The Great Peak District Fair
Saturday 15th October & Sunday 16th October 2011
In 2002 a group of people representing local Councils, the Peak Park, environmental bodies, Derby University, local food and art & craft producers met to plan the inaugural Great Peak District Fair. The funded event had clear objectives: revitalise the local economy, develop the ‘Peak District’ brand as one of quality, attract visitors to Buxton and the Peak District at a quiet time of year, present the Peak District as a positive visitor destination, raise awareness in the local community of the variety, quality of choice available on their door step, encourage local businesses to network and trade with each other, widen the marketing opportunities for small, often rural businesses, celebrate local culture, food arts & crafts and connect the environment of the Peak District with the business of the Peak District.
Pauline Townsend, a member of Peak District Products and High Peak Artists’ & Craft Workers’ Association, was invited to join the group to represent artists & craftspeople. Pauline remembers the first planning meeting ‘Everyone had great enthusiasm for the Fair and we were determined from the outset to make it the biggest and best celebration of everything that was great about the Peak District.
The first Fair attracted thousands of visitors and was a huge success. In the years since then, many activities have sprung up around the event such as the Farmers’ Markets in the Octagon; a local Food Week leading up to the Fair, where restaurants, pubs & hotels served the best of local produce and artists were offered space to exhibit their work. Visits from producers of food, art & craft from Norway & Sweden, part of the BESST exchange project, including one year when they brought an amazing hot tub to the event for people to have a dip!
Pavilion Arts Centre
15th - 16th, October 10am - 4pm
Award winning mixed media artist Rob Wilson is the featured artist at this year’s Great Peak District Fair. Rob takes over the stage of the newly opened Pavilion Arts Centre, situated within the Pavilion Gardens complex, to showcase his work. On display will be paintings of local & urban landscapes and buildings, and following a recent painting holiday in France, Rob will present a new series of paintings depicting the towns he visited, including Troyes, Rheims, Avignon, Lyon & Nice. Throughout the weekend visitors will be able to follow Rob’s progress on a new painting, as he demonstrates some of the techniques used in his distinctive work which incorporates paint, paper, typeface, printed matter and stitching.
