Date published: 2026-07-15 | Category: Heritage
Bath & North East Somerset Council is inviting families to enjoy a summer of creativity and quality time together at Victoria Art Gallery.
Looking for ways to keep curious minds busy this summer holiday? Victoria Art Gallery in Bath is inviting families to enjoy a summer of imagination, creativity, and hands-on fun.
Managed by Bath & North East Somerset Council, the Gallery's summer programme has been designed to encourage creativity, support wellbeing, and help families spend meaningful time together through shared cultural experiences. From painting and printmaking to family trails and free drop-in activities, there's plenty to inspire young artists and encourage families to explore, create, and connect together.
Get Making This Summer
Children can paint, print, sculpt, colour, and create in Mini Makers sessions, a series of hands-on workshops that give under-11s the chance to experiment, make, and create their own artworks. Whether your child loves getting messy with clay, experimenting with colour or letting their imagination run wild, there's something for every budding creative to enjoy.
Taking place in The Modelling Room, Victoria Art Gallery's dedicated learning and engagement space, each workshop encourages children to explore new materials, experiment with different techniques and create artwork they can proudly take home.
From discovering the magic of printmaking and painting colourful landscapes to sculpting forest mini-beasts from clay and building imaginative 3D worlds, every session is designed to inspire confidence, imagination and self-expression.
Summer Mini Makers Programme
23 July: Cool Printmaking
Experiment with textures, patterns and mark-making to create beautiful prints inspired by acclaimed artist Norman Ackroyd.
29-31 July: Colourful Watercolours
Paint vibrant landscapes using watercolours and watercolour pencils.
5-7 August: Forest Mini-Beast Play with Clay
Create bugs, beasts and woodland creatures from air-dry clay.
12-14 August: Unique Prints
Design and print your own personalised cards to take home.
19-21 August: 3D Landscapes
Build a miniature framed world filled with forest or sea creatures.
Sessions run from 10.30am–12.30pm and cost £5 per participating child.
Free Family Fun Every Week
Looking for a creative afternoon? Families can also enjoy free drop-in activities throughout the holidays.
Create and Colour invites children to experiment with art materials, explore their imaginations and make something unique in a relaxed and friendly setting. No booking is required and all materials are provided.
Themes include landscapes, seascapes, rainbow skies, bookmarks and pop-up creations, giving families plenty of reasons to return throughout the holidays.
Sessions run from 2pm-3pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, and families are welcome to drop in at any time.
Art & Play in the FREE Upper Gallery
Families can enjoy the Gallery's Art Explorers family area in the free-to-visit Upper Gallery, where discovery and play go hand in hand.
Art explorer baskets, dressing-up costumes, colouring activities, arty toys and family trails help bring the collection to life for young visitors, while friendly volunteers are on hand with stickers for budding art lovers. It's a welcoming space where children can ask questions, explore at their own pace and discover that galleries can be places for play as well as creativity.
Discover a World of Light and Landscape
Beyond the hands-on activities, families can also explore Norman Ackroyd: The Transience of Light, a major exhibition that provides inspiration for many of the summer's workshops and activities.
This stunning exhibition celebrates one of Britain's most acclaimed printmakers, whose atmospheric etchings capture dramatic coastlines, vast skies and changing light across some of the UK's most spectacular landscapes.
Young visitors can explore the exhibition using dedicated family trails and get hands-on in a specially designed sailing boat activity area inspired by Ackroyd's seascapes, creating artworks of their own as they journey through the exhibition.
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Whether they're printing colourful designs, sculpting woodland creatures, following family trails or discovering inspiring artworks, children can enjoy a summer filled with imagination and exploration at Victoria Art Gallery. With free activities, affordable workshops and plenty to discover together, it's the perfect family day out in the heart of Bath this summer.
For more information and to book activities, visit victoriagal.org.uk.