Oxfordshire Artweeks is an annual celebration of art across the whole county and this week is the city’s turn to see a wealth of studios and other places opening up as temporary galleries. I haven’t managed to visit many of them but here are some quick notes on the few Jane and I have seen, near where we work in Headington, with links to their brochure entries:

299: Ella Clocksin (York Avenue). This was the first one we visited. I remarked to Jane that the abstract watercolours were probably going to be like the art summer school I am going on this year… and then we picked up a brochure and twigged that Ella will be the tutor! I was struck by how she sometimes makes use of collage, a detail that would probably be missed in reproductions of the work. Anyway, now I’ve met my summer school tutor and am looking forward to that week in July.

300: Jane and Dan Beinart (St Anne’s Road). Jane paints and Dan photographs and they have split their output into upstairs and downstairs areas. We noted how, although just as abstract as Ella’s work, Jane’s uses much brighter colours, producing a very vivid impression.

296: Jane Strother (Old Road). Jane is an Artweeks veteran and spreads an extensive collection of paintings across both the ground floor of her house and the studio space at the back of her garden. There was lots of oil paint, among other mediums, and I enjoyed seeing several versions of the same scene as she explored different approaches to it.

302: All Saints Artists (Lime Walk). This took longer to tour round than I expected, not least because many of the exhibitors were in attendance and keen to talk. Lots of good stuff here – particular highlights for me were the paintings from Stuart Roper and the wire-based sculptures from Jane Wafer. There was lots more though and it made for a rich lunchtime treat.

Artweeks runs up to Bank Holiday Monday so there are few days left for further exploring.