Therme Manchester has officially launched Artists of the Future – an exciting new art competition designed to champion young creativity in Greater Manchester.
The initiative was unveiled at Manchester Art Fair where young visitors took part in hands-on creative workshops delivered by Gorse Hill Studios, offering a first look at the activity that will soon be rolled out to local schools and youth groups. (Images from the workshops are attached).
Set to become the UK’s first urban wellbeing resort, Therme Manchester will include biodiverse gardens, immersive art, thermal experiences and family-focused leisure spaces, all centred around Therme’s mission to make wellbeing accessible for all.
As part of its wider social value strategy, Therme Manchester are working with Trafford Council and Salford City Council to ensure that local impact and lasting change is delivered through the development in Trafford. Therme Manchester will create jobs, apprenticeships, community projects and a wide range of initiatives through their social value ambitions for the development.
The new competition invites young people to create artwork that will appear on the Therme Manchester Outdoor Gallery – a large-scale community exhibition space that will transform the hoardings around the construction site at TraffordCity.
Artists of the Future is being developed in partnership with Gorse Hill Studios – a Trafford creative youth arts charity – who are working with schools and youth centres across Trafford and Salford including: Barton Clough Primary School and St Monica’s Primary School in Trafford; along with Holy Cross & All Saints RC Primary School, Lewis Street Primary School, Beech Street Community Primary School, St Gilbert’s Primary School, Westwood Park Community Primary School and Arbour Academy Secondary School in Salford. Arts Let Loose CIC, the accessible, community-led creative space in Swinton, is also participating in the project.
Therme Manchester will be providing all art materials for the competition. The winners will be entered into a raffle for the chance to win a family trip to Therme Bucharest in Romania in spring 2026, and everyone who takes part will be invited to a celebratory event focused on art, food, and wellbeing, at Gorse Hill Studios.
Katie Mason, Inclusion and Disability Co-ordinator at Gorse Hill Studios said: “It’s fantastic to see young people being given opportunities like this right on their doorstep. Art can be a real confidence-builder and seeing children’s work celebrated publicly shows them that their ideas matter. Projects like Artists of the Future don’t just brighten up the area – they help young people feel proud of where they’re from and excited about what they can create.”
To help select the winning designs, which will be announced in February 2026, Therme has appointed a panel of three judges: Helena Worthington, AKSE-P19 and Roksanna Ciurysek-Gedir.
Helena is a Manchester-based multidisciplinary artist with a creative practice specialising in sculpture and painting. Helena’s work blends craft, colour and storytelling, and she is passionate about encouraging young people to express themselves through art and design. Helena is also well-known as a TV critic.
AKSE-P19 is an internationally acclaimed street artist whose murals have become defining cultural landmarks across Greater Manchester and beyond. Known for his powerful, photorealistic portraiture, AKSE’s murals go beyond decoration – each piece is a reflection of the people, history and culture that shape the community they sit within.
Helena and AKSE-P19 will be joined by Roksanna who is representing Therme Art, Therme Group’s global arts and cultural initiative dedicated to supporting creativity, community and the relationship between art and wellbeing.
The young artists taking part in the Artists of the Future competition will be encouraged to explore themes central to Therme’s global ethos: nature, water, fun, and wellbeing. Winning pieces will be professionally reproduced as large-format artworks and showcased publicly on the site’s perimeter, turning the developing Therme Manchester location into a vibrant outdoor gallery celebrating local imagination and talent.
Rob Creber, Head of Social Value & Partnerships at Therme UK, said:
“Therme Manchester is about wellbeing, community and connection. Supporting us is our Therme Art team, who play a leading role in championing creative expression and highlighting the powerful relationship between art and wellbeing.
“The Artists of the Future competition allows us to celebrate young creativity and give local children the chance to inspire us all and leave their mark on one of the region’s most exciting developments. It’s a meaningful way to connect art, community and wellbeing, while giving something back to the neighbourhood that will help shape Therme’s future home.”
