Dartford Creative

Preparing a community for change 

Dartford Creative was a 12-month arts programme funded by Dartford Borough Council and Arts Council England, exploring ways in which artists and local people can get involved in arts and cultural activity in Dartford. It was facilitated by Icon Theatre and built on the learning and success of the pilot project delivered in 2014-15. 

FrancisKnight were appointed to project manage a series of temporary art in public realm commissions, responding to Dartford’s heritage and future built environment. FrancisKnight offered mentoring and support to four artists as part of the programme enabling them to develop their practice and explore site-specific commissioning and community engagement. 

This project was designed to prepare Dartford for a 10-year period series of large building and regeneration projects, with significant changes to the built environment of the town centre. These small-scale interventions were the first steps in highlighting how the arts and artists can contribute and inform these projects.