Here at Artizan it goes without saying that we love art, so much so that even on our days off we feel compelled to find somewhere to go to get our daily art fix! With breaks in the schedule few and far between though, we unfortunately miss out on the opportunity to see some wonderful exhibitions. We were determined that the SWAc Annual Open was not going to be one of these and it just so happened that the one window we had to get over to Exeter fell on the last day of the show. It also, rather fortunately coincided with a visit from long serving gallery intern Frances who was back in the bay. So, on the morning of the 25th we hopped on a train and were soon Exeter bound! This year’s venue was Exeter Castle, a prestigious location set in the lovely Northernhay Gardens, a mere two-minute walk from the Central Station. A difficult venue to miss… you’d think. Disembarking the train, we exited into the town centre and, deep in conversation having not seen each other for a while, we began to make our way to the exhibition. After a festive 15-minute walk, taking in Princesshay’s Charity Christmas Tree Festival, we arrived…at Castle Gallery! Whoops, well at least we’d enjoyed all the Christmas trees! Take two! Retracing our steps, we made our way back towards Northernhay and this time found Exeter Castle. You might have guessed that this was our first visit and we were immediately impressed by the site. The Castle itself has stood on this site in some form or other since 1068, with a previous structure being destroyed there in 1003. Now, there are very few remains of the very early buildings within the walls and viewed from outside the majority of its towers and battlements are hidden by the foliage of the Gardens. From inside the central courtyard though, the formidable fortifications can still be clearly seen. Inside, the Castle is a fantastic venue to show art, and with work displayed across three spaces there was plenty for us to explore. The South West Academy is a registered charity dedicated to advancing the creation and appreciation of art in the South West and have an annual calendar of exhibitions and events that take place across the region. They have been coming to the Castle for four years now and their Chair Phil Creek told us that they had been overwhelmed with applications to be part of the show this year, making the selection process extremely tough. Hard work that undoubtedly paid off though; the resulting exhibition is a show full of originality, rich, diverse and visually captivating! We were delighted to see several artists that we knew, a handful of whom having exhibited with us previously and some who are set to join us at Artizan in 2018. Impossible to pick a favourite but that is what visitors are invited to do when they first arrive. We left having been unable to narrow it down but with cultural appetites thoroughly satisfied. Another great year for SWAc! #ExeterCastle #Exhibitions #2017 #SWAc

After a very successful Summer Open we're really looking forward to our final exhibition of the year where we welcome artists from across Devon to help us fill our gallery with wonderful wall art, sculpture and prints for the Christmas season. This year, as well as inviting new submissions to the event, we'll also bring all of our 2017 exhibitors back under the Artizan roof one last time! Our open shows are an exciting opportunity for new artists to join us for the first time and for new exhibitors to test the waters in a friendly exhibition space. Equally, for long-serving artists and friends to the gallery, they're a great time to join us once again and share the space with local colleagues. Meanwhile for our visitors, these showcases offer an immense breadth of styles ensuring there really is a piece to suit every taste. The exhibition will run from 28th November to 23rd December with two artist preview events on December 1st and 2nd. Tickets available at the links below. Friday 1st December Artist Preview Saturday 2nd December Artist Preview #2017 #ArtsampCulture #exhibition #WinterOpen #Artizan

Curated by the fabulous Robert Spence, the Artizan Acoustic Nights are, an unplugged, open-mic evening of laidback music and melody featuring talented local performers and exciting guest sets! This month we're excited to welcome Nicky Swann to the gallery! Award winning UK singer songwriter Nicky Swann showcases songs from her latest album. 'Tell Them Of Us' is a dark, simmering journey through family history, based around her Uncle’s role as an RAF bomb aimer during the second World War Burma campaign. The songs becomes a vehicle for questioning our moral compass and how we are connected to the past. Rooted in human nature, history and her home in Devon, there are shades of Laura Marling and Kate Bush here. #Music #Acoustic #Events

