Demonstrating at Art in Action, Waterperry Gardens, Oxfordshire

Art in Action
Organiser: Jeremy Sinclair
96 Sedlescombe Road
London SW6 1RB
Tel 020 7381 3192
Fax 020 7381 0605
Email info@artinaction.org.uk
www.artinaction.org.uk
Organised by The School of Economic Science
(Registered Educational Charity No 313115)
11 Mandeville Place, London W1U 3AJ







PRESS RELEASE April 2009

Nature in Art

Having had a hugely successful second visit last year, the Nature in Art Trust will field a further group of topflight demonstrators at Art in Action 2009. Nature and wildlife lovers especially will love their work, which celebrates the inexhaustible variety of nature and the many inspired ways people have of responding to it in the field of art and craft.

Set in the grounds of Waterperry House and Gardens, Art in Action, Britain’s premier art festival, will run from 16-19 July, offering a watching public of over 22,000 access to the company and work of nearly 250 demonstrators and performers. More than 12 different disciplines are set up in airy pavilion tents and so arranged that visitors can get in close to watch beautiful work in the making, ask questions, discuss inspiration and techniques, and even buy or commission work. For those who want to have a go, there are also practical classes run by excellent professionals - for children as well as adults. Add to this the presence of a Market of finely crafted goods, other sites specially for artists’ materials and techniques, publications and societies, plus music, storytelling, dance demonstrations, NADFAS art lectures, tours of the famous gardens and of the frescoes recently completed in the House, it’s no wonder some people say one visit is not enough!

The eight Nature in Art demonstrators are members of the world’s first museum dedicated to art inspired by the colours and forms of the natural and wildlife world. Each year 70 artists work in residence, adding to the museum’s impressive collection at Wallsworth Hall near Gloucester, and demonstrating to the school groups who regularly visit their inspirational education centre.

This year’s team comprise Alison Ingram, whose compelling bird paintings are set in kaleidoscopic, marquetry-like landscapes; Karl Taylor, who juxtaposes precisely observed birds and other small creatures against man-made forms; Richard Tratt, who feelingly paints the English landscape and wild habitats; and self-taught, award-winning Anna Knights, whose close-up botanical watercolours have an immediacy and vitality that transcend tradition. Flowing leaf forms and flower head carvings in wood will be demonstrated by Robert Cox; while stoneware and porcelain clay are Jill Moger’s medium for a host of animal forms, mainly reptiles - all amazingly endearing!

Nature-inspired textiles will figure too: Liz Brooke Ward’s galactic machine and hand-stitched quilts amalgamate lichen and seaweed-like patterns, sometimes blended with calligraphy; nearby, batik maestro and teacher Marie-Therese King will use this ancient art to create vivid, rainbow-coloured paintings of the natural world. Not to be missed!


General Information
The first Art in Action took place in 1977, featuring around 50 artists. Since then it has grown significantly and is now an annual pilgrimage for anyone interested in the visual arts. Visitors can learn or buy from the 150 artists and craftsmen who recreate their studios in one of the many Art in Action marquees and demonstrate their expertise in Painting, Sculpture, Drawing and Printmaking, Ceramics, Calligraphy and Illustration, Glass, Metalwork and Jewellery, Nature in Art, Textiles, Woodwork and (new this year) Mexican Arts. At Waterperry, visitors can also learn new creative skills at practical classes set up separately for both children and adults and run by some of the UK’s most prestigious art colleges including University of the Arts (Wimbledon, Chelsea, & Camberwell Colleges of Art) and the Prince’s School of Traditional Art. Following a class, enthusiasts can purchase art materials and publications to take home and “get started” or just browse the Craft Market where more than 100 designer-makers sell quality goods.

In addition, Art in Action offers fine music, performing artists and storytelling for children. There are lectures organised by NADFAS (National Association of Decorative and Fine Art Societies) in Asian Textiles, Exotic Woods and Furniture, Victorian Art and Glass and Early English pottery. There are guided tours of the beautiful Waterperry gardens and also of the exquisite frescoes on the walls of Waterperry House that were completed in 2006 - a 10-year project. There is also a wide range of refreshments: cream teas from the Pear Tree Restaurant, a good selection of wines, champagne and Pimm’s served on the lawn in front of the house and numerous organic and artisan food stalls throughout the site. Art in Action is truly a celebration of creativity as well as a great day out. People come year after year – often, they say, as much for the atmosphere as for the works on show


Event details

Venue: Art in Action
Waterperry House, Near Wheatley
OXFORD OX33 1JZ

Website: www.artinaction.org.uk

Tel: 020 7381 3192

Date/time: 16-19 July 2009, open 10am-5.30pm daily

Tickets: Adults £15 (Booked online £14.00)
Senior citizens £12 (Booked online £11.00)
Concessions £7 (Booked online £6.00)
Child (9-17 years) £5 (Booked online £4.00)
Under-9s free
Family and season tickets available

Car parking free
Party rates for pre-booked minibuses and a limited number of coaches by arrangement – contact the office (020 7381 3192) in advance.

Note to editors
Art in Action has an extensive photo library available for the press – please telephone or email your requirements.

Further information
Press contact: Anna Arthur
artinactionpress@googlemail.com
020 8681 7123 / 07733 221 949