Devon Open Studios launches

To celebrate the launch of the county's biggest open studio event this year, Devon Open Studios 2015 held a party at Teignmouth Arts Action Group.

The Chair of Devon County Council, Christine Channon opened the event with Cll Jacqui Orme, Mayor of Teignmouth and the new Director of Devon Artist Network, Anthony O'Keefe, was introduced at the event. Tracy Scranage, Teignmouth and Dawlish Town Centre Development Manager organised the art market and Adrian Innocent, the Marketing Manager of DOS’s key sponsor Helpful Holidays also came along to support this major cross-county event opening.

Julia Vella, a director of TAAG said, “We are delighted to have Devon Artist Network here to launch Devon Open Studios, especially as there are 16 artists taking part who live in and around Teignmouth. This kind of event is in keeping with our support of the development of our thriving community of local artists. The arts are an important part of the regeneration of Teignmouth and we are beginning to be known as the Riverbeach Arts Quarter.”

During the launch, there was a rolling slideshow of the 220 artists taking part in Devon Open Studios. Only at Devon Open Studios can you experience artists at work, surrounded by examples of their art, at its origin.

Cll Jacqui Orme, Mayor of Teignmouth, who herself took part in one of the early Devon Open Studios events, gave a short speech in which she expressed her delight “That work of such phenomenal quality had been hosted at TAAG.”

This year the event had just over 60% new artists to discover outside of the traditional gallery. Cafés, garden sheds, parish halls all have their part to play too, transformed into galleries and artists’ spaces. Here the visitor can expect to find abstract, figurative and conceptual art, prints, sculpture, ceramics, sculpture, glass-blowing, photography, drawing, jewellery and more. Art lovers can spontaneously follow the yellow arrows dotted about the countryside or venture out on self-guided art tours using the colour coded area maps in the brochure t take a rare opportunity to buy art directly from artist, get inspired, and find a treasure to take home.

The launch event was also extended to include a Devon Artist Network art and craft market held in the street in the newly named Riverbeach Arts Quarter of Teignmouth and an exhibition of postcard sized art created by Devon Open Studio artists to be sold for ShelterBox, at the launch and during the 16 days of DOS from 5th-20th September.

Each pocket sized A5 artwork will be for sale for £10 thoughout DOS, all the proceeds going to the charity. Devon Artist Network hopes the exhibition will raise awareness for the charity and people in crisis around the globe.