Triple Point Brewery once more opened its doors to the city’s emerging creative talent this week, hosting an exhibition showcasing 73 original artworks created by Sheffield Hallam students around the theme ‘Hidden Sheffield’.
Held at the brewery’s taproom, the annual project – now in its fourth year – invited members of Sheffield Hallam’s Illustration Society to design artwork for a future Triple Point beer release, with this year’s brief encouraging students to uncover overlooked stories, forgotten histories and lesser-known corners of the city.
The resulting exhibition transformed the venue into a vibrant celebration of civic identity, with pieces ranging from tributes to the infamous Hole in the Road fish tank to deep dives into the city’s anarchist publishing history. Other artworks explored obscure local legends, personal memories and cultural touchstones, giving visitors the chance to learn something new while casting their votes.
Speaking at the event, Triple Point co-founder George Brook explained how the collaboration first came about.
“We like to work with local creatives and we’ve worked with the Sheffield Hallam Illustration Society before on the chance to design a can,” he told Exposed. “This year we’ve just made it all about ‘Hidden Sheffield’ – the hidden stories that the average person might not know about the city that we all live in.”
George added that the project has become an important platform for young creatives, with many artists exhibiting publicly for the first time.
“I think this is the first exhibition for a lot of the students and you can see how busy and positive the atmosphere is tonight. That’s a really cool thing to be part of.”
Visitors to the exhibition were invited to vote for their favourite pieces via ballot boxes placed around the venue, with the public vote helping determine a final shortlist of five designs. From there, the Triple Point team will select one overall winner, whose artwork will appear on the brewery’s next can release – expected to be a hazy pale ale tailored to reflect the chosen design.
Alongside the opportunity for exposure, the initiative also gives students valuable experience working within a real commercial brief – something artist Aesther Walkey, who previously collaborated with Triple Point on a design, believes is increasingly important.
“It’s a chance to do actual vocational artwork,” said Aesther. “Being able to control your vision for someone else is really a skill you have to learn. This is such a good exercise for them to be better artists and get into the job market as well.”
George noted that Triple Point hopes to continue expanding its involvement with Sheffield’s cultural community through more events like this in future.
“It’s something we want to do more of. This year, the students have had to go and research the whole story, find something interesting, and then turn that into art. The quality of the work is really high and it’s going to be really difficult to pick a winner.”
The exhibition runs all bank holiday weekend, where you’ll be able to pop in, cast your vote and enjoy a pint from the recently crowned ‘Best Local Brewery’ at the Exposed Awards.
