ARTIST OPEN CALL.
We are inviting 5 Cumbrian artists to attend Kendal Calling 2024. By attending Kendal Calling we hope to develop a relationship with regional artists that will inspire new work for the festival in 2025.
Kendal Calling Festival is a music festival in Cumbria. Overlooking the incredible hills and valleys of the Lake District. Kendal Calling aims to bring headline experiences to the area, both in music and arts, whilst celebrating its incredible natural surroundings, and the local community.
The festival has an audience with a large range of ages and stages, from 17-70 as well as plenty of audiences that come with their young families. The Kendal Calling audience is united their ability to have a great time, be playful and social, know how to party, and throw themselves into any creative experience.
Kendal Calling 2024 is live from the 1st to 4th of August. The festival takes place in the ancient deer park of Lowther Castle, within a mixture of parkland and woodland.
The Brief
We are looking for 5 x artists, who are either from Cumbria, or reside in Cumbria, to attend the festival in 2024. You should attend with the intention of proposing a site specific work in 2024, with the intention to be commissioned for the festival’s 20th anniversary year in 2025.
We are looking for artists of any practice – from performance to installation, circus to dance, at any stage in their artistic journey. We will not be considering applications that are solely music based.
The offer to artists
A general camping full weekend ticket for Kendal Calling 2 and travel expenses.
You will need to provide your own transport to and from the festival, or you can take advantage of our shuttle bus system noted here. Travel up to a value of £100 will be reimbursed. The festival is a greenfield site, so you will also need your own tent and sleeping equipment.
Mentoring and producing support
Tor Byrnes is an experienced outdoor arts producer having worked on award-winning arts programmes and production teams for festivals across the UK, she will be your contact for Kendal Calling. She will also give you a guided tour of the festival to discuss the current pieces of work on site.
You will also be invited to a networking event during the festival, where you will be able to meet other artists and creatives working in the sector.
Who should apply
Kendal Calling exists for everybody, as such we encourage everyone to apply, whether your background is in construction, festivals, fabrication or gallery work, if you consider yourself a currently practicing artist, then there is a place for you in this scheme. We are interested in bringing the best work to Kendal Calling and supporting you in your journey as an artist.
We additionally encourage all artists to apply who experience an imbalance of opportunity, whether because of class, race, dis/ability, gender, sexuality or rural location.
Preference will be given to those operating in areas of Cumbria that suffer from a distinct lack of opportunities, highlighted as Arts Council ‘Priority Places’, but the scheme is not exclusive to this regions and we hope will offer opportunities to artists across Cumbria.
Key Dates
Kendal Calling 24 – Thursday 1st August – Sunday 4th August
Networking Event – Onsite during the festival
Apply
To apply, please see below and complete the form by EOP June 3rd.
If you experience or anticipate any barriers within the application process or require help to make an application or access information, please do contact us on hello@kendalcalling.com with ARTIST QUERY in the title of the email and we can make any necessary adjustments.
Please ensure you title your email ARTIST QUERY, otherwise our team may not pick it up due to the volume of emails we receive on other matters.
A special thanks goes to Arts Council England and The National Lottery for making this possible.
