Apply now for Birmingham Jewellery Biennial open call

The festival is seeking applications for jewellery talent to display in its headline exhibition during the festival in 2027

By Amy Wakeham

The inaugural Birmingham Jewellery Biennial, taking place throughout May 2027, will be headlined by a flagship exhibition at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. This will bring together contemporary jewellery by designers, artists and craftspeople across the UK, acting as a showcase for homegrown talent in the historic heartland of the country’s jewellery industry.

Applications for jewellers to be featured in the exhibition are now live. Thousands of pounds of prize money is on offer, with successful pieces displayed alongside work by leading international jewellers in one of the country’s most important museum settings.

Exhibitors and winners will be selected by a jury that includes Rachael Taylor, alongside exhibition curator Sophie Morris, formerly of the V&A, and a host of notable names from across the UK jewellery industry. They will select first and second prize winners, who will be awarded £2,000 and £1,500 respectively. There will also be a People’s Choice prize, awarded after the exhibition and chosen by the public, of £2,000.

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. (Image: Birmingham Museums)

A celebration of colour

The theme of this year’s Biennial is colour, and judges will be “looking for ambitious, statement work that responds to this year’s theme and demonstrates creative design, technical excellence and quality of materials,” according to the website.

“For the exhibition we are seeking submissions that are inspired by colour, experiment and innovate with colour, or explore the stories and symbolism of colour and its manifold meanings,” it continues. “Taking inspiration from Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery’s own collections, colour will be a lens to consider the wider relationships between making, wearing, gifting and viewing jewellery.”

Artist details, bio, up to five works, and a 250- to 500-word statement of interest need to be submitted by 6th September, 2026. Shortlisted candidates will be invited to submit a detailed proposal between 14th September and 1st October, 2026. Final exhibitors will be notified by 21st October.

For more information and to apply to the open call to exhibit at the Birmingham Jewellery Biennial 2027, visit birminghamjewellerybiennial.com/open-call

(Main image: Weston Beamor)