Not Quite Light Festival took place in Swinton from Friday 15 to Sunday 17 March 2024, with 14 events at various locations across the town centre.
The award-winning festival created a fun, thought-provoking and memorable programme built around art, debate, music and architecture.
A well-attended festival launch event at the historic Grand Palais included the premiere of Simon Buckley’s film Gathering Points.
The weekend also featured a performance set in Swinton Square shopping centre in collaboration with artist Lowri Evans and musician Biff Roxby, artist Len Grant leading sketching sessions in the town centre, workshops for children with Buttress Architects, and a social drop-in session by Swinton’s thriving knitting group Knit and Natter.
Guided walks took place with historian Paul Sherlock and the Modernist Society, young people took part in a music production workshop from charity Brighter Sounds, an early morning photography-walk explored Swinton Greenway, Swinton-based musicians took over Arts Let Loose for an evening showcase, and an exploration of Coronation Street creator Tony Warren’s work was attended by many people with memories of his life in the town.
Creative director, Simon Buckley AKA Not Quite Light, said: “It's been a wonderful experience bringing together various community groups and artists, and discovering how much talent and energy there is within the town. Like so many places that might not be on our radar there is so much more going on than is immediately apparent, if we'd just take the time to explore and discover.”