The Lost City of Z exhibition runs at Torquay Museum until the 17th of February 2018 with a number of supporting talks as part of the Explorers' Season. For more information, visit their website: www.torquaymuseum.org “I really don’t come here often enough!” I heard this phrase, or words to this effect, uttered by so many people at last night’s exhibition launch at Torquay Museum, and I confess that I am one such individual who is guilty of not spending enough time in this incredible space. The event I was there to attend marked the official opening of The Lost City of Z Exhibition, a new curation of fascinating objects and documents from Torquay Museum’s own archive that capture the life and expeditions of locally born explorer Percy Harrison Fawcett. Fawcett has received considerable attention in recent years. Firstly, in the 2009 release of David Grann’s book, which shares the same name as the exhibition, recounting the activities of the British explorer, and more recently in the 2017 film adaptation of this tale starring Charlie Hunnam, Robert Pattinson, Sienna Miller and Tom Holland; I am yet to read or view either, but they’re certainly on my list having visited the exhibition! For the museum though, a passionate interest in the intrepid Torbay hero has been harboured far longer, as director Basil Greenwood recounted in his opening remarks. The museum’s extensive collection on Fawcett in fact began long before his story became popularised in literature and film, both productions being heavily informed by the materials held and preserved by the dedicated team here. This is clear to see if you venture into the permanent Explorers gallery in which Fawcett’s name and activities feature heavily. The new exhibition however, offers the opportunity for a more detailed “exploration” (pardon the pun!) of this extraordinary individual heralding from Torquay. The exhibition largely comprises of items donated by Fawcett’s granddaughter, Mrs Rolette de Montet-Guerin, who, in the interests of protecting the legacy of her grandfather, bestowed the items to the museums archive. This acquisition in itself demonstrates the hugely impressive work of the staff and the archival practices taking place here, reassuring Mrs Montet-Guerin of the safe-keeping of her family’s legacy. And the collection is extensive! Featuring in the objects displayed as part of the exhibition are a wide array of Fawcett’s personal items including tools from expeditions and, rather intriguingly, the engraved silver collar of his beloved Jack Russell, Bill Nai. These practical items are interspersed with curios found on Fawcett’s expeditions through South America, all navigated by carefully selected texts from detailed and often encoded diaries, journals and letters, which offer an often poignant look into the strenuous realities of early exploration. One such text, a proposal to the Royal Geographic Society for his fateful trek to find the City of Z following the war, in a gruesomely matter-of-fact tone under the heading “Members”, expresses that it is Fawcett’s anticipation that of the five people required to undertake the expedition, only two will ultimately make it to the final goal, with the other men succumbing to illness or madness. Small extracts such as this, along with personal letters to his wife, and the ultimate tragedy of Fawcett’s fate, ensure that the exhibition captures both the thrill of adventure and the humanity of this remarkable individual. Expert curation and incredibly well presented supporting research complete the package to produce something that the Museum, Torbay and Fawcett can undoubtedly be proud of. There’s so much more we could say about this exciting event which will run into February next year, but its far better seen for yourself. As well as the exhibition, Torquay Museum will be hosting a wide array of talks as part of the Explorers’ Season, so these too are not to be missed. Make sure to pay them a visit and head over to their website to find out more! #2017 #Exhibition #TorquayMuseum #Magazine

On the 15th of October, on a Sunday. I went to the Cockington Apple Day Event. At that time, I was here for 3 weeks. I heard about this event for the first time, when I arrived here. My host mother told me about the coming event and I thought that it would be a great opportunity to learn about the traditions in South England. When the day arrived I took the bus and began my exploration tour. Soon I realised that this event, was not just an usual event, but it was something what belongs to Torquay and had a huge influence to the society. In front of the Cockington Court there were many different stands. Some of them were jewellery stand. Several of them were consistent with the Apple Day Feast and a few were perfect for Halloween. The other stands were mostly food stands, with a wide selection. The buildings and the atmosphere gave you feeling that you are in the period of middle ages, especially because of the hay on the ground. It was full crowded and suitable for children, a dream place for children, because of the huge bouncy castle, which you could see at a distance of a half kilometer. Inside the Cockington Court all the studios were open, which were all art studios from craft to paintings. Some of them did a show, how they produce their own work. The crowd was really enjoying it, I could see is on their faces, additional it had a bit of a funny sense, because pirates walked around Cockington. #2017 #Review #StudentBlog #Event #Cockington

