Hidden Talents - Open Studios

East Riding Open Studios II

Sculptor Saffron Waghorn has just winched her studio back from an eroding cliff top near Skipsea ready to open it to the public as part of a major event aimed at showcasing the work of artists in the East Riding. She is among 52 artists opening their studios to the public over two weekends in October, inviting people to take a creative journey across the East Riding, to discover a very different, and memorable, view of it.

As well as the wooden shack that is Saffron's studio, visitors will be able to see many other unusual places and spaces that artists use to create their work, and from which they draw inspiration. There are garden sheds, a garage, and the lighthouse at Spurn peninsular where Martin Waters spotlights the ever changing patterns and colour harmonies created by tidal drift and jetsam. The breadth of work on show varies from potters to painters, jewellers to textile artists and many more areas of creative practice.

The Open Studios event is the opportunity for people to see how and where the artists' work is made and talk informally to the artists themselves about their inspirations and techniques. It is a chance to purchase work directly from the artist, or commission a piece which you will then know how and where it is made and by whom - one doesn't often get the chance to do that!

EROS is being organized by two artists Carlo Verda and Anna Kirk-Smith, who together have formed Big Skies, a Bridlington-based company committed to showcasing the work of East Riding artists and to building a creative community which they hope will play a key part in the regeneration of the county. By supporting new artist's businesses and encouraging links from outside the area, both national and international, it is intended that the East Riding will become a cultural destination and enhance both the economy and tourism industries.

Dates: October 6th-7th and 13th-14th

Carlo, who is vice-chair of the Bridlington Core Steering Group and board member of the Urban Renaissance Town team (a Yorkshire Forward funded regeneration project), affirms: "There are many Open Studio events around the country now, but what makes the East Riding event so different is its size, the rurality of its artists and the fact that it is part of a wider campaign to regenerate this fantastic area. As other seaside towns around the country recognise the value that creativity and culture bring to their own recovery projects, Big Skies hopes to act as advocates for the creative industries which will play a positive role in the regeneration of Bridlington and the East Riding in general."

This is the second Open Studios event, the inaugural event held last October included 39 artists over 1 weekend, this years is on a bigger scale and is showing 52 artists over 2 consecutive weekends. There has been an increased interest from artists who are spread over a wider geographical area, continued financial backing from the Arts Council Yorkshire and East Riding Council, and a very positive feedback from the visitors to EROS 2006 such as Diane and Barry Cunningham: "We picked up a leaflet at your gallery and ended up seeing some of the most wonderful ceramics, jewellery and paintings in the most interesting studios, homes, garden sheds etc. We had a fabulous Saturday and could not get the wonderful things we had seen out of our minds so on Sunday we set off again and had another fabulous day.

What strikes us is the passion and love the artists have for their work, and they do not mind passing information on. We had a lovely time and look forward (with more planning on our part) to next year because you must do this again!

Thank you so much."

Anna agrees that "This perfectly sums up what we were hoping to achieve with the Open Studios, a communication between visitors and artists and a breaking down of the perceived barriers of elitism that can exist in the art world. The artists involved are skilled craftspeople, dedicated to their particular subjects and medium, some of them working with limited means, others with a hard-earned professional set-up; but each of them happy and willing to share their story with all."

The East Riding has long been a source of artistic inspiration, Turner's travels brought him here to sketch the minsters at Howden and Beverley, a sunrise at Spurn Point and paint ships on the tempestuous seas at the mouth of the Humber. The county's landscape has been contemporised by a current exhibition at Tate Britain with 5 large canvases by David Hockney painted on the same spot in Woldgate Woods, near Bridlington, over the course of the past year. The exhibition, marking Hockney's 70th birthday, runs until 3rd February 2008.

The birth of Big Skies and the Open Studios came from a chance encounter. Carlo and his wife Joy own a gallery in Bridlington's Old Town, which became a destination to visit for painter, Anna, when she moved up to the area in 2005. After gaining her Masters degree at the Royal College of Art and then managing the Daler-Rowney London art shop, she decided it was time for a move 'up north' and away from the city. Carlo moved to Bridlington in 2002 and has been running his own jewellery business for many years since graduating from Central School of Art & Design in 1986. Already a successful and innovative jeweller, he felt there was more he could do to raise the profile of fellow artists and craftsmen in the East Riding and had the concept of Big Skies in his mind for some time, but needed a business partner to make it a reality. Once Anna's head popped around the gallery door a conversation about the art scene in the East Riding ensued, and they haven't stopped talking since! That was the past and Big Skies is the future.

East Riding of Yorkshire Council's portfolio holder for cultural services, Councillor Jane Evison, said: "I firmly believe we should all support and encourage artists living and working within the East Riding and the Open Studios event is a fabulous opportunity to visit and see a wide range of disciplines, including paintings, sculpture and jewellery in less formal surroundings than a more traditional setting such as an art gallery. More people than ever are taking part in the arts, communities are benefiting and creative businesses, such as these artists who are opening their studios to the public, are on the increase. This is happening because of the creative talent and hard work of the artists themselves and the support of organisations in East Yorkshire, including the council. The creative industries is one of the fastest growing sectors of the economy and events such as these also provide a great opportunity for people to tour East Yorkshire, visiting the studios and seeing for themselves the wonderful scenery and landscapes which so inspire the work of our local artists."

If you would like to find out more about the East Riding Open Studios then please go to www.eastridingopenstudios.co.uk