Hidden (Art) Markets Creative Folkestone (England 2024)

Folkestone (/ˈfəʊkstən/ FOHK-stən) is a port town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour, shipping port & fashionable coastal resort for most part of the 19th and mid 20th centuries.

Until the 19th century Folkestone town in south east England remained a small fishing community with a seafront that was continually battered by storms and encroaching shingle that made it hard to land boats. In 1807 an Act of Parliament was passed to build a pier and harbour which was built by Thomas Telford in 1809.[6] By 1820 a harbour area of 14 acres (5.7 hectares) had been enclosed. Folkestone's trade and population grew slightly but development was still hampered by sand and silt from the Pent Stream. The Folkestone Harbour Company invested heavily in removing the silt but with little success. In 1842 the company became bankrupt and the Government put the derelict harbour up for sale. It was bought by the South Eastern Railway (SER), which was then building the London to Dover railway line. George Turnbull was responsible in 1844 for building the Horn pier. Dredging the harbour, and the construction of a rail route down to it, began almost immediately, and the town soon became the SER's principal packet station for the Continental traffic to Boulogne. The last ferry ran in 2001.

The Harbour Arm, formerly used solely for port activities, has been extensively restored and developed as a recreational space and promenade to which the public has access, including bars and restaurants, with entertainment at weekends and on some evenings. The former railway station and harbour viaduct have been reconstructed as a successful public walkway and promenade, following the full closure of the branch railway in 2014.

In 2024

Folkestone Triennial is the UK’s largest exhibition of newly commissioned work. The majority of which are placed outside within the setting of the town and its seafront for the public and visitors to experience (some can be seen in this video)

2024 will be the sixth Folkestone Triennial and the previous five have established a reputation for Folkestone as an art town that welcomes contemporary artists into its everyday life. The Triennial is just one part of the work of the creative placemaking charity, Creative Folkestone, that has spent the last twenty years transforming the town, its cultural life, economy and reputation.

Creative Folkestone is here to stay