Bringing together artists with and without a learning-disability, the pARTnership is a creative and professional development project being delivered by Grundy Art Gallery, The New Langdale learning disability day service in Blackpool, contemporary artist Tina Dempsey with peer support from Venture Arts in Manchester. It is funded by Arts Council England, via Grundy Art Gallery’s National Portfolio agreement.

The project currently takes the form of artist-led weekly workshops focusing on the sharing of skills, ideas and the development of new work, research and development visits to contemporary art exhibitions, organisations and events, and public facing outputs such as exhibitions, art fair participation and public facing workshops, tours and talks led by the pARTnership artists.

Over the seven years that the project has been in development, artists from the pARTnership have exhibited their work locally, nationally and internationally. Artists from the pARTnership are represented by commercial galleries, and their work has been acquired in a number of private collections. In addition work by artists from the pARTnership has also been acquired into public collections such as Stacey Foster, whose work was acquired into Manchester Art Gallery’s permanent collection through The Manchester Contemporary Art Fund 2023.

 

Work by pARTnership artists will be presented at The Manchester Contemporary art fair from 21-23 November 2025. Work by artists from the pARTnership is also on display in Blackpool up to 20 December as part of Grundy Art Gallery’s autumn 2025 programme.

You can also follow the pARTnership’s activity via Instagram @thepartnership