A major new arts festival has been announced, bringing internationally and nationally important work to Cornwall and providing an important platform for the work of local artists.
Flamm – a partnership between Creative Kernow and London-based Art Night which puts the Cornish creative arts scene firmly on the national agenda – will have its inaugural event on October 21 and 22.
Four Cornwall-based artists have received commissions to exhibit at the festival, and the partnership with Art Night sees two major commissions from multi-media artist Heather Phillipson and sound artist and composer Richy Carey.
This new festival creates a platform for Cornish artists and works with important partners to shine a light on the Cornish arts scene – while inviting the communities to engage with exciting new installations from Cornish artists and those from further afield.
Running at various venues in Redruth, the theme of the festival this year is Change. The Cornwall-based artists and collectives undertaking new commissions for the event are Sovay Berriman, Abigail Reynolds, Patrick Lowry and Then Try This. Further events and projects led by local creatives and communities will also happen throughout the town during the festival weekend.
Tonia Lu, programme producer for Flamm and representing Creative Kernow, said: “With over 20 years of experience working with communities and creatives in Cornwall, Creative Kernow sees what a new event could do to bring different communities in Cornwall together, as well as raise the profile of work made in Cornwall.
She added: “Through our conversation with Art Night, we see the opportunity to expand and raise funding to give Cornwall-based artists the opportunity to make new work and create projects that are ambitious, yet of relevance and interest to our communities. Our work with Counterpoints brings an additional rich strand to the work.”
Helen Nisbet, artistic director of Art Night, added: “We are really happy to have established such a meaningful partnership with Flamm for their inaugural festival. The partnership comes out of a long conversation between us both on supporting artists, decentralisation and collaboration – questions that are vital to both of us.
“We’re really excited about presenting some of our Art Night commissions in Cornwall this October and getting to know the selected artists and wider art community.”
Flamm is part of Creative Kernow’s Extraordinary Art in Everyday Places project which has received £327,500 from the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. The festival is also funded by the European Structural and Investment Fund, Arts Council England, and Cornwall Council via the Cultivator programme.
