Events

Us & Them – New free local history exhibition

21st September 2026, 09:15 - 01:45

Us & Them

Free local history exhibition

At The Horton Arts Centre, Haven way, Epsom KT19 8NP

Until 26th September 2026

A fascinating free local history exhibition is running at The Horton Arts Centre, Epsom until 26 September. Us & Them is an exhibition of photography and film challenging how people with disabilities have been portrayed over time.

Photography found in 19th and early 20th century asylum records at the Epsom Cluster (once the world’s largest group of psychiatric hospitals) is brought together with contemporary photographic portraits of artists with disabilities – co-created using the same historic photographic techniques. The exhibition explores representation of people with disabilities and asks: what has changed? And what, if any, is the difference between then and now – between ‘us and them’?

The exhibition is the culmination of a two-year project, supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund. It is led by Freewheelers Theatre & Media, a diverse and creative company of artists with disabilities based in Surrey in collaboration with the Surrey History Centre and King’s College London.

The Surrey Hills Society is exploring an event with the partnership that builds from this exhibition – so members may be interested in seeing this wonderful project in person.

This free exhibition takes place until Saturday 26 September (Tuesdays to Saturdays), 9.15am to 4.30pm at The Horton, Haven Way, Epsom, Surrey, KT19 8NP.

If you miss this exhibition while it’s in Epsom, there’s another chance to view it at the Curiosity Cabinet in London where it will be hosted form January – June 2027, or you can watch a film about the project on the Freewheelers website

• Photo credits – Emma Brown (2 photos in black and white seen here)
• Photo credit – Steve Dean (colour photo)

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