ENTERTAINMENT AROUND THE CITY WILL ACCOMPANY NEW ART INSTALLATIONS

The unmissable new art installations are part of the Chester Designed by Nature project and will be on display around the city with Storyhouse planning the entertainment to ‘pop-up’ besides and sometimes within the work.

Chester city centre will see ‘Spring Bloom’ earlier this year as the climax of the Chester Designed by Nature programme, a six-month community arts project, launches in time for February half term. 

The art installations are set to launch on 19 February 2022 and will run through early spring until the end of March in various locations around the city. Destination Chester, a network of the city’s tourism partners, has commissioned the installations from outdoor arts specialists Wild Rumpus. Storyhouse has designed a corresponding events programme. It has all been made possible by the support of the European Regional Development Fund. 

The Spring Blooms project aims to embrace and explore the natural world that surrounds us through a programme of art, activities, performance, storytelling and large-scale sculptural installations. Each installation in the Spring Bloom campaign has been inspired by various aspects of nature from honeycomb, blossom, tree roots or bird song in an effort to rewild the city. 

Georgina West, Community Programme Manager at Storyhouse said: ‘One of our art installations is a performance space set in the heart of the Cathedral gardens. We have programmed storytelling, music and choirs so that Chester communities and visitors can enjoy a performing arts experience  - which although very much within the city centre, will also be very much within nature.  

She added: ‘It’s been really important to us in our programming that we keep nature at the crux of it all. We are a bucolic city, with access to parks and the river. The countryside is only minutes away from Chester’s city centre and it is this we want to showcase and explore.’ 

Other programme elements include art and writing walks that will tour the installations for inspiration before culminating in creative sessions at Storyhouse, dance performances and community gardening. 

For full programme details, please go to:

www.storyhouse.com 

For more details on Spring Blooms art installations, go to:

www.visitchester.com/

springblooms or @visitchesterandcheshire on social channels

Pictured - Chester Cross (Credit ChesterBID)