Winchester Cathedral’s innovative Whales exhibition has been shortlisted for a prestigious Cultural Enterprises Award for Best Event in 2025.
This is the second potential award for the Whales exhibition. It won the Engaging People Award from the Association of Heritage Interpretation in October 2025.
The installation sees three monumental sperm whale sculptures suspended in the cathedral, creating a powerful dialogue between nature, art, and architecture.
Crafted by British sculptor Tessa Campbell Fraser from recycled and sustainable materials, the whales evoke themes of interspecies communication, climate awareness, and the fragility of ocean life.
Whales is currently on tour to St Albans Cathedral with a packed programme of events for all ages – from music and wellness sessions to activity trails for kids, and a Sea Shanty Festival.
Whales at St Albans until Tuesday 3 February – find out more here.
Whales will then go on display in Rochester Cathedral from 10 February til 7 March.
Whales was a newly-commissioned work to highlight humans’ relationship with oceans and whales and transformed the Cathedral into an underwater themed, multisensory exhibition using sound, scent, lighting and sculptures made from ghost nets and recovered plastics.
With strong accessibility features and climate messaging, it inspired 44% of visitors to pledge environmental action. Partnerships including the University of Southampton helped to expand programming and reach diverse and younger audiences.
The Interim Dean of Winchester Cathedral The Revd Canon Dr Roland Riem said:
“We’re naturally delighted to be recognised for our Whales exhibition, which will be enjoyed by visitors to St Albans Abbey and Rochester Cathedral this year.
‘Whales was a huge success, seen by 20,000 people in Winchester. It is testament to the vision of the artist Tessa Campbell Fraser, and Harley Lambrianou who composed the soundtrack.”
Winchester Cathedral’s Whales exhibition is shortlisted as a finalist amongst strong competition including the Royal Ballet and Opera’s Step into the Spotlight one-day experience and Castle Howard’s Alice’s Christmas in Wonderland in Yorkshire.
The Cultural Enterprises Awards provide a unique platform to showcase commercial excellence within the cultural sector and perform an essential role in providing inspiration and ideas on maximising income streams to all types and sizes of arts, heritage and cultural organisations.
The winners will be revealed at a ceremony at ICC Birmingham on 10 February.
Photo : Simon Newman
