The festival will showcase art in a number of different forms, from painting to performing arts.

At 11am this Friday, sculpture The Pioneer will be unveiled at the Singleton Civic Centre.

The monument, in memory of early pioneers, is a donation to Singleton residents by Singleton District Artists and members of the public are invited to attend.

That evening, the Coal & Allied 32nd Singleton Art Prize’s opening promises to be a great night out.

There will be 730 paintings on display by artists from all across Australia.

A winner is selected from every section as well as an overall winner and these will be announced on opening night.

The exhibition is open daily from 10am to 6pm from Saturday to Tuesday, July 22, and entry is $2.

Event coordinator David Gausden said the affair had grown into a very prestigious show.

“We get 800 to 1000 visitors to the Civic Centre over the four days,” he told the Hunter Valley News.

“Every dollar we raise goes back into the community and it’s usually around $20,000.”

Past benefactors include Singleton Public School and Singleton Netball Association.

The overall winning artwork will be added to the Singleton collection, which currently consists of 84 artworks.

All works are for sale.

Cost is $25 per head and includes finger food, wine and musical entertainment.

“There’s a great diversification of art and what we do is encourage art [production] within the community,” Mr Gausden said.

One of the purposes for the event is to facilitate a growing interest in art locally.

There will also be a sculpture exhibition at Singleton Sisters of Mercy Convent, both inside and outside, which will make for a beautiful display.

It will be viewable from July 18 to 24.

Terry Jarvis, judge of this year’s Singleton Art Prize, will also share his knowledge with keen artists for a small fee at St Catherine’s College on July 19 and 20.

For more information, or to book your place, phone Wendy on 6571 2055 or Gwen on 6572 1247.