Will Worthington and the Marsden Imbolc Fire Festival

There will be a wonderful opportunity to view some of Will Worthington’s fabulous artwork at a gallery in Marsden in West Yorkshire. The gallery will be displaying a selection of his paintings open to the public every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, beginning this weekend and on through Imbolc. The exhibition coincides with the Marsden Imbolc Fire Festival. Here the organisers explain a little of the festival‘s history:

Marsden Imbolc Fire festival takes place on the 1st Saturday in February, following weeks of workshops. It is a community celebration based around the celtic ‘Imbolc’ marking the time when the earth begins to wake up after its winter sleep. This festival was started by Kirklees Countryside Volunteers 20 years ago, primarily for the people of Marsden to come together at a quiet time of the year, to explore the environment around them and to share an awareness of the turning of the seasonal cycle. MIFF has evolved over the years and now draws from a larger, more diverse community in terms of performers, participants and audience.

The festival involves a fiery procession with ‘druid’ type characters, Mr Fox fire dancers, mixed bands, stilt walkers and people carrying fire lanterns made at the workshops. It terminates at Standedge Visitors Centre (Tunnel End), where Jack Frost and the Green Man battle for the spring. We welcome in the sun with a firework finale.’  

There will be a ‘meet the artist’ day or evening (yet to be arranged) but Will lives in the village and is very happy to chat to visitors about his work. The gallery is situated in Peel Street, the main road in the village.

So, if you want to celebrate the inspirational energy of Imbolc with some inspirational artwork and join in the Marsden Festivies, you could combine both in what would be a magical experience.

To visit Will’s website click here

For more information about the Marsden festival click here