Art in the street at Swindon's first imaging festival

Swindon's first Imaging Festival, named 'Art in the Street' kicked off at the Apartment and around Havelock Square on Thursday 4 November, 5pm to 8pm.

The Festival's fun and funky launch activities gives everyone the chance to see themselves in a new way on a plasma screen and there will be a chance to send a flying photo of how they see their 'true self'. There will be a mass balloon launch at 7.30pm.

The Festival is being presented by Swindon Borough Council's Artscape and cre8 studios and runs from 4 to 14 November. It will provide a showcase for creative approaches to photography and digital imagery and will feature exhibitions, installations and talks by established artists.

Barbara Dixon, Visual Arts Officer for Artscape, said, "we are very excited about this event as Swindon people will have the chance to get involved in making unusual images. For instance, you can view your hot spots through a heat sensitive camera connected to a plasma screen and even send your image by balloon to an unsuspecting recipient!"

The Festival will also give visitors the chance to experience the work of the region's most innovative photographers and digital artists, as well as the sights and sounds of the hottest video jockeys (VJs) around.

Pete Millington, Manager of Sight 2 Sound, one of the festival's supporters says:, "we are very proud to support Swindon's first Imaging Festival. It's a fantastic platform for artists work and this event presents art in a unique way, which means even if you wouldn't normally visit a gallery, you're still exposed to some really thought provoking art."

The launch evening is further spliced with some sparkling live entertainment. VJ Mr Hopkinson (aka Confident Bob) will be rocking the decks and blasting off with a new take on a NASA video. The beats will then go on with an experimental and entertaining DJ set with visuals provided by VJ Rodell. Bristol-based Rodell has been creating diverse backdrops for some of the best bands on the scene including Quantic Soul Orchestra, Pole, Godskitchen and Chikinki.

Organisers hope that the newest addition to Swindon's art calendar will become an annual event.

For the full festival programme, go to www.swindonartscape.co.uk

Or call Visual Arts Officer, Barbara Dixon, on (01793) 466520.