Creativity Walks 2026
The Creativity Walks project is a series of arts-led walks taking place across natural spaces in Eastleigh as part of the Eastleigh Walking and Wheeling Festival.
ZEST artist Lucie Smith managed the project and facilitated bespoke public workshops alongside Kristína Marošiová, Alex Sutherland, and Alice Louisa.
Eastleigh Borough Council and Hampshire County Council funded Sustrans, the walking and cycling charity, to deliver the Borough’s first 30-day Walking and Wheeling Festival to help residents ‘Walk, wheel and connect’. Part of this commission was dedicated to the Creativity Walks.
Creativity Walks aimed to offer direct connection with surroundings, for audiences to develop a sense of belonging and kinship with outdoor spaces, thereby creating a deepened respect for local heritage and the natural world. A sharing of stories and folklore relating to the landscapes and historic locations formed a key part of some of the walks. Across the workshops the walks attended to recent ongoing shifts to the climate and seasons, informing on what this means for wildlife.
The artists involved aimed to empower audiences to feel more confident in their knowledge of the natural environment, its history and its current state, leaving them equipped with exercises for continuing to build connections beyond the walking activities.
“The walking workshop focused on the folklore of trees and the forest. We focused on the mighty oak and cedar trees at Royal Victoria Country Park. Along the walk I told the legends of some of the trees, we created some nature zines exploring the textures of the trees, and put our backs to the trees to gain their strength and courage. We played a game of the sounds of the forest along the walk and finished the workshop creating masks inspired by everything we learnt on the walk.”
— Alice Louisa
