Oxfordshire Artweeks is the UK’s oldest and biggest open studios and pop-up exhibition event, and the 41st festival, which runs from 6-29 May and begins with a coronation, promising to be fit for a king. As the country’s creatives open their doors to welcome visitors, for free, there’s a wealth of art and intrigue to explore.
In the villages around Witney as many as 50 artists, ceramicists, sculptors, jewellers – many of whom are taking part in Artweeks for the first time this year – invite you to explore more than twenty locations during the second week of the festival (13-21 May).
You’ll find artists, designers and makers showcasing extraordinary talent, explaining their materials and, often, demonstrating their methods. Touch and talk about thousands of pieces of art and craft and uncover the stories of their inspiration.
The Witney Artweeks trail
Artistic Licence (Artweeks venue 297)
Visit The Corn Exchange for an exhibition of drawing and painting by the Witney art group ‘Artistic Licence’ which meets on Wednesdays in Witney's Corn Exchange, tutored by Sarah Moncrieff.
The Corn Exchange, Market Square OX28 6AB
13-21 May (11am-5pm)
A new face for Artweeks 2023: Steven Broughton (Artweeks venue 298)
A witney-based potter making wheel-thrown ceramics opens his studios and invites you in
53 Corn Street OX28 6BT
13-14, 20-21 May (11am-5pm)
Derwent House (Artweeks venue 299)
Derwent House represents a range of top British designer-makers handcrafting furniture, ceramics, textiles and homewares, and local artists too.
3 Bridge Street OX28 1BY
6-27 May (9.30am-5.30pm, closed Sun/Bank hols)
Debbie Howard WOA (Artweeks venue 300)
Mixed media artist and potter producing vibrant and inspirational artworks as well as offering classes and retreats.
47 Woodgreen OX28 1DE
11-14 (11am-4pm)
Andrew and Kerry Forkner (Artweeks venue 301)
This husband-and-wife artist duo open their home studios inviting visitors to see wildlife paintings and drawings; hand-dyed, quilted and embroidered textiles and jewellery.
149 Manor Road OX28 3UF
13-21 May (11am-6pm)
Also, on the edge of town you’ll find two artists/makers at Crawley Mill Jessica Parker and Meg Harris-Smith (Artweeks venues 295 and 296).
Semi abstract landscape mixed media paintings using collage, ink and acrylic paint and freehand machine embroidery originals and stitched designs printed onto homeware and stationery in two adjacent studios.
Crawley Mill Ind. Est., Dry Lane, Crawley OX29 9TJ
13-21 May (10am-5pm; Meg’s studio is closed on 13)
To The North
Julia Ogborne (Artweeks venue 247)
Julia paints vibrant and joyful abstract acrylic landscapes which she will be showing in a delightful Cotswold home gallery alongside polymer clay jewellery.
Hawthorn Cottage, Witney Road, Finstock OX7 3DE
13-14, 18-21 May (11am- 5pm)
Wilcote Arts (Artweeks venue 246)
Then head to Wilcote Arts, a large community of artists deep in the ancient Royal Hunting Forest of Wychwood. During the Artweeks festival, 16 artists are showcasing their artworks on a theme of Contemplation in the main exhibition room, and in individual studios. The group includes painters, sculptors, ceramicists, jewellery makers, and installation artists who work as individuals and also collaborate in creating socially engaged works (Artweeks venue 246) so it’s a microcosm of Artweeks itself.
Artists and makers include Richard Fox, a sculptor whose work is focused on form and balance. He creates lines in space with impressive tactile curves of wood, each with a symmetry, a seductive delicacy and a smoothness of shape that is perfect for peaceful contemplation. Of the woods he uses, which are all native to the UK, Richard’s particular favourite is sycamore. He describes how because it is pale in colour, the grain catches the light in such a way that its appearance changes as the sculpture rotates. The sculptures are designed to be turned by hand because they are each on a 'pin' fixed on the base of the sculpture, giving these large-scale ribbons of wood an interactive dimension and the fluidity of ever-changing views.
Hunts Copse, Wilcote Riding OX7 3DX
13-14, 19-21 May (11am-5pm)
Paul and Jane Tomlinson (Artweeks venue 302)
In Freeland, siblings Paul and Jane present a stunning exhibition of drawing and painting, observation and imagination, colour and calm, light and shade with a range of goodies that includes original works of art, signed prints, cards, tea towels, and jigsaws. Jane’s vibrant paintings are of nature, birds, animals, trees, the weather and hand-painted maps and Jane’s whimsical imagination produces the most life-affirming, colourful and magical contemporary art around.
Alongside, Paul’s exquisite characterful drawings, are of carefully observed townscapes and buildings washed with watercolour. A former engineer, Paul brings thoroughness and precision to his work yet each imbues local charm.
7 Pigeon House Lane, Freeland OX29 8AG
13-14 20-21 May (12pm-5.30pm)
To The East
New for 2023
Paul Ellis (Artweeks venue 309)
Figurative and abstract collage and printmaking inspired by natural forms and landscapes.
