The Biscuit Factory

About The Biscuit Factory

The Biscuit Factory sits in a restored Victorian warehouse on Stoddart Street, on the edge of the Ouseburn just beyond the city centre, and is the largest independent commercial art gallery in the UK outside London. Everything on show is for sale, which makes it as much a shop as an exhibition space: contemporary paintings, sculpture, original prints and editions, studio ceramics and glass, contemporary jewellery, and design-led homeware and craft. Exhibitions change through the year, so the stock is never static, and the price range runs from affordable prints and small craft pieces up to substantial original works. Entry is free and the gallery is open seven days a week.

Beneath the gallery floors are the studios of working artists, designers and makers, reached from the ground-floor entrance and by lift, which gives the building a working rather than purely retail atmosphere. The Ouseburn setting is part of the appeal, with the valley's independent bars, music venues and creative workspaces within a few minutes' walk and the city centre reachable on foot or by Metro to Manors. The building also operates as a wedding and events venue, and there is a restaurant on site. For visitors looking for a piece of North East art or a genuinely made gift rather than a mass-produced souvenir, it is the obvious first stop.

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