Last night Dorset Moon received Bronze in the Dorset Tourism Awards for Tourism Event/Festival of the Year. Gold was awarded to Run Jurassic 2019 by White Star Running and Silver to 2020 Dorset Arts Festival by Sculpture by the Lakes.
In the summer of 2019, a seven-metre sculpture of the moon landed in three breathtaking locations across Dorset; St. Peter’s Church in Bournemouth, Sherborne Abbey and Nothe Fort in Weymouth. A full programme of lunar-inspired events orbited the sculpture, including a silent disco under the moonlight, and seven brand-new artworks were created for the event.
More than 41,000 visits were made to Dorset Moon, and visitors marveled at the astounding seven metre diameter spherical sculpture of the moon, created by artist Luke Jerram. It features a detailed NASA image of the lunar surface, and each centimetre of the internally lit sculpture represents 5km of the moon’s surface.
Businesses were given free resources to help create their own moon-related packages and offers. Over 50 businesses across Dorset got involved in the celebrations. A survey of Sherborne businesses evidenced that 60% said they were busier and profit had increased on the weekend of Dorset Moon compared to a normal July weekend and 100% of the businesses said arts festivals were vital for bringing in new visitors from outside of the county to a town.
“Dorset Moon far exceeded the expectations of the Dorset Festivals Consortium. All three festivals are profoundly energised by the response from the public and the quality of the artistic work. The international reach online has highlighted our county as a place where truly extraordinary events take place. It has been a delight to present the work and partner with such a great set of iconic venues and a wonderful team.” – Kate Wood, Executive and Artistic Director of Activate.
This stellar event was commissioned by the Arts Development Company, and produced by the Dorset Festivals Consortium, made up of Dorset’s three popular arts festivals: Inside Out Dorset (produced by Activate), b-side and Bournemouth Arts By the Sea. It was funded by the European Regional Development Fund and Arts Council England.