82 Dovehouse Close, Eynsham OX29 4EY
13-21 May (11am-6pm)
Paul Drew (Artweeks venue 304)
Paul Drew’s ceramics and sculpture which makes connections - vessels, relics, human forms, and references to the natural world.
98 Acre End Street, Eynsham OX29 4PD
13-14 20-21 May (11am-6pm)
Philippa Norris | Sue Doughty (Artweeks venue 306)
Decorative/functional porcelain ceramics and hand-forged silver jewellery
Cotswold House, 9 Queens Lane, Eynsham OX29 4HL
13-14 19-21 May (11am-6pm)
Previously Popular Venues in Eynsham
Eric White’s feast of delectably delicious contemporary landscapes in paint, pastel, and inks at the heart of the village.
28 Mill Street, Eynsham, OX29 4JS
13-14 18-21 May (11am-6pm; Sun 12pm-6pm)
Down Tanner’s Lane you’ll find sculpture assembled out of recycled and reclaimed metals by Peter Shrimpton, an invite to explore wheel-thrown and hand-built stoneware and raku ceramics by Alison Homans at Chicken Run Studio and glowing watercolours of plants and local landscapes by Julia Loken, exhibited in a neighbouring house and garden (Artweeks venues 307 and 308).
Tanner’s Lane, Eynsham OX29 4HJ
Alison/Peter 13-15 18-19 21 May; Julia 13-14 19-21 May (11am-6pm)
Alison Berrett (Artweeks venue 303)
Find vibrant expressive painting and drawings displayed in Alison’s brand new studio on the edge of Eynsham
2 Newfield Cottages, Eynsham OX29 4BG
13-14 18-19 21 May (11am-5pm)
To The South
At the heart of Bampton’s Market Square stands West Ox Arts Gallery which is gathering together a new selection of artists for 2023 and art that stunning stained glass inspired by the moon and lunar incantations by Kay Gibbons, a fresh take on still life by Denny Webb and felted bags by Helen MacRitchie. Alongside popular regulars Pip Shuckburgh and Tuula Nicolson, you can also visit Mark Fitzgerald at Sun Pottery and explore a first-time venue, The Old Forge, where Sue Side’s striking graphite portraits and watercolours are shown alongside organic tactile stone sculpture by award-winning David Williams and talented young jeweller Tamzin Keown.
West Ox Arts Gallery Market Square OX18 2JH (Artweeks venue 287)
6-28 May (11.30am-4.30pm)
Pip Shuckburgh Fairwood, Cheapside OX18 2JL (Artweeks venue 288)
Open 13-14 18-21 May (11am-6pm)
Tamzin Keown, Sue Side and David Williams, The Old Forge, Church Street OX18 2NA (Artweeks venue 289-291)
Open 13-14 19-21 May (10am-5pm)
Tuula Nicholson Wisteria, Church View OX18 2NE (Artweeks venue 292)
Open 13-21 May (11am-5pm)
Mark Fitzgerald Sun Pottery, 2a Bushey Row OX18 2JU (Artweeks venue 293)
Open 13-21 May (10am-5pm)
Also, Neville Crowson shows plein air landscapes, garden scenes, seascapes, still life and church interiors Blomfield House, Cote nr Bampton OX18 2EG (Artweeks venue 294)
Open 13-21 May (11am-6pm)
Out West
Look out for four artists in an old barn-cum-forge venue just off the A40 near Asthall
This year regulars metal sculptor Chris Townsend, animal artist Nic Vickery and jeweller Guen Palmer are joined by ceramicist Gilly Whittington who throws most of her pots on the wheel, and handbuilding larger vases. Most recently she has been working with porcelain, despite its reputation for being tricky because of the way the brilliant white background gives the glazes an extra éclat.
‘I have always wanted my pots to have a feeling of spontaneity and movement, despite being static!’ she chuckles. ‘Inspired by Abstract Expressionist painters, I try to get that wonderful feeling of seemingly disorganised dynamism into each piece, and I love the exuberance of the random brushwork, and the unexpected results when the colours melt and produce a new and unexpected shade. As a contrast I also make contemporary designed mugs, bowls, and tableware in porcelain, with plain bright glazes.’
The Old Forge, Asthall Barrow Farm, Asthall OX18 4HJ (Artweeks venues 278-280)
13-21 May (11am-5pm)
Elsewhere across the county, explore a five-acre sculpture park in the Cotswolds, take an art trail through the towns of Woodstock, Watlington and Wallingford or visit city studios in the heart of Oxford, including a printmaking workshop in the heart of the Bodleian library. Artweeks also promises a global journey through the eyes of Oxford artists who have been influenced by people and places around the world and the colours, fabrics, and styles of exotic destinations: tour America on a motorbike, go on safari in Tanzania, head to Svalbard or Cuba, and be enchanted by Rajasthan.
Where will you go first?
For more information on these and hundreds of other venues visit artweeks.org
