Furious artists taking part in a sale at Black Country arts centre The Public were given their money back, after branding the event “a fiasco”.

Retired teacher Carol du-Cille of West Bromwich was one of the artists who paid £5 a day to have a stall at the six-day sale where she was selling her paintings.

However, a chemical scare and total lack of customers at the controversial £72 million West Bromwich gallery meant she and other stallholders packed up after just two days.

She said: “The so-called organisers had done absolutely no work to promote the sale, which was to run from last Friday until yesterday.

“Other than the odd person using the lobby as a short cut through town we didn’t see a soul.

“We asked for our money back and got it.”

The Public’s general manager Linda Saunders said: “The event was advertised but we weren’t helped by the fact the building had to shut on the opening day, as well as the icy weather.”