Five years of transformation is not something you can capture in numbers alone. This has been a period in which NAE has shifted its foundations, redefined how decisions are made, and built new forms of leadership rooted in community.
The current NPO period was due to end in 2026, making this the right moment to pause and reflect. What have we accomplished, where do we still need to make progress, and what kind of future are we shaping together?
We have achieved a great deal. We have grown as an organisation, expanding the scale and ambition of our programmes, embedding citizen leadership in real and lasting ways, and strengthening the resilience of the gallery. At the same time, we recognise that the work is not yet complete. We need to continue pushing forward on representation, creating pathways for the next generation of leaders, and sustaining opportunities in a sector that is facing deep cuts and uncertainty.
Our ambition has always been to commission artists in ways that reflect both the diversity of our communities and the urgency of our times. That means pushing for equity, strengthening local investment, and ensuring our programmes remain responsive to the cultural and political moment.
When we look at our direct commissions between 2022 and 2026, which include exhibitions in the Main Gallery and Mezzanine, our residency programme, Art Your Way community commissions, Beyond the Wall, and our Transform Associate Artistic Director programme, we can see signs of that ambition beginning to take shape. Around 56 per cent of commissioned artists identified as women. In terms of cultural heritage, 21 per cent identified as South Asian, 64 per cent as Black, African or Caribbean, and 15 per cent were from other parts of the world. 52 per cent of our total commissions supported artists who were based or working in Nottingham.
All of this work has taken place in a climate where demand for opportunities is growing just as resources across the sector are shrinking. Artists continue to bring forward work of urgency and ambition, yet the platforms to support them are narrowing. Charities like ours are being asked to hold open space for ambition while working within tighter financial limits. This tension is real, and it is one we cannot ignore.
The scale of these challenges is visible across our programmes. Take Exhibit, for instance. This year, we received 284 applications to the open call, from which only four exhibitions will go forward. Those numbers tell a story of vitality and scarcity. Artists are creating with urgency, yet the space to support them is narrowing.
This is the reality we are working within. It is also the reason we continue to push for new models of leadership and participation, because the future of culture cannot be sustained by scarcity alone. It requires trust, collaboration, and the courage to reshape institutions so they truly reflect the people they serve.
As we look ahead, we know the work is far from done. The question for us now is not whether change is possible, but how far we are willing to take it.
Saad-Eddine Said, CEO & Artistic Director at New Art Exchange