A RALLYING cry has gone out to make the North-East the best region in the country for artists to live and work.

About 300 artists from across the North-East heard how the Arts Council plans to get more national and international artists relocating to the region during a celebration event, at the Baltic in Gateshead yesterday.

Andrew Dixon, executive director of the Arts Council North East said: "This region is presenting unrivalled opportunities for artists with new employment in arts commissions, training, education and the cultural industries.

"Artists of all disciplines are choosing to base themselves here and we are looking at ways to make sure that many more follow in their footsteps."

Leading figures from the arts world, including world-renowned theatre director and producer Jude Kelly, attended yesterday's event to add their support to the North-East's ambitions.

Bob Beagrie, a performance poet from Middlesbrough, said: "The North-East is a gutsy place and a very exciting place to be as an artist.

"There has been a ground-shift in what it is possible to do here, with lots of opportunities for artists."

The cultural industry is one of the fastest growing sectors of the North-East economy.

Martin Wilson, director of Tin Productions, a dance company based in Newcastle, said there were many practical reasons why the region was a great place for artists.

He said: "We have good road and rail links, cheaper housing and cost of living - we just need to get more people up here.

"For some, the most inspiring thing about the North-East is the landscape here, but for me it is the people.