Oxfordshire Artweeks is the UK’s oldest and biggest open studios and pop-up exhibition event: in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, the 38th festival — taking place from 2nd -25th May — is moving on-line.
“Each day of the festival we will be presenting a different themed art trail on the website giving visitors a chance to escape the lockdown with a trip to the sea, for example, where they can ‘stroll’ along craggy coastlines, see the splash of the waves, watching bobbing boats and even enjoy fish and chips and an ice-cream at the end of the day!” says Esther Lafferty, Festival Director. “On a different day, Artweeks painters, potters, jewellers, textile and glass artists, furniture-makers and sculptors will explore the country’s rivers and lakes, and on a third there’s the chance to go down the rabbit hole to Alice’s Wonderland.”
“With thousands of pieces of art showcased, we hope people who are missing their annual Artweeks days out can still explore the local countryside and wildlife through the eyes of Oxfordshire artists, can take a mini-break in places from the Mediterranean to the poles and back again or find a treasure to catch their eye. And it’s a very green way to explore: people anywhere can travel back and forth across the county – and around the world! – in a moment, visiting artists whose studios are on the far side of Oxfordshire without filling the car to seek out the colourful, the precious and the unusual to bring colour and interest to each May day.”
Visitors will be able to enjoy footage of artists at work, explore ‘walk-through’ exhibitions on-line and delve deeper with through-the keyhole-interviews with a variety of artists who use different materials to create art both big and small. Visitors are also encouraged to join in on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter by following the hashtag #oxfordshireartweeks.
“With hundreds of creatives taking part in a social media celebration too, we hope to brighten up what, for many local people, will be long days in self-isolation or practicing social distancing.”
From the real to the surreal, there’s fun of the fair and a feast for the eyes in flora, fauna, folklore and fable so whether an art aficionado or interested internet-surfer, be enchanted, inspired and even choose something unique from your own home this May.
A small number of exhibitions still hope regulations will lift sufficiently to remain open to visitors including Sculpture at Kingham Lodge which is set in five acres of landscaped gardens with a breath-taking Alhambra-inspired pavilion and blooming rhododendrons & azaleas (Artweeks venue 276). Other venues will also publish any new dates for the autumn in coming weeks, and Artweeks in Watlington (venues 71- 120) will run, provisionally, from 29th August.
Themes include:
1. Oxford’s dreaming spires
2. A trip to the coast
3. Into the woods
4. Rivers and lakes
5. Mountain views
6. Oxfordshire countryside
7. Cityscapes and buildings
8. The garden
9. Adventures abroad
10. Still life and simple pleasures
11. People, pets and personalities
12. Horses, hounds and country wildlife
13. Fantastic beasts and other fairy-tales
14. Home and interior design
15. Valuing mother nature
16. Celebrating colour
17. Elements of the earth
18. Inspired by the past
19. Figures and form
20. Small is beautiful
21. Big and bold
22. Tactile treasures
23. Patterns
24. Wonderland
Oxfordshire Artweeks
2nd-25th May 2020
The Artweeks festival is Oxfordshire’s largest visual arts festival and the UK’s oldest and biggest Open Studios event. It is a three-week not-for-profit celebration in May each year of the county’s artistic and creative talent encompassing the visual arts in their broadest sense. Around 1500 artists open the doors to their homes and studios or take part in pop-up exhibitions and welcome the public to see their creations and watch them work –over 100,000 people visit Artweeks exhibitions each year and a million pounds of art changes hands! Further press information, area-specific details within Oxfordshire, copy written to a word count, and/or high res images, contact Esther Lafferty 01367 242498 or 07715 640228 esther@artweeks.org.