We're looking forward to another great year in 2018 and we want you to be a part of it! We've got two main opportunities at our home venue next year and there's promising to be loads more out an about at other venues! Keep reading to find out how you can be involved. 2017 has been a wonderful year at the gallery. By the time we hit December we'll have had 10 lovely solo shows from some immensely talented artists alongside two of our biggest ever open shows. We've topped all this off with two shows at Torre Abbey and showcases in several restaurants and cafes, with many more exciting collaborations with local partners. We've had a lot of fun, but we're undoubtedly looking forward to a little Christmas break to recharge our batteries! Looking forward to 2018, we're showing no signs of slowing down, and we want to take this opportunity to give you a quick overview of two of the big ones to look out for next year. 2018 Main Space For the main space next year there's one big change. We won't be restricting this space to solo shows anymore but instead will welcome proposals from any artists for solo, group or open shows. We hope this will offer a greater degree of flexibility to our exhibitors, encourage collaboration and continue to foster an atmosphere of an accessible, community space at Artizan. We're excited to have already confirmed a number of next years exhibitions but there are still several months available to book. February, and November are currently available and we are also accepting proposals for January and September. Additionally, whilst July and December are still preliminarily reserved for open shows, we are also happy to consider applications here. All the details for this opportunity can be found in the application pack on our Calls Page and submissions can also be made on the CuratorSpace website. We hope to confirm a complete 2018 calendar by the middle of December so please get in touch soon! 2018 Garden Salon Show This is an exciting new show for the Gallery, a year long rolling open show which will run on a subscription basis. The exhibition model is incredibly simple. Pay £15 and bring in a piece of art to hang in the Garden Salon. Upon acceptance, your piece will then be on display for one month at which point you can guarantee it stays up the next month for just £10. And that’s all there is to it! We hope this will be a great opportunity to welcome all of our local artists, as well as those from further afield, to show a sample of their work on our walls on a long-term basis. Once again, the full details can be found in the application pack on our Calls Page and submissions can also be made on the CuratorSpace website. There is obviously a rolling deadline for this opportunity but we welcome as many submissions as possible for the launch of the Garden Salon Show when we reopen our doors in January. Other Opportunities This isn't all we've got planned for next year, there's loads of other exciting projects to look out for. Whilst its still early days on many plans we can tell you that we will be looking to take on a number of artists on a permanent basis next year and have some great opportunities for these "Artizan Artists". We'll also be building our team and will be looking to collaborate with a wide range of volunteers, content creators and hopefully even some new directors of our fledgling Community Interest Company. So watch this space, because next years going to be our best yet! #opportunity #exhibiting #exhibition #call #2018

An exciting last minute addition to our 2017 exhibition calendar. Find out about Winter Fest at Torre Abbey! This Christmas, Torre Abbey will be hosting their first ever Winter Fest in the historic setting of the museum. Arts, crafts and food stalls will be selling some truly unique Christmas gifts, while you can also expect live seasonal music, a children’s Christmas trail around the house and some indulgent nibbles and beverages on sale. This promises to be a charming event in the heart of Torquay and the perfect opportunity to dig out those Christmas jumpers and hats and get into the Winter Fest spirit. The festival will run from 10AM till 5PM on both days. Entry is just £2 per person, which includes entry to the Abbey. As part of Torre Abbey’s Christmas Programme, Artizan Gallery have been invited to curate a modest open exhibition of works. The exhibition will be accessible to all visitors to Torre Abbey and will run alongside a broad programme of events as an extension of their Winter Fest. Our exhibition will run for the full Christmas period as an unstewarded exhibition, with the Artizan Team on site with an additional stall for the Winter Fest weekend. We're now accepting submissions and you can download an application form from our Calls Page. This is a selective opportunity. #opportunity #exhibiting #exhibition #external #TorreAbbey #call

