We never thought we’d see the day, but Weston-Super-Mare is becoming the place to live. So much more than its iconic Grand Pier and miles of sandy shores, it’s not only one of the cheapest places to buy a home in the South West – with almost three-quarters of people moving to the seaside town coming from Bristol in 2022 – but even has its own street art festival, Weston Wallz.
Ready to rival Bristol’s graffiti scene, Weston Wallz is bringing some seaside-spray-and-paint-action to the coastal town, with a line-up of street artists from August 31 to September 15. It’s actually set up by Upfest (Europe’s largest free street art festival) too. So expect a range of top-quality new artworks as well as creative workshops for all street art lovers to get involved in.
Adding to the already existing 46 murals that have been created over the past three years since launching in 2021, this year expects to see 18 brand new large-scale artworks pop up across Weston – from a talented range of local, national and international artists soon to be announced. Plus, free-to-attend workshops including introductions to spray painting, getting creative with Posca and some character drawing.
Kicking activities off on Saturday, August 31, local arts facilitator Lin Toulcher will host the Smart Paint Jam and bring a diverse range of artists from across the region to the Italian Gardens for a day of live painting. Then from September Wednesday 4 – 13, catch the artists in action as the latest addition of murals appear around the town, adding to the official trail.
Upfest co-founder, Steve Hayles, said: “We’re incredibly proud to be invited back to Weston-super-Mare this summer, it’s become a second home for the Upfest crew and expanding Weston’s collection of world-class public artworks gives us huge pleasure, not least because of the warm welcome we’ve always received from the local community.”
This year, Upfest will also introduce its successful ScaleUP programme. Launched at Upfest Presents in May, the initiative will give two local artists mentorship by some of the renowned street artists taking part. Tapping into the creative talents of the seaside town, ScaleUP will support these emerging artists and take their work from canvas to concrete.
Artists will soon be announced and to keep up to date with everything Weston Wallz visit the Upfest website here.