ArtFor Immediate release14-05-2008               

Once again visual art is set to punch above its weight at this year’s Carlisle Arts festival. Local, established and emerging artists will endeavor to engage, intrigue, and amuse local residents and follow it all with tea and a bun and time to talk about it.This bank holiday weekend will see another packed program of visual and performative works in the city centre.These efforts have been headed up by the Carlisle Arts Hub. The ‘Hub’ is taking art straight to the streets, literally. ‘Off the rails’ street choreography is set to appear in the pedestrian walkways of the city centre on Saturday (24th) 

The ‘Hub’ is committed to maintaining an active visual and performative presence in the city centre throughout the bank holiday weekend. With events and art works ranging from the subtle to the downright bizarre. The Hub aims to raise the visibility of art and artists in Carlisle, profiling and raising the bar for artists working in the city. 

Festival goers can expect to see objects such as a chewing gum display plinth as well as events and performances including a tea party in the town centre, Le pleine airpainting on the castle lawn, a peripatetic penalty shoot out with an invisible ball, and a re-enactment of Jonathan Carr’s walk from Kendal to Carlisle ending in bread being baked in Hoopers’ Café.

These temporary interventions are accompanied by exhibitions at the Bank_Gallery, the Lowther Arcade project and the launch of Carlisle’s newest independent gallery - Badger Badger. There will also be a swap market and art fair on Sunday (25) on the lawn of St Cuthbert’s church. 

The Carlisle Arts Hub is a collective brought together under the Cumbria Network HUB’s project. It initiates and promotes cultural events in and around Cumbria’s only city. The Hub is open to everyone with an interest or an involvement with arts and culture in Carlisle and meet on the second Wednesday of the month 8pm in the Source in Denton Holme. This inclusive approach has resulted in an active community of artists and creative businesses. 

The informal and fluid structure of the arts hub allows for conversations between established and new artists, this peer to peer support is vital in building up the creative base in the city, and this egalitarian approach also has significant benefits for planning and promoting events- organisations, galleries and individuals can timetable packed programs that maximise but don’t disperse carlisles small but growing cultural audience.    ENDS  (422 words)  Notes to editors- 

Carlisle Art Festival- www.carlisle-arts-festival.co.uk

Contact- Hannah Stewart- 07884102194 freerangeartists [at] phonecoop [dot] coop

A selection of images or photo opportunities are available on request.

The Cumbria Network- www.thecumbrianetwork.co.uk