The New Bloomsbury Set: Silks

We are inviting residents of Bloomsbury, Holborn and King’s Cross to take part in free workshops to create beautiful silk flags for the 2023 Bloomsbury Festival, illustrating your heritage and local area. The flags will represent stories you’d like to share about where you live and your culture. We are particularly encouraging local people of global origins to join us and share your heritage and local stories.

Open workshops for adults age 18+ will be held at Holborn Community Association on Tuesday mornings on 28 March, 25 April, 23 May.
Please email hazel@holborncommunity.co.uk to take part.

For young people ages 14-18 there will be open workshops at Kings Cross Brunswick Neighbourhood Association on Tuesdays in holiday/after school hours on 4 April, 25 April and 23 May.
Please email ellie@bloomsburyfestival.org.uk to take part.

To complete the flags for all groups there will be drop-in painting days for all participants to come along as you wish during opening hours at Holborn Library on Weds 12 and Thurs 13 alongside the artist led team.

Read our information pack below, which explains the step-by-step process of designing and making the flags, the wider context behind the project, and what you can do now to start thinking about your flag design.

This silk painting project is led by arts organisation Kinetika as part of the festival’s New Bloomsbury Set – an arts and heritage project run by Bloomsbury Festival and supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The project will bring together local community groups, residents, and artists in Bloomsbury to create a series of exhibitions and events that explore Bloomsbury’s diverse history, identity, and cultures past and present.

The 6 colourful flags will be then be displayed in Holborn Library in October as part of this year’s Bloomsbury Festival, for you to bring friends and family to see. You will also be invited to take part in a walk around Bloomsbury with the flags at the time of the 2023 festival.