A SETTLE artist has been chosen to design new £18,000 boundary signs for Craven.

Mary Woolf, 24, is a photographic artist and 'creative champion' with the Great Place: Lakes and Dales programme has been selected by Craven District Council to design the signs which will go up at around 20 locations at the entry points to the district.

Mary, who exhibited her work at the GPLD conference at Broughton Hall in November last year, has been appointed ahead of cycling’s 2019 Road World Championships starting on September 22 in Harrogate.

The best professional cyclists in the world will race through Craven on various routes throughout a week of competition - putting Craven on the map once again to a global audience.

Mary was awarded a first class honours degree in photographic arts from the University of Westminster in 2016. While she was studying in London, her family moved from Oxfordshire to the Yorkshire Dales and this allowed her to explore the landscape during the holidays, inspiring her final major project, ‘The Yorkshire Dales’, which was awarded the Travers Smith CSR Art Prize.

She said: “I have spent time exploring the area and learning about the culture and history of this landscape. I feel I have barely scratched the surface of what it has to offer in terms of inspiring my art. I have a distinctive style which will hopefully capture attention as much as these surroundings have captivated me. I enjoy trying to represent something with minimal information; trying to distil it down to its core elements and features.

“I am interested in exploring how art can be used to promote Craven as an area suitable for young artists. I hope that the modern style of my work and the fact that photography is a medium that can be used by all will make the signs particularly appealing to young audiences. I am looking forward to producing signage that is representative of the district.”

The signage commission is being managed for GPLD by consultants FrancisKnight as part of work to explore wider opportunities for public art in the Lakes and Dales.

Lindsey Hebden, GPLD programme manager, said: “Mary’s appointment is great news for public art and young creatives in the area. We are delighted that the panel – which included a young person – opted for a locally-based artist, who has recently started out on their career. We can’t wait to see Mary’s work in place.”

Paul Ellis, Craven District Council’s director of services, said: “We’re keen to install these signs to promote Craven and raise awareness of the district.

"We feel it’s something that has been missing from Craven – visitors should be welcomed as they arrive into our beautiful district. This is part of a range of initiatives to attract and retain more families and young people to the area and highlight Craven as a great place to live, work and visit.

“We’re pleased that a young, local artist has been chosen to design these signs and look forward to seeing the results.

“The completed signs will need planning approval and approval from North Yorkshire County Council’s Highways and any third-party landowners.”