Curated by the fabulous Robert Spence, the Artizan Acoustic Nights are, an unplugged, open-mic evening of laidback music and melody featuring talented local performers and exciting guest sets! This month we're excited to welcome Si Barron to the gallery! "I have been singing and playing English Traditional Song nationally for 15 years, first with the duo Barron Brady and now as a solo performer. As a self-taught guitarist I try to keep the accompaniment out of the way of the words and melody, it’s the songs that matter. I am a folk fanatic- this is exciting, moving and relevant music, hallowed by time- the only kind of music that never gets old. I celebrate that and hope I demonstrate my love for this powerful music every time I sing. I play guitar, dulcimer and harmonium. I mainly sing English traditional song, the only kind of music that never gets old. Oftentimes I'm by myself on stage- sometimes I play second fiddle to Ros Brady in Barron Brady." Tickets are available on eventbrite or at the door and the performers start at 19:30. "a true aficionado of the genre" - The Living Tradition Magazine "I think he’s a really, really fine guitarist and an even finer interpreter of traditional and contemporary folk songs." - Mike Harding http://www.sibarron.eu/index.html #Music #Acoustic #Events

We received lots of invitations to Devon Open Studio this year but when you’re running a busy gallery it can be hard to get away. However, we did manage a couple of trips out and with list in hand headed off to visit as many as we could. Devon Open Studios is an annual event hosted by Devon Artist Network, in which artists across South Devon open their studios to the general public for a number of days across a period of two weeks. This year, the event welcomed over 200 artists for visitors and residents to plan their own tours around. In the end we didn’t manage to get around to all that we would have liked, time was simply against us, but we did get to visit Becky Nuttall, Charlie O’ Sullivan, Martin Dutton, The Tin Shed Studio - featuring work from Joanie Johns, Mei Lim, Sarah Morris and Sue Williamson - Alan Gregory, Sue Evans, Heather Jansch, Kate Lyons-Miller, and Rosemary Ensor. Our choices were in part based on geography and permitted time but we were also able to go and see work across a wide range of disciplines and styles, taking in paint media, photography, jewellery, printmaking, ceramics and sculpture, such is the talent that we have here on our doorstep! It is a rare treat to be invited into to an artist’s studio and witness the space they have dedicated to their creativity. To hear about their process, their inspirations, and see the physical representations of these is a real privilege, and by the end of the day we were completely overwhelmed by all that we had seen, the lovely conversations that we’d had with these dedicated artists who spend their time creating for themselves and for audiences to enjoy and marvel at. ​ Below you’ll find a little bit about each of the studios we visited and the artists who call them home! Charlie O'Sullivan SWAc We had not heard of or seen Charlie’s work before but managed to combine a brief trip away with a visit to her studio based in Churstow near Kingsbridge. Her studio is vast and on display were some earlier works alongside a more recent series which are brighter and somehow appear more optimisitc. That said there was a darker edgier side to the earlier pieces which we also liked. Over the years Charlie has developed a unique individual style and exhibits widely in the UK and abroad, the priority of her earlier work was the notion of the sea and the Scottish identity; - now she has focused on the subject of mapping these same memories onto landscapes, included with relevant figures from her own past and those of others. Martin Dutton SWAc Martin’s studio is situated alongside his home in Maidencombe just outside Torquay. His work ranges from realism to richly textured abstracts inspired by Devon, Venice , France and Spain, places he visits regularly. A previous exhibitor at Artizan, we know Martin’s work well but a visit to his studio never disappoints. Our particular favourites are those based on trips to Venice, semi-abstract pieces that provide a hint of the subject but allow your imagination to reach it’s own interpretation and response to the piece as a whole. The Tin Shed Studio Mei Lim completed her studio a few years ago and it sits in the garden of her home on the River Teign in Shaldon. A bright airy purpose built space that ticks all the boxes, and which for Devon Open Studios she shared with fellow artists, Joanie Johns, Sue Williamson and Sarah Morris. Between them they displayed ceramics, printmaking, jewellery, photography and paintings. Mei is possibly best known for her photography but she has just been learning how to produce woodcuts and had some on display when we visited along with fellow print maker Sarah Morris. Sue Williamson produces work across a variety of subjects but is curently working on a series of abstracted architectural pieces that we absolutely loved. Alan Gregory Before leaving Shaldon we managed to squeeze in a couple of other studios, one of our August exhibitors Alan Gregory and another new artist to us Sue Evans. Alan’s work is inspired by the Devon and Cornwall landscape and coastline as well as by trips abroad, mainly topographical although he has recently started to explore more abstract works. His work really does conjure up the feel of the places that he paints, the rugedness of the Cornish Coast, the heat of Menorca and the changing colours of the landscape at different times of the day or year. Sue Evans Similarly Sue paints and draws landscapes and coastal scenes but their styles and end results are quite different with Sue’s work being more photographic in style, a complete contrast and a reminder that we all interpret what we see in different ways. Heather Jansch and Kate Lyons-Miller We then headed out to a studio that I had wanted to visit for some time, Heather jansch’s home and studio based at Olchard just outside of Newton Abbott. Her majestic life-sized wooden sculptures of horses greet you as you walk down the drive to her garden, where you come across yet more! We were fascinated to learn about the process of casting them with each piece taken apart again and cast seperately. Alongside her was ceramicist Kate Lyons-Miller who produces large clay highly textured pots made from terra cotta and black clay, simple in design but full of energy and beauty. Rosemary Ensor Our final trip before we ran out of time was to Rosemary Ensor‘s studio also in Olchard. This brought us back to bright colourful abstracts with themes loosley based around the landscape and natural forms. With some abstract work it is unashamedly bold and in your face but with Rosemary’s work there are more muted colours among the bright, and softer edges to much of them which creates a soothing and relaxed feel to them. #2017 #DevonOpenStudio #ArtsampCulture

