The Challenge
Totnes and its surroundings have, since the arrival of the Elmhirsts in the 1920s, been a vibrant centre for the arts. Many who attended Dartington Art College have chosen to remain in the area, and events like Dartington’s Summer School, Totnes Festival and Ways With Words are major cultural events. Dartington has also formed local creative partnerships, through Dartington Plus, which has led to KEVICC being a Centre of Excellence for the Performing Arts. Totnes has an Arts and Design Foundation course at KEVICCS. Outside of Dartington, Totnes and District is home to many artists and creative craft workers, who regularly exhibit in the town, as well as a strong amateur dramatics community. For a town of its size, Totnes hosts an amazing array of musical, artistic and other media events. The challenges that these times of transition present to the arts are many. How will many of the larger arts events that take place in the area finance themselves as central government funding for the arts starts to dry up? The recent Design Our Space (DOS) initiative recommended many public art works throughout the town, yet they mostly remain unfunded. For events that rely on cars to get people to them, how will they adapt to falling audience numbers? Finally, but perhaps most importantly, how might the arts, in all their forms, reflect, inform, document and inspire the changes taking place?
A Snapshot of the Arts in Totnes and District
Totnes and District are home to a wide array of arts initiatives and projects in addition to those set out above. These include:
- Ways with Words Literary & Theatre Festival
- The Barn Theatre
- KEVICC Arts Department
- Venues encouraging exhibitions and cultural events
- Totnes Art & Design Foundation post 6th form course at KEVICCS
- All the local schools
- Soundart Radio
- Transition Tales (a TTT project working with Year 7 KEVICC students)
- The Wondermentalist Cabaret
- Mirror Mirror Playback theatre company
- The Totnes Times and other local print media
- Totnes Festival
- Devon Open Studios
- Totnes Library
- Local publishers, printers, picture framers, film production companies
Mosaic Dog sculpture and photo by Jynja Claderon
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