Ones to Watch 2025 at Sunnybank Mills

One of Yorkshire’s most prestigious annual art exhibitions Ones To Watch returns for its 12th year at the Sunny Bank Mills Art Gallery in Farsley, between Leeds and Bradford.

The exhibition is focused on talented emerging artists and makers who are based in, or are from, Yorkshire. It brings together work by artists from across disciplines, from painting to sculpture, jewellery, textiles, photography, ceramics, design and more with much of the work available to buy. It is an ideal way to start an art collection whilst supporting artists through buying prints and limited editions at very affordable prices.

Sunny Banks Mills’ Arts Director Anna Turzynski said: “It is such a joy to open our 12th annual Ones to Watch exhibition at Sunny Bank Mills. The cohort this year has been incredibly strong and walking into the Gallery each morning and seeing their work here is incredibly energising.

Ellie Andrews is an emerging portrait and figurative artist and the founder of Leeds Drawing Club. She studied Theatre Design at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts and after a period working as a set designer, returned to Leeds to set up Leeds Drawing Club in 2007.

Ellie commented: “I am very grateful for the opportunity to show my work in such a well-respected Gallery as Sunny Bank Mills. It is a very exciting moment for me as an early career emerging artist.

I think it is an important and positive step that the Sunny Bank Mills Gallery has extended their remit to include those who are self-taught or not recently graduated (like me!) for their curation of Ones to Watch 2025. It is a fantastically interesting show, beautifully and sensitively curated.

My pieces exhibited in Ones to Watch 2025 are part of a series about maternal subjectivity, placing mothers front and centre, and encouraging us to reflect on how our society presents the concept of motherhood to future generations. 

As an artist mother, which comes with its own set of unique challenges, it feels amazing to receive recognition for my work and to feel seen and respected as an artist - thank you! 

Gwyneth, Charcoal on Cartridge Paper Roll