A showcase to celebrates artwork created by autistic artists and artists with learning disabilities is running in Sheffield.

Artworks Together aims to bring awareness to the accessibility of the arts and provide underrepresented artists with a platform to display their work.

The exhibition is located at Sheffield’s Millennium Gallery stemming from the 24th January – 15th June, featuring shortlisted work created by 70 artists from 21 countries.

Gemma Woffinden, the festival producer of ArtWorks Together 2026 said:” “It’s been brilliant. We are supporting these artists to platform their voice.

“We are showing them that society values their contribution.”

ArtWorks is a non-profit creative arts organisation based in South Yorkshire. The organisation works with adults who have a learning disability, are autistic or both, and supports them in developing their creative talent and crucial life skills through workshops and placements.

The pieces featured in the gallery are created by a variety of mediums, from paintings and photography to sculptures and film, each piece is deeply rooted in the experiences faced by the artists.

One piece, ‘How My Autism Makes Me Feel,’ explores the experience of a Sheffield artist who has been called an ‘alien’ and ‘too different’. Ms Woffinden said: “Exhibiting the work means we challenge assumptions about the skills and capabilities of learning disabled people”.

A crucial element of the festival is recognising artists who are typically underrepresented in the art world. ArtWorks organised free workshops in schools, particularly SEND schools, in an attempt to diversify the curriculum to have good representation.

Ms Woffinden said: “We are trying to spark conversations about access to the arts and raise aspirations of SEND young people by helping them to see themselves represented in the arts.”

The festival also features free family workshops at Cambridge Street Collective where some of the featured artists help out, offering families a creative experience while signposting them to the exhibition.

Through public engagement and the exhibition, ArtWorks festival is demonstrating to disabled artists that their contribution is recognised and appreciated by society.

For more information, visit https://www.artworkstogether.co.uk/