Historic Warwick gardens to host arts and crafts festival

Hill Close Gardens, in Bread and Meat Close, will be hosting the festival across its 16 gardens.

There will be a number of workshops and activities including: painting, blacksmith art, ceramics, woodcarving, photography, printing, spinning and weaving. There will also be live music and stalls.

Richard Hayward, centre manager at Hill Close Gardens, said: “We hold a number of events here throughout the year but in 2017 we were looking to do something new that reflected the uniqueness of the gardens.

“We came up with ‘Art in the Gardens’ – a summer festival of arts and crafts. The objective was to reach out to a wider audience through bringing together artists and performers to showcase not only the gardens but the wealth of arts and crafts locally.

“In 2017 the event was over two days and was a great success. For 2019 we decided to have the event on a single day. Stallholders, artists and performers are not asked for any money to exhibit but are asked for a donation toward the event.

“This year we are happy to have a wide variety of activities and a good mix of crafts and performances from traditional folk dancing to a blacksmith. There is no extra charge for visitors to come to the event and we are really hoping it will open the gardens to new audiences.”

The festival takes place on August 17 from 11am to 5pm. Entry costs £4.50 for adults, £1 for children aged five to 17 and free for garden and RHS members.