THEME: Beneath the Surface
This theme for the 2026 Kelburn Garden Party celebrates the joy of collective experiences, illustrating the invisible networks that hold forests and societies together: the delicate webs that connect trees to fungi, and people to each other. It’s a space for discovery, reflection, and playful subversion — celebrating what thrives unseen.
In the natural world, mycorrhizal fungi form vast underground webs linking trees in mutual exchange. These hidden fungal threads carry nutrients, warnings, and even electrical signals — creating what ecologists call “the Wood Wide Web.” It’s a living demonstration of collaboration, communication, and interdependence.
At Kelburn, that same spirit pulses throughout the festival: artists, musicians, organisers, and audiences form their own underground network of creativity and care. Beneath the Surface draws inspiration from both — the forest’s hidden biology and the pulsing community of the festival — revealing what unfolds when the secret systems of nature meet the boundless potential of human imagination.
Throughout the weekend, deep within the woods and tucked into unexpected corners, you will encounter installations, performances, sound works, and rituals that blur the boundaries between science and storytelling, ecology and myth, connection and resistance.
Like the forest itself, Beneath the Surface is not centralised — it spreads organically. You might stumble upon it in the dark, follow a faint light, or hear a whispering voice through the roots. Each encounter adds a thread to the larger web, and serves as a celebration of our interconnectedness, encouraging us to look deeper, listen closely, and recognise the intricate web that sustains us all.
This theme invites you to think of Kelburn not as a series of stages, but as a living ecosystem — where art, environment, and community nourish one another. Beneath the music and laughter, there’s a deeper resonance: a profound call to gather in awareness, to slow down, listen, and notice the hidden structures that sustain our lives.
Beneath the Surface is not a retreat from the world; rather, it is an invitation to find connections. By delving below the surface, we uncover the networks that hold our collective experience together: the friendships and collaborations that resist isolation; the collective intelligence that hums beneath systems of control.
As you wander through Kelburn’s glens and gardens, imagine the forest communicating around you — a living network of signals, stories, and songs. The same can be said of the festival. The music, the art, the people — each an integral part of a living system exchanging energy, care, and creativity.
Beneath the Surface is a reminder that we are all part of that network and web of life — biological, social, and imaginative. The forest listens. The earth remembers. And somewhere beneath the rhythm of the dances and the shimmering lights, the roots are talking.
Information
The outdoor exhibition will run as part of the Kelburn Garden Party , which attracts over 7,000 people over 4 days: 2nd - 6th July 2026, with a Private View of the Neverending Glen on 2nd July 2026.
We have 3 levels of work you can apply for:
- £200 - £750
- £751 - £1500
- £1501 - £3000
Please bear in mind that we have a limited budget and will be able to select very few works with the top fee.
Please read this guide below in full before applying.
APPLICATION DEADLINE:
Friday 16 January 2026 (11.55pm)
For more information on the Project and previous Exhibitions Visit: www.neverendingglen.com
If you have any questions, or to apply in an alternative format, get in touch with neverendingglen@kelburnarts.com