New Mills Festival Launches Call For Visual Arts 2019

New Mills Festival is delighted to announce the return of the festival Art Trail and Big Weekend for 2019. The Trail forms part of New Mills Festival which takes place across the town from the 13th to the 29th September 2019. Submissions are now open to artists wishing to take part in the two-week long trail and weekend finale and will close at midnight 5th May 2019.

The Art Trail turns the town into a gallery with more than seventy local businesses hosting artists' work in their windows and premises each year. The Trail includes a Big Weekend, timed to coincide with the hugely popular Lantern Procession finale, which attracts an audience of more than 14,000. The Big Weekend sees artists and venues across New Mills open their doors to host pop-up exhibitions, open studios, workshops and demonstrations and arts and crafts markets.

The Art Trail is an integral part of New Mills Festival. It’s a special time in the town’s calendar, attracting artists from both here in New Mills and from across the country and even abroad. Speaking about the Art Trail, Alison Vasey, Art Trail director, says “After a year off to concentrate on volunteer recruitment and fundraising, we are very excited to confirm that #NMFestArtTrail will be back for 2019. The visual art on show is always of a high quality and appeals to a wide range of tastes. The concept really works for the artists and local businesses involved. We're excited to see what this year’s trail will bring!”

There are several ways for artists to get involved, ranging from a window in the trail, to taking part in the festival Art Fair as part of the Big Weekend. Alongside applications from artists for the smaller shop windows, the organisers are particularly interested in hearing from artists who would like to tackle one of the bigger display spaces, either for a larger installation or for a display from a group. The theme for the festival this year is “The Elements – Earth, Air, Fire and Water”. While this is not a requirement for entry to the Art Trail, proposals which respond to this topic will be welcomed.

Full entry details can be found at: www.newmillsfestival.co.uk - click on the Art Trail button.
Follow the Art Trail’s progress on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram - @NMFestivalArts