Discover Newcastle’s Best Art Supply Shops
Last updated: April 2026
Newcastle is one of those cities that genuinely surprises you. The architecture on Grey Street alone is worth the trip — it’s regularly voted one of the finest streets in Europe and yet somehow still feels like a well-kept secret outside the North East. But if you’re an artist living in or visiting Newcastle, you’ll be pleased to know the city punches equally above its weight when it comes to art supplies.
I’ve spent 16 years working in the UK art supplies industry and I’ve visited more art shops across the country than I care to count. Newcastle’s offering is better than most people give it credit for — particularly if you know where to look. And that, frankly, is the whole point of this guide.
Before we get into the shops — if you want to compare prices on specific brands before you head out, our live deals page tracks the best online prices from major UK art retailers updated throughout the week. Worth a check before any big purchase.
1. Details Art Materials — Newcastle Arts Centre, Westgate Road
Newcastle Arts Centre, 67 Westgate Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1SG
Mon–Fri: 9:30am–5pm | Sat: 9:30am–5pm | Sun: Closed
Tel: 0191 261 5999
This is the one. If you only visit one art shop in Newcastle make it Details — and more specifically, make sure you actually find it, because that’s half the challenge.
From the outside, Newcastle Arts Centre on Westgate Road doesn’t look like much. You walk through the Craftshop at the front — full of handmade pottery, jewellery, cards and prints from local artists, which is lovely in its own right — and then you follow the hallway through to the Gallery Cafe, past the courtyard where archaeologists once dug up foundations from Hadrian’s Wall during the building’s restoration in the 1980s. Then, tucked away at the back, you find Details.
Founded in 1982 and established as the North East’s leading art materials shop, Details is run by artists for artists. The stock is extensive — painting, drawing, printmaking, calligraphy, graphic design supplies, Copic markers, Moleskine books, Winsor & Newton, Daler-Rowney — and all materials are priced at around 20% below RRP. The staff are knowledgeable, friendly and genuinely helpful in a way that you don’t always find in art shops. If you’re not sure what you need they’ll figure it out with you.
The wider Newcastle Arts Centre complex is worth exploring too. There’s a bespoke picture framing service, a gallery with rotating exhibitions, studios, workshops and the Black Swan venue hidden in the courtyard. The whole place was opened by Prince Charles in 1988 and built on a site with genuine Roman history beneath it. It’s one of those Newcastle gems that locals know about and visitors walk straight past.
Who it’s best for: Serious artists and students who want professional grade materials with expert advice. The best art shop in Newcastle by some distance.
→ Visit Details Art Materials online
2. Blackwell’s — Percy Street
Blackwell’s is primarily a bookshop — and a very good one — but it earns its place on this list because of the genuinely decent art supplies section tucked inside. Sketchbooks, technical pens, markers, fine liners, specialist art books — if you’re a student at Newcastle University or Northumbria and you need supplies alongside your reading list, this is a very convenient one-stop shop.
It’s not going to replace Details for serious materials but the quality of what they stock is higher than you might expect from a bookshop, and the prices are reasonable. Worth knowing about if you’re in the Percy Street area, which puts you close to both Eldon Square and the Grainger Market.
3. The Works — Eldon Square
I’ll be honest with you about The Works — it’s not where a serious artist goes for their primary materials. But it absolutely has its place and I’d be doing Newcastle artists a disservice by leaving it out.
The Works is brilliant for beginners, for kids, for experimental projects where you don’t want to spend serious money on materials, and for stocking up on basics like sketch pads, canvases and acrylic paints at prices that won’t make you wince. If you’re introducing someone to painting for the first time, The Works is where you start them off before they graduate to Details.
Being inside Eldon Square — Newcastle’s main shopping centre — means parking is straightforward and it’s easy to combine with other shopping. It also means it’s genuinely accessible for people who wouldn’t necessarily seek out a specialist art shop.
We track The Works deals and discount codes on DAS regularly — worth checking before you visit as they run promotions fairly often.
4. Hobbycraft — Silverlink Point, Wallsend
Unit 3, Silverlink Point, Silverlink Retail Park, Wallsend, NE28 9ND
Mon–Fri: 9am–8pm | Sat: 9am–7pm | Sun: 10am–4pm
Hobbycraft is out of the city centre — you’ll need a car or a bus to Silverlink Retail Park — but it’s worth knowing about for the sheer breadth of what they stock. This is a proper craft superstore and it covers considerably more ground than the city centre options.
For artists specifically, Hobbycraft Newcastle carries a solid range of canvases, paints, brushes, drawing materials and mixed media supplies alongside the wider craft offering. The extended weekday hours until 8pm make it genuinely useful if you’re working during the day and need supplies in the evening.
It’s not a specialist art shop in the way Details is, but when you need a large quantity of something at a sensible price, or when you want to browse without any pressure, Hobbycraft does that job very well. The new Silverlink store is spacious and well organised with easy parking right outside.
Check our Hobbycraft discount codes page before you visit — they regularly run code promotions that are worth having in your back pocket at the till.
→ Find the Hobbycraft Newcastle store
5. The Craftshop at Newcastle Arts Centre
67 Westgate Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1SG
Mon–Sat: 9am–5pm | Sun: Closed
Tel: 0191 261 9880
This deserves its own entry seperate from Details, even though it shares the same building. The Craftshop is the public face of Newcastle Arts Centre — the first thing you see when you walk through the main Westgate Road entrance — and it’s a genuinely lovely shop in its own right.
Handmade ceramics, original prints, jewellery, greeting cards, gifts — all made by local and regional artists. If you’re an artist looking for inspiration about how to present and sell your own work, this is a brilliant study in how it’s done well. Clean, curated, with prices that feel accessible rather than gallery-intimidating.
It’s not an art supplies shop in the traditional sense but it’s the kind of place that makes you want to go home and make something, which is arguably the point.
A Note on Habiknit — Grainger Market
If your practice involves textiles, mixed media or craft alongside your art, Habiknit in the Grainger Market is worth mentioning. It’s primarily yarns, haberdashery and fabric — not painting or drawing supplies — but the Grainger Market itself is one of Newcastle’s most beautiful Victorian indoor markets and worth a visit in its own right. Sitting in the shadow of Grey Street, the market has been trading since 1835 and is a genuinely lovely bit of the city that artists tend to respond to.
Can’t Find What You Need in Newcastle?
Even with this selection, there will be times when a specific product isn’t available locally or you want to compare prices before making the trip. That’s what Discount Art Supplies is for. We track deals and discount codes from major UK art retailers including Jackson’s Art, Cass Art and Cowling & Wilcox — updated throughout the week so you’re always buying at the best available price.
Our clearance deals page is particularly worth bookmarking — some of the best value art supplies in the UK are end-of-line stock that retailers want to shift quickly.
Know a Newcastle art shop we’ve missed? Drop us a message — we’re always looking to keep these guides as useful and up to date as possible.
