A community arts project launching in Forres promises to bring fresh, creative energy to the high street and reinvigorate the heart of the town.
Forres High Street regeneration is the focus of the new ‘Creative Work Shop’ programme which will receive £50,000 in National Lottery Funding.
A wide-reaching 12-month plan of interconnected arts projects and multi art-form residencies from Forres-based Findhorn Bay Arts is being supported by the National Lottery through Creative Scotland’s Open Project Fund.
High street focus
Forres High Street is the focus of the Creative Work Shop where artists will work within the local community, finding creative new ways to make a vibrant contribution to the regeneration in the local area.
Kresanna Aigner, Creative Director at Findhorn Bay Arts, said: “This project recognises the vitality of Moray’s creative sectors and the opportunity for arts and culture to contribute to community regeneration, education, and local development. The residency programme draws upon and develops our previous community engagement work which we’ve undertaken as part of the Findhorn Bay Festival, Culture Day Forres and ProjectARTS over the past six years.
“Through interactions with everyday occurrences on the High Street, the year-long Creative Workshop residencies will engage residents and visitors alike through a multi-arts programme of activity, performance and conversations, bringing about positive change in how we see and use our high street spaces.”
Karen Dick, Interim Head of Place, Partnerships and Communities at Creative Scotland said: “The people of Forres and the place they live are at the heart of this ambitious creative project. Artists will work with residents, experimenting and making new work, rooted in and inspired by the town’s historic past and contemporary challenges. The project will bring a fresh, creative energy to Forres’s high street and reinvigorate the heart of the town.”
Findhorn Bay Arts is currently putting in place an advisory panel for the Creative Work Shop. Applications for residency will open in January 2020 with the first residency expected to start in February 2020. For further info please visit www.findhornbayarts.com
