Geopark Call for Artists

English Riviera Geopark
Festival 2009

…a landscape of dramatic changes,

…a landscape that tells the story of time.

Call for artists

Following a successful first year in 2008, a second Geopark Festival is due to take place between the 23rd of May and the 7th of June 2009. Geoparks provide opportunities to enjoy, experience and understand our dynamic planet and discover more about our local environment. The aim of the Geopark Festival is to encourage local residents, as well as visitors, to celebrate the geology and heritage of Torbay by getting outside and exploring the area from a new perspective.

A variety of events and activities are currently being planned to take place around the Bay for the duration of the Festival.

This year, thanks to funding from the National Lottery ‘Your Heritage’ Project, we are intending to have an artist present for one day during the Festival to work with children and members of the public to produce artwork based around the geological history of Torbay.

The intended date is Wednesday 27th May

We are looking for an artist to facilitate a full day workshop which will take place at Rock Walk in Torquay (Please note: it is likely that the workshop will take place outside, weather permitting). The artist will be accompanied by a member of staff for the duration of the workshop. We would like to involve as many people as possible over the course of the day to produce a/some large interconnected art which can later be displayed to promote the Geopark and/or individual pieces that children are able to complete quickly at the workshop and later take home.

For the full day of workshops, we are able to provide the appointed artist with a fee of £180.00, an additional £100.00 for resources and a contribution towards travel expenses.

What is a Geopark?

The area of Torbay achieved European Geopark status in September 2007 and since then, the English Riviera Geopark Organisation has sought to inform and inspire people about the significance of the Bay’s geological heritage.

The English Riviera Geopark is a landscape untouched by glaciation, revealing stories unseen elsewhere in the world. Stories of tropical seas and scorching deserts, raised beaches and drowned forests, hippopotami and mammoth, straight-tusked elephant and sabre-toothed tiger, cave bear and earliest man. Undeniably, the geological tale behind our Geopark is quite spectacular and one of extremes.

There are three main geological time periods that are represented in Torbay, and these take us on a journey from a seascape bathed in the warm, tropical seas of the Marine Devonian through a landscape of arid, barren Permian desert and then on to our earliest relatives, living in caves during the Quaternary.

We are keen for artists to submit applications that reflect and explore the diverse geological heritage of the Geopark.

To find out more about the Geopark, visit our website: www.englishrivierageopark.org.uk

How to apply

If you are interesting in applying, please send your ideas to: Geopark Festival Artist Applications, Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust, Cockington Court, Cockington, Torquay, Devon TQ2 6XA.

The deadline for applications is Friday 13th March 2009

As these workshops will involve working with children and young people, please do remember to enclose a copy of your CV and a recent CRB check. We would also like to know whether or not you have your own insurance.

We are looking for innovative ideas that take into consideration the aim of the Festival as well as the overall Geopark concept.

We look forward to hearing from you!

If you have any queries, please call Anna Whitehead on 01803 208861.