Preview: Southbank Arts Trail, May 14-15

Art lovers, Sunday strollers and families in search of weekends with a difference, rejoice: Bristol’s busy neighbourhood art trails season is upon us once again. And we begin this weekend with a bumper double-header, at points north and south.

North of the river, the BS9 Arts Trail returns for its third annual instalment, while further south there’s a return for one of Bristol’s oldest, biggest and best neighbourhood art trails: BS3’s Southbank.

Over 150 artists and makers will share their work with the public at shows, installations and exhibitions in over 60 private homes and public spaces across Southville, Bedminster and Ashton. Art will range, as ever, from fine art to street art and from prints, drawings and sculpture to ceramics, textiles, photography, jewellery, glass and bespoke furniture, music. Once again, you’ll also find an accompanying programme of workshops and live performances.

Venues hosting work or performances include the Tobacco Factory, Southville Centre and Southbank Club, Margot May Tea Rooms and Mark’s Bread, while local schools will be showing students’ artwork with a Carnival theme.

Ruth Ander is this year’s trail co-ordinator. “The trail has a largely new team organising this year, and their energy has led to some really exciting new elements, like the dedicated performance space at acta centre that will host free poetry, storytelling, music and dance. A ‘taster’ show throughout May at Bedminster’s Grant Bradley Gallery, meanwhile, will give a flavour of the immense and varied talent on view across BS3.

So, what to see? “As one of the biggest trails in Bristol, we’re spoilt for choice, but I’m always excited to visit long-standing exhibitors like Terry Williams with his atmospheric oils at Birch Road, Angie Parker and her amazing house of textiles and craft at Upton Road, The Wonky House at Fairfield Road, featuring crazy automata and a human juke-box, and 40 Mount Pleasant Terrace (Ruth Broadway, pictured top) whose basement is always a treasure trove of print making, drawing and ceramics.

“I’m also excited to see artists new to the trail, like Rebecca Miller at Margot May Tea Rooms, Fine Art photographer Buki Koshoni on Exeter Road and Philip Walker’s house on Stackpool Road which will be full of beautifully made wooden furniture and basketry.”

An artist herself, Ruth finds that the trail is “brilliant for meeting people in a relaxed atmosphere – whether that translates into sales, contacts, support, or that much-needed confidence boost, it’s fundamental to keeping morale up and moving the work forward. It’s win-win for the visitors too – they get to meet neighbours and friends, take part in workshops, keep the children happy, feel part of the community, buy art at commission-free prices – and nose around artists’ houses. What’s not to like?”

Southbank Arts Trail May 14-15, homes and venues across Southville, Bedminster and Ashton, 11am-6pm daily. For more info, visit www.southbankbristolarts.co.uk 

You can find brief interviews with four of this year’s exhibiting artists here