Discover stunning Cheltenham Paint Festival artwork year-round

One of the many wonderful things about the Cheltenham Paint Festival is that you can enjoy the expressive street art, created by incredible artists from around the world, year-round.

The helpful Paint Festival app, featuring a map and audio guide, makes it a breeze to seek out new and old pieces from across the years, from multi-story high murals you have to see to believe to tucked-away gems you might have missed on your daily commute.

So, grab a pair of trainers, hop on a bike or e-scooter, and see how many pieces you can discover!

LTR: Art at Popeyes, Cheltenham Spa Station and the Steam & Whistle

A good starting point, especially if you are coming into Cheltenham via train, is the area around Gloucester Road. Within the car park of Cheltenham Spa station, you will find several works by artists such as Inkie, Pogo and Wolfskull Jack, and just across the road are large murals by WD and Koe1 decorating the sides of the Steam & Whistle pub and Popeyes fish and chip restaurant.  

Art on the Honeybourne Line tunnels and bridges

The easiest route into town from the station is down the Honeybourne Line, which is home to an ever-changing gallery of artworks. The tunnels and bridges are two areas that get repainted yearly, and sometimes in between festivals, so there's usually something fresh to see in this living exhibition.

LTR: Transcend, Peachzzz, and Space Owls

Continue down the Honeybourne and you have two options available to you. You can veer off around Winston Churchill Memorial Gardens or Swindon Road and head onto the lower High Street or go on further to Pittville Park. In this instance, we headed down to the High Street to seek out an older piece on Tewkesbury Road, 2020's 'Transcend', featuring the face of a young woman made up of painstakingly layered stencils.

From there, head back towards the town centre and keep an eye out for sensational works by artists from as far afield as Belgium and Australia, 'Peachzz' by Kitsune Jolene and Krimsone, and America, 'Space Owls' by Sophy Tuttle.

LTR: Dancing with Horses, Page 75, and a wood sanding by LPVDA

The town centre and High Street are brimming with artwork it's impossible to do them all justice!  But a few highlights from the 2024 festival include the beautiful, wrap-around 'Dancing with Horses' mural by French artist Margay off the Promenade and 'Page 75' by Sam Art, painted for the 75th year of the Cheltenham Literature Festival on Henrietta Street. Meanwhile, for something a little different, head to Holiday Inn Express to see two new works by Swiss artist LPVDA which you won't believe are created entirely by sanding wood with a grinder! 

Artworks being created at North Place Car Park

Just up from Holiday Inn Express is North Place Car Park, one of the busiest areas during the festival the venue has been used for every Cheltenham paint festival thus far, seeing hundreds of pieces come and go over the years. Featuring portraits, flora, animals, cartoons and traditional lettering, the standard for 2024 was especially high, elevating this ephemeral open-air gallery to the next level!

LTR: Artworks by Dale Grimshaw, Krimsone, and Stefan Smit

Not far from the car park is the United Services Club, painted by South African fine artist Stefan Smit at this year's festival. The expansive mural features a dual portrait and an aesthetic reminiscent of the 2017 film Blade Runner 2049. Continue up and round to Williams Cycles to see several more large-scale murals, including another 2024 headliner Dale Grimshaw, whose Jean-Honoré Fragonard-inspired portrait features old pub signs, collages, and 3D layers to make the details pop. Meanwhile, the nearby Town Centre East features one of, if not the largest mural ever created for the festival, 2023's 'The balance of a vibrant but delicate mind' by Krimsone.

Artworks at Aggs Pavillion and Pittville Park skatepark

From here you can continue to explore the town centre (there are heaps of works to see) or head towards Pittville Park for two more areas that receive yearly makeovers. The skatepark and Aggs pavillion. 

LTR: Artworks by Artez, Hazard One, and Mr Cenz

You can easily get back to the Honeybourne Line at the tail end of Pittville Park, nicely rounding off this short(ish) Paint Festival loop. However, with the festival expanding each year there's so much more to see if you're willing to walk a bit further afield. Seen above is a 2024 artwork by Siberian artist Artez off the London Road by Ashley Manor Prep. A glitch-effect portrait crafted by Hazard One in 2022, at the end of Gloucester Road. And a stunning portraiture of Cheltenham's Nylah Jones, who went viral in 2020 after performing her poem 'Black' at a Black Lives Matter protest, painted by Mr Cenz on Princess Elizabeth Way. Princess Elizabeth Way is worth a visit on its own for the sheer number of artworks centralised there!

There are so many more pieces we couldn't cover in one article; you will have to get out and discover them yourself! The best way to find your way around is with the official festival map, linked on the Cheltenham Paint Festival website. Enjoy exploring!