14,000 TUNE IN TO LINCOLN’S FIRST DIGITAL FESTIVAL

News release

3rd November 2011

Lincoln’s first ever Festival of Digital Culture, which attracted over 14,000 attendances, has been hailed a resounding success.

Frequency 2011, which ended at the weekend (29th October), attracted visitors from all walks of life to exhibitions and performances organised throughout the city at traditional arts venues as well as unexpected locations.

News of the inaugural festival reached audiences worldwide, with over 8,000 people from 56 countries engaging with the festival online via the website and social media channels including Twitter and Facebook.

Frequency 2011 laid the foundations for a biennial event in the city and efforts have already turned to 2013 in the hopes of attracting interest from supporters and investors such as businesses, technology partners and creatives looking to get involved in future festivals.

Frequency 2011 was delivered by Festival Directors Threshold Studios in partnership with the University of Lincoln, The Collection, the Usher Gallery, Lincoln Drill Hall and Lincolnshire County Council.

Interest garnered by the festival surpassed organisers’ expectations. “We have been so inspired by people from all walks of life coming and experiencing Frequency,” said Festival Director Uzma Johal from Threshold Studios.

“We have been thrilled by the amount of support and commitment of so many people who visited and engaged with over 40 individual events and exhibitions across the city.

“We carefully selected international and local artists into a unique blend, and with the dramatic backdrop of Lincoln Frequency has certainly made an impact on the local and international stage.

“We would like to thank the city’s businesses, participating venues, the University of Lincoln, our local authority partners and everyone who got involved, helped spread the word and offered their feedback about this unique event.

“Having staged a successful inaugural festival, we now need to sow the seeds for 2013 and a biennial event that we can all be proud of.”

Matt Corrigan, Chief Executive of Lincoln BIG, added: “The festival was great: it grabbed the attention and imaginations of students, residents and visitors alike. It brought together dynamic partnerships between Lincoln’s business community and various arts organisations ,creating a great buzz across the city, and lays the foundation for a major biennial contemporary culture festival, something new to Lincoln.

“We helped and supported the festival this year and we look forward to doing so in the future so that this biennial event just gets bigger and better each time.”

Dr Lisa Mooney Smith, Director of Research and Senior Academic in Art, Architecture and Design at the University of Lincoln, added: “Here at the university we are delighted with Frequency.

“Countless students, recent graduates, academics and staff got involved in the festival and our aspiration is to encourage even more international collaboration in 2013. With this level of artistic quality and the innovative use of new technologies, Frequency offered up a unique opportunity to showcase and work alongside creatives at the cutting edge of digital practice.

“Having an event like Frequency demonstrates the creative ambitions of the city and is a key element to attracting more students to the university.”

To read reviews and blogs, see pictures and videos collected throughout the festival and to check on events happening in the run-up to Frequency 2013 visit the website at www.frequency.org.uk/.

For more information about Frequency 2011 visit www.frequency.org.uk, www.facebook.com/frequencyfestival or www.twitter.com/frequency_fest

Notes for Editors

1. Frequency 2011 was part of the Igniting Ambition Festival 2011, a Cultural Olympiad programme in the East Midlands which invests in projects and people that take the London 2012 Games as their inspiration to create once-in-a-lifetime cultural opportunities for audiences and communities.

1. Igniting Ambition is funded by Legacy Trust UK, the European Regional Development Fund and the East Midlands Development Agency, with the support of Arts Council England and many others.

1. Legacy Trust UK is an independent charity set up to create a cultural and sporting legacy from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games across the UK and is also a principal funder of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival. The Trust is funded by a £40 million endowment from the Big Lottery Fund (£29m), Department for Culture Media and Sport (£6m) and Arts Council England (£5m).

1. This event was part of the Lincolnshire Showcase. The Showcase is made up of 12 very special arts projects which will travel through the county and are at the heart of Lincolnshire’s contribution to the Connecting Communities events, part of the Igniting Ambition programme. The Showcase is part of the Cultural Olympiad, which began in 2008, four years to the day to the opening of the Olympics. Connecting Communities takes place in 2011 in Lincolnshire, Rutland and Northamptonshire.

1. The ERDF programme aims to strengthen economic and social cohesion in the European Union by supporting regional economic development. For more information on ERDF funding generally, please visit www.erdf.communities.gov.uk

1. The University of Lincoln was instrumental in bringing the Festival of Digital Culture to the city, and many academics and students from its Art, Architecture and Design faculty and its Media, Humanities and Technology faculty took part as artists as well as being involved in the planning. The University is committed to promoting the arts and has been a key driver in raising the city’s cultural offering since the institution’s establishment in 2001, notably with its Lincoln Academy series, its degree shows, sponsorship of the Lincoln Book Festival and European Festival of Arts and the Lincoln Performing Arts Centre, one of the largest theatres in the region.

1. Arts Council England works to get great art to everyone by championing, developing and investing in artistic experiences that enrich people’s lives. It supports a range of artistic activities from theatre to music, literature to dance, photography to digital art, and carnival to crafts. Great art inspires us, brings us together and teaches us about ourselves, and the world around us. In short, it makes life better. Between 2011 and 2015, Arts Council England will invest £1.4 billion of public money from government and a further £0.85 billion from the National Lottery to create these experiences for as many people as possible across the country. 

1. Lincolnshire County Council is a proud promoter of the county’s arts, culture and heritage. The authority manages many of Lincolnshire’s major cultural attractions, such as The Collection, Gainsborough Old Hall and Lincoln Castle, and also supports a number of initiatives across the county that help to increase access to the arts.

1. Lincolnshire One Venues (LOV) exists to bring people the very best in arts and culture by working together to support, sustain and develop the arts and arts venues across Lincolnshire. Lincolnshire One Venues are: Stamford Arts Centre (Stamford), the South Holland Centre (Spalding), the Guildhall Arts Centre (Grantham), The Hub: National Centre for Craft and Design (Sleaford), Lincoln Drill Hall, the Embassy Theatre (Skegness), the Terry O’ Toole Theatre (North Hykeham), The Collection (Lincoln), Trinity Arts Centre (Gainsborough), Riverhead Theatre (Louth) and LPAC (Lincoln).

1. The Frequency Associate Artists scheme was funded by the Lincolnshire One programme which forms part of 21 national projects under the Arts Council England ‘Thrive’ programme that aims to strengthen the UK Arts sector and provide a unique opportunity for Arts organisations to develop, change and continuously improve.

For media enquiries please email press@frequency.org.uk or call

Jez Ashberry or Kate Strawson on 01522 528540.

Tags: