Art Museum
Firstsite

Image: Wikimedia Commons.
Firstsite is an art museum in Colchester, United Kingdom.
About Firstsite
Firstsite is a visual arts organisation based in Colchester, Essex, which opened in 1993 as Colchester and District Visual Arts Trust, changing its name to Firstsite in 1995. Its current building was opened in 2011.
It was the national Art Fund's Museum of the Year in 2021.
The building Firstsite occupies as a tenant was designed by Rafael Viñoly and the freehold is retained by Colchester Council. The building is situated in Colchester's "Cultural Quarter" near The Minories, Colchester, fifteen Queen Street (a creative business hub), the Norman Colchester Castle, the Natural History Museum, Hollytrees Museum and Colchester's Roman Wall.
Its exhibits are on a rolling six-monthly basis, starting with Camulodunum. It cooperated with Essex University to show South American art until 2013.
Firstsite by the numbers
- Founded
- 2011
Plan your visit
Firstsite
- Website
- firstsite.uk
Museums near Firstsite
- Art Museum Fitzwilliam Museum Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Art Museum Tate Modern London Borough of Southwark, United Kingdom
- Art Museum British Museum London Borough of Camden, United Kingdom
- Art Museum National Gallery City of Westminster, United Kingdom
- Art Museum National Portrait Gallery City of Westminster, United Kingdom
- Art Museum Schorr Collection City of Westminster, United Kingdom
What's on

Top picks: Godfried Donkor: It’s a Numbers Game
23 May 2026 – 30 Aug 2026
Exhibitions

University Centre Colchester (UCC): To Be Continued
18 Apr 2026 – 5 Jul 2026
Exhibitions

Tim Noble & Sue Webster: Love and Hate at Firstsite
9 Nov 2023 – 27 Sep 2026
Explore our current and upcoming exhibitions below.