"A poet’s hope: to be like some valley cheese, local, but prized elsewhere” WH Auden I starting writing poetry as a child and have kept nearly everything I wrote, stuffed into carrier bags. My father and maternal grandfather were writers and I inherited art and documents belonging to my father, including his art school folder. I have been able to see the progression of talent, into a person who made a living be ing creative. A theme of some of my current poetry reflects on the need to communicate in this language and the pathway to recognition. I am familiar with the well read and loved British poetry and I know local talent can quickly be prized elsewhere. Torbay should be proud of the poets writing and performing locally. By bringing together six local poets I wanted to show how poetry is the language used to express emotion from a young age and, how with the addition of maturity, support and the continuing need for expression through poetry, something rather wonderful is achieved – the insular, inward seeing child becomes someone willing to reach out and share their human experience with empathy, wit and skill. W H Auden also said “You owe it to all of us to get on with what you're good at.” Anyone, child or adult, may see the exhibition and remember a small spark of joy they had writing or reading poetry. I hope they will seek out the writing and performances of their local poets who show that poetry helped make them human. How Poetry Made a Human runs at Torquay Library until 31st October 2017. #exhibition #external #TorquayLibrary #2017 #Poetry

You know an event has been popular when they run out of cake! This was the case at the recent Ageing Well Festival held in the gorgeous Lupton House and grounds which was impressively well attended. The annual event is run by Ageing Well Torbay, a Big Lottery funded six-year project aiming to reduce social isolation in the over 50s. Their year-round work, delivered by a group of partners including Torbay Community Development Trust, Age UK and other local care services, as well as a team of Community Builders, is celebrated each year at this event, where the organisations aims to involve, enable, reconnect and strengthen Torbay’s ageing community are met. The festival has grown substantially each year and it is perhaps fair to say that it grew beyond the team’s anticipations this year. To say the day was well-supported would be an understatement, with Lupton House absolutely packed with guests. A marquee attached to rear of the house for the purpose of hosting lunch and the days musical entertainment, though huge, was still not big enough; the dance floor filled for the 1960s Dance Class and Sandy Sparkle had no shortage of accompaniment as she sang the 60’s throughout the day. Perhaps, if we were able to put more faith in the British weather towards late September, more of the events programme, such as the local stalls and information displays in the Ballroom, could have been moved outside into the spacious grounds. The diversity of the festival is undoubtedly its best feature. Practical workshops offering legal advice and support form a big a part of the day, but these are balanced with more adventurous Bollywood dance classes, ukulele workshops and tai chi. Musical and theatrical performances took place across the site throughout, with the effervescent South Devon Players brightening up every corner with their hippy regalia and floral offerings. Most importantly though, the social opportunities the day offered were great to see, with plenty of spaces to sit and meet and chat. All of the above was made possible on the day by a vast team of volunteers. We played our small part in this, but the majority committed far more hours than