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The Rum Factory Open Studios
Saturday 28th March 2026 , 11:00am to 6:00pm
Visit the studios of the talented artists, designers, makers, and creatives who work at the Rum Factory, with an exhibition of artwork and day of free creative workshops, open to all.
Open Studios are a chance for visitors to explore the artist studios and enjoy a day of workshops and creative activity.
Meet the artists working in this historic building, and get a glimpse into this community of creatives in Wapping by browsing their studios and exhibition.
Join in on hands-on creativity throughout the day, with a flower‑pressing workshop for adults, a collage and drawing session for families, and a series of smaller drop‑in activities to visit as you explore the studios.
Please note: photography will be taking place on the day.
Exhibition
Rum Factory Exhibition: Grown, Lost, Severed, Replanted
‘Grown, lost, severed, replanted’ explores how memory, displacement, and belonging take shape in times of political and environmental instability.
This exhibition is curated by artist Mimi Dearing and will be exhibited at The Rum Factory.
Exhibiting artists: Mimi Dearing, Tati Mallah, Cindy Lillen, and Camilo Parra.
Alongside the artworks, there will be a programme of performances, film screenings, and workshops
Workshops
Pressed Flower Workshop
Join artist Roxana Gutila for a free pressed flower workshop at The Rum Factory Open Studios!
Open to adults, this workshop will take place across two sessions at 12pm and 2pm, all materials provided. Booking is essential.
Collage Workshop
Join Artist Educator Matt Ponting for a free, drop-in workshop exploring heritage, place, and memory through the theme of “Roots”.
Using sustainably sourced materials, participants will be invited to create both collaborative and individual collage pieces, discovering the theme in a tactile and emotive way.
This workshop will take place in the building’s communal space across two sessions: 11:30am-1:30pm and 2:30pm-4:30pm.
This workshop is open to all, and all materials will be provided.
Building the Sound of the Docks
Join artist Campbell MCconell for this relaxed, hands-on workshop invites visitors to make small cardboard bell towers inspired by the docklands around Tower Bridge and the West India Docks.
You will build a tower structure and install a small working bell inside it, exploring an introduction into local bell history and it’s historical significance along the docklands.
Your finished towers can stand alone or be brought together to form a temporary collective skyline within the studio. You will be invited to gently activate your tower’s bells, creating a shared, momentary soundscape that reflects how individual signals once combined across the docks.
This workshop will run inside the studio S9 for two sessions, 11:30pm-12:30pm and 2:30pm-3:30pm, first-come, first-served.
Rearticulating Roots
Artists Hannah Absalom and Emmett Bristow will lead a free, drop-in writing workshop disrupting language structures to break away from rigid networks of language as descriptive or academic functions, and instead create a language method that is abstracted, fragmented, and repurposed.
In this workshop, you will use found language material from notes & pre-existing writing and will be encouraged to rearrange language around the artists’ studios, creating numerous woks of shared authorship.
This workshop will take place at the artists’ studios (MEZ A-38 and MEZ A-39) across the day.
This workshop is open to all, and all materials will be provided.
Access information
We are sorry to note, this building does not have step-free access or an accessible toilet.
If you have any further questions regarding accessibility at this venue or event, would like to make us aware of any access requirements that you have in advance of visiting, or would like this information in an alternate format including Easy Read, please call 020 8980 7774 (Ext. 3).
Transport Information
The Rum Factory Studios, 49 Pennington Street, Wapping
Nearest station(s): Shadwell (DLR)
Bus: 36, 185, 436, 196
Parking: No parking available.
Bike: Limited bicycle parking.
