Festival 2016

Portland

"We've been entertained, welcomed, challenged. I love being assaulted by things out of the ordinary..."

b-side returned to the Isle of Portland in September 2016 showcasing the very best in contemporary art made in response to this beautiful and intriguing island. Extraordinary, playful, witty and challenging our programme emerges from conversations between artists, producers and the residents of Portland.

Thousands of visitors enjoyed a generous mix of free and ticketed events that included brand new work in film, visual art, sound and live art created especially for the festival, artist talks, workshops, bus tours, a pop up outdoor cinema, a Reliant Robin parade, underground goings-on and intriguing bending of truths at The Portland Office for Imaginary History plus much more.

See all the wonderful images from b-side Festival 2016 HERE

“Really appreciated everything I saw. The whole experience pushed the borders of what I considered to be art last week! Thank you.”

2016 Festival Visitor

Project events

Event

Frolic

Royal British Legion
Portland

DJ’s Crumpet Clare and Jonny Slut invite you to an unforgettable night of Frolic Disco in er 'Not Clichéd Tourism' attire (if there is such a

Event

Changes

Jailhouse Café
Portland

Elspeth’s work explores the colour pallete of Portland’s seascapes through photography and paint.

"My concept for b-side is to bring the

Boombox by Sadie Hennessy
Event

Boombox

Portland Bill Car Park
Portland

Boombox, is based on Sadie's teenage diary written in 1982, whilst she was a student at Weymouth Tech (or rather whilst she was supposed to be

Event

Metropolis

Pennsylvania Castle
Portland

Continuing b-side's pop up cinema experiences wth a twist - this year we have teamed up with The Penn to create a unique opportunity to see Fritz

Event

A Place in the Sun

Conservative Club
Portland

Pull up a sun-lounger and enjoy an all-inclusive holiday experience with the complete package of seven deadly sins: lust, gluttony, greed, sloth,

Event

The Sonic Anomaly Sideshow

High Angle Battery
Portland

Lee Berwick works mainly with sound, exploring the way it behaves in different resonant spaces, to create installations with sounds that relate

Weather Station presented by OSR Projects
Event

Weather Station

Drill Hall
Portland

A giant inflatable ball becomes the Weather Station, a mobile pavilion for the collection of images, objects and ideas. An artist-led response to

Sound installation St Georges Church
Event

Unseen and Unheard Things

St George's Church
Portland

Artist Debbie Adele Cooper has been researching letters written by Conscientious Objectors; in particular an undiscovered diary of a young Quaker

The Matthew Robins Show
Event

The Matthew Robins Show

Royal Manor Theatre
Portland

"Matthew Robins's charming, sometimes heartbreaking little stories are delivered as adult shadow-puppet operas, comprising homemade cardboard

Want to see what we programmed for 2016 Festival?

The 2018 Guide can be viewed online, you can also download a PDF copy using the link below. 

Download festival guide