Tower and Town, June 2026 (view the full edition)Contempoprary Art Comes To ChurchThe small village of Ogbourne St Andrew has a remarkable history. Archaeology digs uncovered evidence of a Bronze Age burial mound in the church yard and a medieval farm in a nearby. This year the 12th century church will host an exhibition of contemporary art by four artists, all taking part in Marlborough Open Studios for the first time. Two exhibitors, Amanda Gosse and Jane Skingley are painters. Amanda works in gouache and acrylic taking subjects as varied as birds that visit her garden or are native to Australia, jewellery and nostalgic objects. Landscape and still life paintings are brought to life by Jane whose work is widely exhibited in this country and abroad. A key characteristic of Jane's work in oils on canvas is her creation of a wonderful sense of calm in both her original paintings and prints. After 50 years of work in commercial photography, retirement sparked Rob Mills interest to take his camera on walks to capture the essence of a place using both black and white and colour film and his previous skill set to create striking images of landscape features. For his latest collection, 'Unearthed', potter Stuart Anderson has approached stoneware clay as though he is revealing rather than creating, coaxing out surfaces that look and feel eroded, mineral and timeless. Exhibiting in a church presents a challenge given restrictions on the use of surfaces and the activity of services. The MOS artists interest was sparked by the success of an art sale held to raise money for the church last year. Over four weekends in July their work will be displayed in nooks and crannies and from walls in the church while Stuart's pots will be placed on windowsills and plinths. These interesting spaces are lit from windows that are mostly clear glass creating wonderful patterns of light and shade across the exhibition spaces. Including this unusual setting in your planning for MOS offers lots of interest. Moreover, it's a short distance from the Silks a community pub offering good food and drink! For further details see www.marlboroughopenstudios.co.uk |
