LOOKUP Portsmouth is an annual street art festival that brings together the best international, national and local artists to create permanent works across the city. It actively seeks the inclusion of female street artists and other under-represented groups whilst maintaining high curatorial standards. It invests in developing female and local talent to help grow the pool of high quality artists from which it can select.

LOOKUP Portsmouth is as much a community project as an art project. Unlike most other street art festival which take place in a small area, LOOKUP Portsmouth covers the whole city taking art to people’s doorsteps. It gives opportunities for people to participate in a range of ways and prioritises those who will most benefit from the experience by partnering with organisations working with deprived communities to offer priority access to free workshops and creating exciting street art projects that can inspire and support children.

LOOKUP Portsmouth creates a shared experience for visitors who frequently comment that their favourite part of the event is seeing other people with the festival map and engaging in conversations with strangers to swap tips on where to go and what to see.

During the 9th & 10th Sept 2023 Portsmouth was awash with colour…

Participating artists included: PHLEGM, MY DOG SIGHS, THE LONDON POLICE, HERA, INKIE, KASHINK, LIAM BONONI, PAUL MONSTERS, HAYLEY WELSH, FARKFK, MISTER SAMO, ALEXANDRA GALLAGHER, GETTING UP TO STUFF, SNUB23, EPOD, NOL, CBLOXX, SI MITCHELL, OOBERLA, MISHFIT, ROD ABROOK, CARYN KOH, BRAVE ARTS, MIDGE, POMPEY BANANA CLUB, ASHLEY DAVID JOHN, MOOK and many more…

Objectives

To introduce world class permanent art to all areas of the city showing that residents are valued by presenting exemplary art to inspire others.

Provide opportunities for women and other under-represented groups in street art at all levels from embryonic to headliners to grow and develop talent.

Create an established platform for local artists to build their skills and network with other artists.

Enable practical workshops for children and adults to take part.

Ensure that LOOKUP Portsmouth is fully accessible, removing all barriers to access with entrance to all key parts of the event free of charge.

Maximise the community benefits using art to improve lives and life chances.

LookUp Team

Angela Parks is a project director with extensive experience managing large and complex arts projects. She specialises in funding, budgeting, and operations management. She co-founded and managed Cheltenham Paint Festival for 3 years before setting up an arts consultancy that helps artists to deliver their creative visions.  She project managed My Dog Sigh’s INSIDE exhibition that transformed a ballroom that had been derelict for 40 years into an immersive installation attracting 10,000 visitors. She was the driving force behind the creation of LOOKUP Portsmouth.  She is the Chair of New Theatre Royal, a 640-seat Grade II* Matcham/Phipps theatre in the heart of Portsmouth.

Donna Poingdestre is a multidisciplinary artist who shares her time between Portsmouth and London. She works in both the street art and contemporary art scene and is the co-founder and member of the artist led contemporary gallery Blue On The Hill Gallery, based in Highgate London. She has previously worked in a variety of community environments in the city of Portsmouth and more recent years has combined that experience with her art practice to facilitate community art projects. She graduated from Central St Martins in 2022 with a Masters in Fine Art with distinction. 

Louise Wilders is a freelance consultant specialising in supporting not for profit organisations and the communities they work within to drive forward positive change. After a career in the public sector, she co-founded HIVE Portsmouth a registered charity which had a leading role in supporting communities across Portsmouth during the Covid 19 pandemic. Latterly, Louise was interim CEO of Portsmouth Creates, where she supported the recruitment of their new CEO.

Andy Phipps is a Bristol based gallerist, curator, creative director and facilitator of international quality installations, exhibitions and public art.

Previously Asked Questions

I own a wall which I'd like painted, how do I let you know?

We will be publicising the application process in late 2023 please follow us on social media for more information.

How do I apply to paint at LOOKUP?

We invite the headline artists.  We will issue an open call for other artists.  We commit to offering 20% of places to local artists and seek to maximise the inclusion of female artists and artists with other under represented characteristics.

I painted this year, can I apply again?

Local artists are welcome to apply every year.  We want to offer as many artists as possible the opportunity to paint at LOOKUP and to bring a wide variety of art to the city.  We will prioritise artists who didn’t paint this year if/when we select for the following year's event.

Will the paintings only last the weekend or can we see them after the festival?

The majority of walls painted at the festival will be permanent. Some of the painted boards will be around for a year or so.

Will the walls be painted out?

It’s hoped that, should the festival be well received & it can run again! New walls will be sought, so we can build a huge permanent art gallery across the city.

How do we find out where the walls are?

There is a ‘Google Map’ on the website and a downloadable map too.

Why does it say that LOOK UP is on 9th/10th Sept, when there are already artists painting?

The festival is described as two days as that’s when the majority of artists are painting. Lots of locals will have spotted that some of the larger headline artists are already painting. More will be starting Mon/Tues/Wed/Thurs depending on the size of their wall.

Can we take photos of the artists and their work?

Most artists are incredibly pleased to have their work photographed and many are OK about being photographed but there are a few artists who like to stay anonymous - so please always ask first if the artists are OK with being in the photo? Sharing artists work on social media is a brilliant way to support them. Please be to sure to credit & tag the artist where possible.

Can we walk around the festival?

LOOK UP artworks are in all corners of the the city (see the MAP below) - We recommend that you plan your route! Cycling is by far the best mode of transport to take everything in - or you could hire a Beryl Electric Bike or VOI E Scooter.