It’ll be a Blast! Multistory brings new arts festival to the Black Country

14 Jun 2017 11:51 AM

Thanks to new investment from the National Lottery supported Ambition for Excellence programme, Multistory has been awarded £417, 954 to bring Blast! – a new six month arts festival – to Sandwell, West Midlands in 2019.

Blast! will provide an ambitious programme of photography, digital media and spoken word performances in public spaces, community venues, pop-up sites and outdoor areas across Sandwell.

The festival will be developed over the next two years and will run from April to September 2019, with each month celebrating one of Sandwell’s six major towns; Oldbury, Rowley Regis, Smethwick, Tipton, Wednesbury and West Bromwich.

New commissions from established and emerging young artists from across those six towns will bring the stories of Sandwell people to life. Student curators, with the support of internationally recognised artists, will create displays throughout the festival, using digital technology and resources from Multistory’s extensive photographic collection.

Peter Knott, Area Director, Arts Council England, said: “Culture plays a vital role in making the places we live vibrant and exciting and we’re delighted to be investing in Multistory’s ambitions to celebrate the Black Country’s art, culture, history and people. It will be great to see Blast! festival make a real impact locally and bring stories and experiences to life that showcase emerging and established artists.”

Multistory will work in partnership with creative organisations, colleges, libraries and community groups to connect the work of artists with local people. The festival will run from April to September 2019.

Find out more about the Ambition for Excellence programme