Kinsale Arts Weekend aims to be an annual and long-standing community arts festival with deep public engagement and high local stakeholder buy-in. The festival’s mission is to provide opportunities to showcase, nurture, mentor and celebrate emerging creative talent across all artistic genres in settings that invite the community to observe, experience, learn about and participate in the arts.

The showcasing of artistic works occurs in venues the public encounter deliberately and incidentally, enabling us to reach wider audiences. An excellent example of this is our “Window art” where art lovers and casual window shoppers can encounter artists’ displays.

Our aim is to leverage venues that have aesthetic or historic appeal. Kinsale and its beautiful harbour environs enjoy a wealth of choices in this regard. We also aim to leverage spaces that are under-utilised, allowing the public to experience art at unexpected times and places.

Finally, we aim to encourage and support individual artists through mentoring relationships between established and emerging practitioners as well as commissioning and showcasing local talent.