A free festival of digital art and photography to showcase Cumbria’s West Coast, has been launched in Barrow.
Delivered by Signal Film and Media, the photography and digital art festival runs over two floors, showcasing a new collection of work focusing on the west coast of Cumbria produced by internationally acclaimed photographers alongside images and films by local artists.
The festival was launched in 102 Abbey Road, a formerly derelict building, now part of Signal Film and Media’s home in Cooke’s Studios on Abbey Road, Barrow.
The spaces were refurbished by Creative Studios Cumbria, a charity set up by Signal Film and Media founders Kerry Kolbe and Loren Slater to provide affordable creative spaces for charities and community groups.
Barrow mayor Helen Wall, who opened the exhibition, said: “The photography exhibition is a brilliant way to launch the building and it’s a double treat to be able to go into such a fantastic space and see such fabulous work that’s on a par with what you would find in any major city.”
Hundreds of people attended the launch, artists talks and family workshops as part of the launch last week and were the first to experience the newly refurbished space for the first time, as they enjoyed world-class digital artworks and getting creative themselves.
There are more family events coming up during the October half-term holidays, including hat-making workshops with artist Danielle Chappell-Aspinwall and stop-motion animation
workshops with filmmaker Karen Bird.
In addition to viewing the stunning photography of internationally acclaimed artists Vanessa Winship and Phoebe Kiely, whose work is being shown alongside one another for the first time, visitors can enjoy work by local artists or join workshops and events.
Signal Film and Media co-director Kerry Kolbe said: “We’re thrilled to have 102 Abbey Road finally open to people, after the building has being empty for at least the 10 years we’ve
been in 104 next door, and I don’t know how long before that! We now really want to get the word out to everyone in the community that we have all this fantastic stuff going on, and all
for free!”
West Coast Photo Festival runs until November 7 and is packed full of creative exhibitions, photography and digital arts workshops and a pop-up coffee shop from Industry Kitchen.