ourselves to ensure the event ran smoothly. With one of the largest ageing populations in the country, the need for the work of this organisation is clear to see. The annual festival is the jewel in the crown but it would be great to see more intermediate events, such as the Symposium of Ideas held in May this year, to support it. In the knowledge that its following continues to grow year on year, I feel sure that Ageing Well will continue to deliver exciting projects for its community, with better provision for the greater and greater numbers that they are so successfully engaging. Artizan Gallery supported the Ageing Well Festival’s 2017 Christmas Card Competition, taking entries and assisting in the judging process and delivery. We have a continued commitment to working with the team here and providing cultural opportunities for their community. #AgeingWellTorbay #AgeingWellFestival #2017 #Torbay #Events #Festivals #ArtsampCulture

Hooray, The Beach Hut is back from its holidays and so are we! September was certainly a good month for a breather, with a packed calendar of events in Torbay, and we took advantage of the time off to soak it all up. The International Agatha Christie Festival was spectacular. Focused at Torre Abbey this year, the festival brought an extensive programme of literary events to the table for residents and visitors to enjoy, incorporating everything from spontaneous, Christie inspired orchestras, to open air cinemas. We had the pleasure of contributing an exhibition of contemporary art at Torre Abbey alongside its regular exhibitions, curated from local and national works. Devon Open Studios also featured, with some wonderful Torbay artists inviting us into the sanctuaries where they produce and create. We particularly enjoyed visiting Brixham based Becky Nuttall, exploring her “Art of the School” and “Family Tree” series’ as a whole for the first time. Finally, the much-anticipated Tale art festival arrived in September. The Artizan team went twice to this event, fully exploring its mysteries over a two-day period, and left reminded that we live in a truly inspirational place. You can read more about our experiences of The Tale on our website. With Summer coming to a close you would be forgiven for thinking it’s time to hunker down at home and prepare for Winter because there won’t be anything going on now Summer’s over. You would however, be wrong and we’ve got a handful of reasons why! Firstly, Torquay Museum will be hosting explorer and author Jacki Hill-Murphy who has travelled to some of the most inhospitable locations to trace the journeys of the daring, and often unrecognised, women who came before her (28th October, 2pm, £5). Then, there’s comedy at the Palace Theatre Paignton with Lip Service Theatre’s “Mr Darcy Loses the Plot” a play in which Mr Darcy is unceremoniously left to determine his own fate (28th October, 7:30pm, £14). Back in Torquay, the library hosts a curation by artist and poet Becky Nuttall; an exhibition of local authors early works placed against their current poems to “illustrate how language, communication and identity are shaped in the past and realised in the present” (throughout October, free). Finally, the gallery will be busy as usual with a double helping of music this month, with performers Circe’s Diner, Sadie Horler, G I N S and T. S. Idiot (October 5th, 7:30PM, £5) and then later in the month Si Barron (October 30th, 7:30PM, £5)! We’ll also have poetry (23rd October, 7:45PM, £6), and a wonderful exhibition from American photographer Mark Wallis for the whole month! #BeachHut #CultureUpdate #ArtizanTorquay #2017 #October #October2017 #MarkWallis #HowPoetryMadeAHuman #BeckyNuttall #DevonOpenStudios #IACF #TheTale