About – Dorset Arts & Crafts Association

Celebrating creativity in Dorset
– then, now, and always

The Dorset Arts & Crafts Association (DACA) is a registered charity (no. 306252) that’s here to support, celebrate, and encourage creativity across the county. We bring together artists, makers, and craft enthusiasts through Exhibitions, Grants, and Membership – helping Dorset’s creative community grow and thrive.

DACA is for anyone who enjoys the making process, the learning, the sharing, or simply the joy of seeing what people create with their hands. Whether you’re an experienced artist, a total beginner, or an appreciative visitor, there’s a place for you here.

What we do today

DACA exists to nurture creativity and connection throughout Dorset. We do this through:

Showcase – our annual five-day event that fills The Purbeck School with judged exhibitions, demonstrations, makers’ stalls, children’s activities, and hundreds of pieces of beautiful work to explore. It’s our biggest celebration of Dorset’s creative spirit.

The Arts & Crafts Grant Fund – supporting individuals and groups as they develop creative projects that inspire others and strengthen communities. Every year we help ideas grow into something real and meaningful.

Membership & Community – members enjoy many opportunities to get involved: taking part in the Members’ Design Challenge, selling work at Showcase, and staying connected through regular updates. As the Association continues to grow, we’re exploring new ways to offer even more to our members and strengthen those creative links across Dorset.

And behind it all are our brilliant volunteers and members, whose enthusiasm, skill, and kindness make everything we do possible.

Our aims

Our mission is simple: to encourage, support, and celebrate arts and crafts in Dorset. We aim to:

Promote the study and practice of both traditional and modern crafts
Provide opportunities for learning, growth, and collaboration
Support creative projects through grants, exhibitions, and community partnerships
Help keep Dorset’s long tradition of craftsmanship alive for future generations

Become a Volunteer

A proud history of creativity

DACA’s story began in 1906, when a small exhibition in Hinton St Mary sparked something special. The success of that event led to the formation of the Dorset Arts & Crafts Association in 1907, and that same year, the first official exhibition was held at Blandford Corn Exchange.

Since then, exhibitions have taken place every year (with a pause only during the Second World War) in venues across the county, before finding a regular home at The Purbeck School, Wareham, where we celebrated our 100th Exhibition in 2014.

More than a century later, DACA remains dedicated to the same purpose that started it all: bringing people in Dorset together through creativity.

Be part of our story

DACA is shaped by the people who give it life – the artists, makers, visitors, volunteers, and supporters who believe in the importance of creativity and community. If you feel the same, we’d love you to join us.

Our aims

Be part of our story

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