36th Annual Painting Competition: Date & Theme Announced

The Gibraltar Heritage Trust will be holding its 36th Annual Painting Competition on Saturday 10th May 2025 with this year’s theme of ‘Witham’s Cemetery’. The Trust is particularly proud to be able to invite artists into this recovered historic cemetery which had lain derelict for decades. This year marks 10 years since the Trust began the restoration project which has been a labour of love and dedication for the many volunteers that have contributed to it. 

There is plenty on the site to inspire. Artists will be invited to choose a view of, or feature an element of the cemetery, which may include the historic graves, the greenery or the interior/exterior makeup of the cottage.We hope artists will capture the history of the cemetery, its serenity, the beautiful greenery and wildlife, and the restoration work which has been achieved by volunteers of the Trust, through the medium of art.

The cemetery was re-opened to the public back in 2022, but our team of volunteers continue their work to restore many of the graves and tombstones, maintain the vegetation throughout the cemetery, and are currently renovating the cottage area which will be opened as an exhibition & interpretation centre. This event will also form part of the programme for Heritage Week (8th – 11th May).

Registration of participants will take place on the day on site (refer to map) between 9.00am and 12:30pm. Those who wish to pre-register are encouraged to do so via this link: https://forms.office.com/e/uirBLU4a45, but must also attend registration on the day to have their painting(s) stamped. 

With the exception of school participants, painting/sketching must take place on location, on the day between 9:00am and 5:00pm. Any type of traditional artistic media will be accepted but must be respectful to the site e.g., spray paint could stain. Participants must supply their own art materials. Entries should not be larger than 76cm x 60cm (refer to Rules and Regulations).

On completion, participants will be required to hand in their entries to a representative of the Gibraltar Heritage Trust at the Trust Office at 13 John Mackintosh Square. All entries must be handed in by the deadline of 5:00pm. Please familiarise yourself with our Rules and Regulations to enter the competition which can be viewed and downloaded HERE or are available to collect in our shop. 

The competition is divided into four groups: - 

• Adults (aged 18 and over)
• Juniors (aged 11 to 17)
• Children (aged 7-10)
• Infants (aged 6 and under)  

Prizes will be as follows: -

Winners will be announced at the opening and presentation of awards on Thursday 29th May at 6:30pm in GEMA Gallery. 

Step inside with our Virtual tour below:

https://gibraltarheritagetrust.org.gi/uploads/documents/inline/mp4/withams-cemetery.mp4