A vibrant festival of art in all its forms, from wall painting and photography to poetry and electronic music, will be celebrated in Rossendale. Events for the Spring/Summer Rossendale Art Trail will begin on Friday, May 29, from 6pm to 8pm, when 13 members of Valley Artists open their studios at Clarke Holme Mill, Burnley Road East, Waterfoot. Over the weekend of May 30 and 31, there will be 14 venues from Haslingden to Bacup and all places in between where artists will showcase their work.
From displays in coffee shops to a stone ceramic studio in Stacksteads, art on show in the former toilet block in Edenfield, to abstract art at Top Floor Studio in Helmshore, the trail offers many different places to visit and art to explore. Volunteer organiser Scott Sadler, who has been involved since 2021 organising social media, said: “We have 58 artists who feature in the free brochure, some have individual exhibitions and many have collaborated. I remember coming here as a visitor to the art trail previously and not being able to get around the whole event because there were so many different venues.”
Paint Jam Highlight
A highlight of this year’s trail will be a Paint Jam, being held at The Whitaker, Rossendale Museum and Art Gallery, Rawtenstall, and also on Waterfoot Square, behind the Waterfoot Yard. This takes place all weekend. Scott said: “Last year we did a smaller version of the paint jam on Paramatta Street in Rawtenstall, when the carpet shop allowed eight artists to paint boarded up windows on the side of a building. I love street art and Rossendale is quite sanitised. This weekend will see eight artists, four of whom are local to Rossendale and others who are nationally and internationally known, creating huge works of art; it will be a little bit like the Common Walls that were created in the centre of Rochdale. When the boards are finished, they will not be hidden away, but will go on show at various venues. We have a grant to cover the materials and the artists are showcasing their talents for free.”
Electronic Music and Poetry
In contrast, at the Horse and Bamboo Theatre, Waterfoot Electronic Transmissions – WET – will present ‘adventures in electronic music’ on May 20 from 2pm, while Candi Martin will host a poetry pop-up on both days from 1pm-2pm. As part of a collaboration with Bin Collective, Scott has been working with artists P&V and Helen Davies on Arts Council-funded puppet rave workshops which started as part of the trail. He said: “These were a huge success and exceeded all our expectations. We went on to do Waterfoot Wakes and then took it to The Lowry and have another five more workshops and raves this year, so art started in Rossendale can be a catalyst. I want to make the Arts Trail open to much more than just visual arts, so it also involves music and events. The trail is the launch of Gather@Festival, which will take place from June 26 to 28, at Haslingden Market and various other venues across Rossendale.”
Free copies of the Rossendale Art Trail booklet have been distributed widely across Rossendale. The trail covers locations in Bacup, Rawtenstall, and Haslingden.
