Landscape and walking provide the catalyst for Walking the Land’s creative activities. Based in the Gloucestershire countryside, Walking the Land comprise three lead artists, Richard and Tom Keating and Kel Portman. Each share a love of the landscape and as painters, sculptors, photographers, videographers and educators they produce work which refers to specific places, localities and environments.

Formed 5 years ago, the Stroud-based arts co-operative have regularly produced and exhibited their own work that has been made around the Stroud area. In addition they also facilitate landscape-based projects, installations and exhibitions and events with other artists in such places as Capel Mill with the ‘Transitions’ project, ‘Racking Fields’ in Rodborough and Arboreality at Westonbirt National Arboretum. Alongside collaboration with artists, they also promote creative enterprises with other professions including, ecologists, historians, architects and renewable energy engineers.

Part of their work also includes creative involvement with schools, community groups, neighbourhood projects and conservation organisations such as The Cotswold Water Park, Natural England, the Cotswold Conservation Board and The Forestry Commission.

Walking the Land see their role not just as individual or even group artists, but also as facilitators of practical projects that bring an appreciation of the landscape to a wider audience. By inviting and encouraging local people to make artwork and responses based on their own direct experience of ‘the land’, they hope to provoke dialogue and discussion about both art, landscape, environmental and sustainability matters.

Walking the Land run creative workshops, art courses and walks in the Gloucestershire countryside throughout the year and will be active as a part of the 'site08' Visual Arts Festival which took place in June 2008.

On this site you can find out more about Walking The Land and our activities. In particular how to take part in our projects and courses.

News
Old Passage Art Award 08

We're very pleased to announce the winners of this years Award for the public's favorite artist participating in 'river', an exhibition hosted by Sally & David Pearce of The Old Passage at Arlingham and curated by Walking the Land, during the site08 visual arts festival.
Voting was very close with several artists in the running, but the overall winner was fabric artist Jo Newman with her artwork 'Old Tom'.
The very worthy runner-up prize was awarded to Stroud photographer
Sylvain Guenot for his portrait of the elver fisherman Hartly Everet.
Jesse Spurr of Frampton on Severn won the Voter's Prize.
(left to right: David Pearce, Sylvain Guenot, Jo Newman and Sally Pearce)

• click here to see the exhibition