ABOUT THE GALLERY

Approached by East Street Arts, a UK registered arts charity that exists to support artists and create spaces for them to work, exhibit, and connect with communities. East Street Arts provides workspace, resources, professional support and opportunities for artists, helping them develop sustainable creative practices and bring creativity into towns and cities that need it most. The organisation is dedicated to empowering artists to be self-determined and to play a key role in building vibrant communities.

Founded and managed by Laura Robertson and Theodore Godfrey-Cass, it was created as a working gallery space in South Shields to support artists, exhibitions, and community-led creative projects, providing opportunities for local creatives to show work, collaborate, and build sustainable artistic practice within the town.

WE ARE OPEN

Despite setbacks, The Market Gallery is open now operating from the rear of the former Wilko. Just off River Drive.

We’re actively inviting local creatives who want to collaborate, host exhibitions, or use the space to get in touch and be part of what we’re building next.

Local artists looking for exhibition opportunities
Creative practitioners seeking space to show or develop work
The South Shields community, through ongoing and future projects

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO MADE THIS POSSIBLE:

Northumbria University, your generosity in donating equipment gave us the foundations we needed to turn an empty, damaged space into something real. Without your support, this simply wouldn’t have happened.

To every single person who donated on JustGiving you didn’t just donate money, you brought months of hard work, setbacks, stress, and hope to life. You turned belief into reality, and we will never forget that.
NEAR (South Shields) thank you for showing up in the most practical and powerful way possible. Cleaning graffiti, clearing rubbish, and helping restore dignity to the space might seem simple to some, but to us it meant everything. You helped give the gallery its first sense of renewal and respect.

To the media ITV News, BBC, and the Shields Gazette thank you for telling our story with care, honesty, and respect. Because of you, people heard what happened, understood what we were trying to build, and stood beside us when it mattered most.

Fresh and Fruity, a true South Shields institution your kindness, generosity, and constant support meant more than words can express. The way you showed up for us wasn’t just support for a gallery, it was support for a community.

And PHS Direct Drops thank you for pulling us through the finish line, delivering our equipment last minute and making sure the doors could open. You stepped in when it mattered most.

Every single one of you has been part of the beating heart of this gallery opening.

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