FOI 2026
News
Forest of Imagination 2026 opens in Bath
Friday, 12 June, 2026Forest of Imagination, a leading outdoor arts event partnered with Bath Spa University is back for another year, with the award-winning festival’s 13th edition launching in June.
Forest of Imagination returns to Entry Hill, Bath this June with eight new installations, ten artist-led workshops and a ten-day programme that is free and open to all. Opening Night takes place on Friday 12 June at 6pm. Schools’ days run 16–18 June.
Co-founded in 2012 by Andrew Grant RDI (Grant Associates) and Dr. Penny Hay (Bath Spa University / House of Imagination), Forest of Imagination has become an annual celebration of creativity and ecology, supported by partners including Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, Museums West, BANES Council, Bath Preservation Trust, Avon Wildlife Trust, local schools, and countless volunteers.
The theme for this year is Enter the Chrysalis, a transformation from the inside out. Organisers describe ‘A process of dissolution, renewal and emergence through which something entirely new becomes possible.’
The concept develops within the chrysalis, where imaginal cells gather to shape the future form of the butterfly. At Entry Hill, Forest of Imagination 2026 will bring the community of the city together, collectively reimagining new relationships with nature and creativity.
Speaking with Dr Penny Hay, Professor of Imagination, Bath Spa University, and co-founder, Forest of Imagination about this year’s festival:
“Forest of Imagination invites people of all ages into a creative dialogue about the ecological emergency and imaginative responses to a sustainable future. It nurtures ecological consciousness, intergenerational hope and creative action - encouraging communities to think imaginatively together about climate change, nature connection and social action.
“At its core, Forest of Imagination creates shared spaces in which imagination is valued as a way of being, relating and connecting. Bath's Entry Hill is becoming exactly this: a living landscape where art, ecology and community converge.”
More information can be found via their website.