The Art Club is a curated cultural platform for people who value depth and knowledge and aspire to become the most evolved versions of themselves.
The Club brings together culture, philosophy, innovation, and wellbeing in an intimate setting designed for meaningful exchange.
The first meeting will take place during Saltaire Arts Trail, 2nd- 4th of May.
IMMERSIVE EXHIBITION + TALKS
Launching
Friday, 1 May 2026
Immerse yourself in Elysium — a paradise of myth, imagination, and beauty. Wander through a world of paintings, embroidery, floral arrangements, and sound that celebrates the boundless possibilities of creativity.
Artists: Nina Hunter, Zosia Berkieta-Lewis,
Hannah Shkandrij, Claire Ninham
Alongside ELYSIUM, during Saltaire Arts Trail, the lower ground will present The Common Place, an exhibition of paintings by Oliver Walton, a quieter, observational counterpoint exploring the poetry of everyday spaces.
SALTAIRE ARTS TRAIL
—
“Art for the Soul”
3rd of May, 2 - 4 pm
Victoria Hall, Dale Room
Q+A at Nina Hunter Gallery
following the talks
Limited Availability
Please note there is a supplementary £3 entry fee for Victoria Hall, owing to their concurrent Makers Fair, which you are warmly invited to explore.
Welcome to “Art for the Soul”, the inaugural event of The Art Club, launching the salon with two world-class speakers — Rachel Newsome and Mark Vernon, during the exhibition ELYSIUM.
We invite you to explore a fresh perspective on living a more mindful, enriched life, with creativity and imagination at the heart of our experience. We are not seeking to forge new paths, but rather reviving insights and wisdom that have endured through the centuries, insights that the modern world, with its focus on technology and relentless expansion, has all too easily overlooked.
This knowledge, drawn from the visionary imagination of William Blake, the creativity-led explorations of Carl Jung, and the timeless interplay of myth and symbol, is as relevant today as ever, perhaps even more so, as we navigate the complexity and chaos of contemporary life against an increasingly challenging backdrop.
Presenting
Rachel Newsome
Writer, speaker & creative guide with a Jungian arts-based PhD in writing-as-inner-work
Rachel Newsome will present a talk exploring Jung, individuation, creativity and the visual arts through the lens of Leonora Carrington, Ithell Colquhoun and contemporary British artist Suzanne Treister. Each draws on Jungian psychology, alchemy, archetypes, dreams & more to explore the role of creativity in the individuation process, and all three have created their own tarot deck, amongst other things, to this end.
Rachel Newsome, a leading Jungian scholar, will guide us through Carl Jung’s philosophy in relation to creativity and individuation, showing how archetypes, dreams, and myth shape artistic expression and the journey of self-discovery.
Mark’s New Book
William Blake and the immense value of the imagination today.
William Blake lived in a tumultuous era of warfare, discontent, rapid technological change, and a deepening estrangement of humanity from nature. In short, a time like ours. He exposed the dark sides of political fervour and social moralising, while unashamedly celebrating love and liberty. He also conversed with prophets and angels and was powerfully, mystically religious. The imagination was fundamental to his approach, and he was sure that if we take this seriously, which is not always easy in secular times, this tremendous capacity can help us unlock a transformative power that will aid us in finding a way from anxiety towards the hope and vision of the infinite.
Psychotherapist and writer, with a keen interest in ancient philosophy, and particularly the illumination of inner life.
Mark Vernon
Together, these talks form a dialogue between centuries of wisdom and the immersive world of Elysium, inviting you to reflect, engage, and reconnect with the creative and imaginative forces of life.
Step into Elysium, an immersive exhibition where art, myth, and imagination converge. Explore contemporary oil paintings, delicate hand embroidery, sculptural floral arrangements, and an evocative soundscape — all designed to transport you into a dreamlike, paradisiacal world.
Under the curatorial direction of Nina Hunter’s the works draw inspiration from mythology and dreamscapes, offering playful, abstract reinterpretations of classic stories, including her modern vision of Leda and the Swan by da Vinci. The exhibition invites visitors to experience an idyllic vision brought into the real world, where the boundaries between imagination and reality dissolve.
This immersive environment resonates with the visionary philosophies of William Blake, who celebrated the creative imagination as a path to spiritual insight, and Carl Jung, whose exploration of archetypes and individuation illuminates the inner journey of the soul. Elysium becomes a space where myth, psyche, and beauty meet, offering a contemplative and transformative experience.
coffee, cigarettes, big ideas, bigger egos
〰️
coffee, cigarettes, big ideas, bigger egos 〰️
Channeling 1940s New York — coffee, cigarettes, big ideas, bigger egos — and catching a flicker of that same charge in Saltaire…
Some mornings, the studio feels completely impossible.
Painting can be solitary — maybe too solitary. To counter that, we’re claiming an hour each week to sit with others equally possessed by this strange vocation.
Every Wednesday.
9, 9:30 am. Cultures, Saltaire, Victoria Road
Come if there’s a canvas to wrestle with.
Come if inspiration is burning. Come if it’s just about being around other painters.
No RSVP. No structure. No agenda. Just painters. Coffee.
Process. Doubt. Obsession.