The community gallery in New Brighton that’s determined to do art differently

A community gallery space inside Floral Pavilion New Brighton is determined to do art differently, giving a showcase to amateurs as well as professionals, alongside talented little artists.

When Dawn Reck launched Mersey Arts Zone, she didn’t want it to be about credentials, who someone knew or how good they were at promoting themselves. 

She wanted it to be all about the quality of the work.

“People will ask me if they have to have a degree in art, or have to do social media, and sometimes they’ve tried before to get into a gallery and been told they can’t because they’ve got no followers or they’ve never exhibited before,” she says.

“When I chat with them, I tell them that doesn’t worry me at all, I don’t care who they are or what they’re doing or not doing. I’d never discover amazing artists if I wasn’t like that.”

Dawn started Mersey Arts Zone in 2019 after changing careers, moving from the charity sector back to a passion for the arts.

She explained:

“I’m originally from Liverpool and my first job was at Bluecoat Gallery, I absolutely loved it and it always stayed with me,”

“I just wanted, in the last 10 years of my working life, to get back to art and to music. I live in New Brighton, I love my community and working in the community, and I thought I needed to do things differently; to break down some barriers, for children to be part of it, and for everyone to feel they could enjoy it.

“Prior to lockdown there wasn’t a lot for artists, especially in New Brighton, so I wanted to create something and to do it where I live then reach out across the city region.”

After first being involved with Rockpoint Leisure’s Oakland Gallery, Dawn was on the brink of opening her own space at Vale House in Vale Park at the start of 2020 when Covid hit.

Closed until May 2021, she wondered if she’d ever get Mersey Arts Zone off the ground.

“It was a difficult first year because people were still scared to go anywhere, but I introduced workshops and a lot of frontline people in the community – nurses, doctors, police – started coming to them.

“They wanted to learn to draw and paint, they needed something to turn to after working through lockdown, so I got tutors in for that and it went on for quite a few months. I did drawing, painting, flower arranging, textiles, photography, everything they were asking for.”

That experience made Dawn realise just how important art was to people.

In March 2024, after three years in Vale Park, she was offered the chance to become a cultural partner with the Floral Pavilion, opening up Mersey Arts Zone to an even wider audience.

Moveable boards allowed her to create a large exhibition space within the theatre for original artwork, tables and stands for prints, window space to put work in, and a dedicated MAZ kids’ gallery for little ones.

She said:

“I tend to work with amateur and professional artists, I do exhibitions, and sell work, although some may not want it sold, they just want people to see it and that’s fine. It’s very much about our artists and supporting them. 

“Schools get involved as well as local community groups, and I really like putting older kids’ work up because sometimes it inspires them to study art instead of it just being a hobby. We also have a lot of neurodiverse artists who are very gifted, that’s their escapism, but they don’t always have an outlet for it.”

As artistic director of MAZ, Dawn takes a very hands-on approach to the gallery and what’s exhibited. Artists often contact her on socials or email, or turn up at the Floral to show her their work on phones before taking in examples.

“If they’re really good at what they’re doing, I’ll give someone an exhibition just because I think, people need to see this,” she adds.

“I’ve had artists show some work and the next thing they’re flying. They come back and say they’re exhibiting in the Williamson, or London or Manchester, and I love watching that journey.”

Find out more about Mersey Arts Zone here.

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