbycraft Gift Card!

We’re thrilled to announce new prizes for our Touchlines of Fortitude Open Call winners, generously contributed by our judge Karen Turner.

✨ All category winners will receive The Art of Instagram Premium (£177) – a guide to using Instagram to sell your art, build your brand, and connect with your audience, even if social media isn’t your thing.

🏆 The main winner will also receive The Strategy Reset (£497) – a framework that helps artists turn strong work into consistent sales, grow their audience, and communicate their message with impact

What sort of works are we looking for? 

We welcome submissions across all media – whether it be painting, photography, yarn art, print, sculpture, or mixed media. Artworks can be figurative or abstract and maximum in width/height  is 50cm. 

It can be about you, or someone you know; a friend, a colleague, someone in your family, or an inspiration from the world of sport, media, culture, charity, business or politics. Equally, artists don’t need to be female to tell a story about female resilience.

You can submit up to 3 Artworks.

The submission fee is non-refundable.

One Artwork £10. 

Up to three artworks £20. 

Please note: although the exhibition will be taking place alongside the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, we don’t necessarily want cover paintings that only celebrate rugby and rugby stars.

This exhibition is about thinking broader and being inspired by all forms and interpretations of female resilience.

When and where will the work be shown?

Work that is selected from the open call will be featured in:

• A physical group exhibition at The Beach Gallery in Teddington

• An online exhibition hosted on our website (fortitude-touchlines.com), reaching wider audiences beyond the gallery walls
  
  

The physical exhibition will take place from Wednesday, 24 September, to Sunday, 5 October.

The online exhibition will be available to view for 12 months (until Oct 2026).

As part of the project, participating artists will receive professional documentation of the exhibition, including high-quality photography and video, to support their portfolios and future opportunities.

Who are the open call judges?

Tabish Khan is an art critic, writer, speaker, podcaster, and curator who passionately believes in making art accessible to everyone. 

Karen Turner is a multi-award-winning figurative artist whose oil paintings challenge bias against larger bodies and explore how cultural expectations limit identity and ambition.

Mark Vellacott is a portrait sculptor and the founder of The Beach gallery in Teddington. 

Agnieszka Lokaj is a contemporary artist and Touchlines of Fortitude curator. 

Who do we expect to attend Touchlines of Fortitude?

By taking place alongside the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, Touchlines of Fortitude also opens itself to up to 82,000 fans set to attend the finals at the Allianz Stadium in Twickenham on and around Saturday 27th September.

Based on this, alongside the vibrant community of 100+ artists who will be directly involved with Touchlines of Fortitude, we expect a minimum of 1,500 people to engage with and attend Touchlines of Fortitude through its exhibitions, events and school outreach programme, with an anticipated online audience of 80,000+ across the year to Oct 2026.

How will we be promoting the event?

We’ve already built a strong network of cultural partners, prominent local arts institutions, charities, schools and local government organisations for Touchlines of Fortitude, helping us amplify the event’s reach through newsletters, press and targeted community engagement.

These include: Orleans House Gallery, Twickenham Art Circle, Richmond Art Society, Richmond Arts Services and Creative United.

We will be promoting Touchlines of Fortitude online and through our soon-to-be-launched social channels, as well as with a comprehensive marketing, press and PR campaign.

Equally, we will be asking artists, speakers and participants to amplify the Touchlines of Fortitude events through their own channels.

KEY DETAILS

Exhibition dates: Wed 24 Sep – Sun 5 Oct
Location: The Beach Gallery, Teddington
Eligibility: Open to all UK-based artists
Media: We welcome artworks across all types of media, including paintings, prints, photography, yarn art, drawings, and 3D works.

This project is funded by Arts Council England and includes two exhibitions, a schools outreach program, a workshop, community storytelling events, and digital legacy content. We invite both emerging and established artists to join us in creating a vibrant and inspiring exhibition.

OPEN-CALL SCHEDULE

Wed 20 Aug: Submission deadline: open-call closes

Wed 27 Aug: Selection online by judging panel

Mon 1 Sep: Shortlist announcement

Sun 21 Sep: Delivery of shortlisted artworks to The Beach Gallery, Teddington

Wed 24 Sep: Press morning

Wed 24 Sep: Private view / networking

Thu 25 Sep: Exhibition opens to public

Sun 28 Sep: Awards announced

Sun 5 Oct: Exhibition closes

Tue 7 Oct: Collection of unsold works

Terms and Conditions

Artists must be aged 18+ and the original creator of the submitted works

Prices must include a 20% gallery commission. Works sold during the exhibition or online are subject to this commission

 All works must be delivered and collected by the artist or their representative

 The gallery accepts no liability for loss or damage — artists are advised to insure their work

 By submitting, artists consent to use of their images for marketing and promotion of the exhibition

 Participation in the online exhibition and online sales platform is optional – please notify us if you wish to opt out

Selection Process

All works will be reviewed by a curatorial panel. Selection will be based on relevance to the theme, artistic quality, and space constraints. The panel's decision is final.

Publicity & Legacy

The exhibition will be promoted via the Touchlines of Fortitude website, social media, newsletters, and local press.

Select artworks may be included in an online shop, and the show will form part of the digital archive celebrating the programme.

See full Terms and Conditions

We look forward to receiving your submissions and celebrating the strength and spirit of women through your art! 

After submitting your first artwork, you will then be directed to make a payment. Select the amount for the number of submissions you would like to make.

If this is more than one, you will then be able to make further submissions by submitting additional forms up to the number of artworks you have paid for.

If you submit more than one artwork, we suggest copying and pasting your artist statement from a different document; otherwise, you will have to type it in repeatedly.