We are proud to announce that MODO is sponsoring the Plein Air Artist of the Year competition at Histon Manor for the second year running. As part of this partnership, we are delighted to host an exhibition of the winning artworks at MODO from Saturday 20th-Sunday 21st June. We are also delighted that the owner of MODO, Sally Clark, is serving as a judge for this year’s competition.
This exhibition celebrates the immediacy, skill, and creativity of plein air painting, bringing together outstanding works created in response to the landscape and environment. The selected works will be presented in dialogue with David Hockney’s work, offering a compelling contemporary perspective alongside one of Britain’s most influential artists.
Private View
We are excited to welcome artists and guests to a Private View on Friday 19th June, 5–7pm.
Admission is complimentary for:
- Exhibiting Plein Air artists (including prize winners)
- Plein Air sponsors
- Under 18s
A limited number of tickets will be available to the public on a first-come, first-served basis via Eventbrite (£10).
All proceeds from ticket sales will support Art & Culture Education CIC (ACE CIC) - a Community Interest Company working to address the marginalisation of art within education and to promote art as a vital form of human thinking and innovation.
If you would like to make an additional contribution, please contact our team at ace@modoart.co.uk.
Tickets to be released soon.
MODO is proud to support the 2026 Cambridgeshire Plein Air Artist of the Year Award and to host this year’s winning artists. Plein air painting is not simply about working outdoors, it is about thinking in real time, responding to light as it shifts, to time as it unfolds, and to perception as something active rather than fixed. These questions sit at the heart of David Hockney’s work, and as a gallery dedicated to his practice, we see a clear continuity between this tradition and his sustained exploration of seeing, whether in Yorkshire, California, or Normandy. The works shown here are not just records of place, but evidence of attention, decisions made in the now, and perception tested against reality. This is particularly present in the Young Artists category, where what emerges is not simply talent, but the early stages of cognitive development through art, where perception becomes active, judgement begins to take shape, and inventive thinking emerges.
-Sally Clark, Owner of MODO
Read more here about the Plein Air Competition taking place on 13th June and discover how this inspiring event is celebrating local talent and putting Cambridge’s creative community firmly on the map.
Sponsors
This exhibition is supported by our co-sponsor:
Supporters
We are also grateful for the support of:
Resolute AV
Open Design Studio