With today’s announcement expected to state that lockdown restrictions will be easing on 17th May, Josephine Burns, Chair of Without Walls, has provided a comment about the Outdoor Arts sector. Without Walls is a consortium of over 30 festivals and arts organisations that bring fantastic outdoor arts to people in towns and cities across the UK.
She comments:
Without Walls and its 35 partner organisations welcome the recent news from the government that entertainment venues and visitor attractions will be reopening on 17th May. With an abundance of fresh air and because they aren’t confined, outdoor arts are as safe as shopping. We’re excited to bring extraordinary outdoor art back to public spaces this summer, with artists returning to our streets, festivals and venues.
Without Walls has an important role to play in supporting artists and organisations to get back outdoors in ways that are safe, responsible and celebratory for everyone. In that context, we were pleased to be invited to government roundtable discussions with the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Oliver Dowden, to offer guidance on the possibilities outdoor arts presents for organisations and businesses across the country.
Public safety at our events is paramount, and Without Walls partners have worked together over the last year to develop a range of resources and guidelines for artists and organisations to have the confidence to present work in outdoor settings.
This year is an important one for the outdoor arts sector in supporting cultural recovery after the pandemic. We recently announced our largest programme ever for 2021, with £650k invested in supporting artists to develop and tour 21 new ambitious projects across the country.
The Outdoor Arts sector prides itself on making extraordinary things happen in a huge range of contexts, spaces and places, and we’re delighted to bring outdoor work back to UK audiences this year.