Bowfest: Open Studios 2023
Friday 16th June 2023 – Saturday 17th June 2023 , 6:00pm to 5:00pm
Get ready for Bow Arts’ biggest event of the summer! Meet our community of over 100 talented artists living and working in east London. Join us in the Courtyard for live music, a makers market, food stalls and more…
We are throwing open the doors to Bow Road Studios for our unmissable annual event. Come and celebrate the thriving community of east London’s brightest emerging and established artists, designers and makers. Our doors will be open from 6pm-9pm on Friday 16th June, and 11am – 5pm on Saturday 17th June.
Get to know the artists working in your community. Guests are invited into over 90 studios across Bow Road. Inside, artists curate micro galleries, set-up stalls, and display their practice to the public.
Our makers market returns! Stall holders from across Bow Arts, as well as local artists will be there on the day selling artwork, gifts, and more. We will also be serving delicious refreshments from the Nunnery Cafe, and vendors will be there on the day to provide more food options.
On Friday evening, Bobby Mandala’s Midnight Elite will perform live in the Bow Arts Courtyard with a fun and up tempo set, filtering yacht rock and jazz fusion melodies through the lens of a back to basics punk ethos. Enjoy a drink and bask in the summer air.
On Saturday, one of our incredible artist educators Woo Jin Joo will be leading a free, drop-in family friendly workshop exploring the storytelling and memory-capturing properties of garments and clothing. In the workshop, children will design their own mini clothing templates and textile experiments, using fabric paint and markers to decorate their designs and document the memories and things that matter to them.
Explore more, and RSVP below to let us know you’re coming.
Visit Lucy Orta Traces: Stories of Migration
The Nunnery Gallery will be open, showing Lucy Orta Traces: Stories of Migration. The exhibition offers an insight into the diversity of first and second-generation migration histories woven into the landscape of east London.
Family workshop: design and paint mini garments with Woo Jin Joo
Lots of cultures use textiles and clothing to document important memories and pass on stories. Come along and design your own mini clothing templates and textile experiments, using fabric paint and markers to decorate your designs and show off the memories and things that matter to you!
The Nunnery Café
Our friendly cafe will be open with delicious refreshments, serving smooth coffee by HeySisterCoffee – a female-led, hand-crafted roastery that’s ethical, empowering and sustainable.
Be sure to catch the café exhibition, showing off work by one of our studio holders!
Own Art
All artwork, in the studios, the gallery, and the café will also be available to buy using Own Art, the affordable art scheme that enables buyers to spread the cost of an artwork across 10 interest-free instalments.
Access information
The Bow Arts Trust office has step-free access throughout from street level, including to the accessible toilet, and is service animal friendly. This venue does not have a hearing loop system.
Accessible parking is not available on-site but blue badge parking can be found 500m away on Fairfield Road.
A breakout space will be provided on the day for those who need access to a quiet room.
If you have any questions regarding accessibility at this venue or event, would like to make us aware of any access requirements that you have in advance of visiting, or would like this information in an alternate format including Easy Read, please call 020 8980 7774 (Ext. 3).
Transport Information
Times:
Address: Bow Arts Trust, 183 Bow Road, London, E3 2SJ
Nearest station(s): Bow Road (District and Hammersmith and City lines) is a 6-minute walk away, and Bow Church (DLR) is a 3-minute walk away.
Bus: 205, 25, 425, A8, D8, 108, 276, 488 and 8 all service the surrounding area.
Bike: Bicycle parking is located at Bow Church Station. The nearest Santander Cycles docking station is at Bow Church Station.