An open studio, open home & open arms

Cambridge Open Studios has been and gone for another year and I thought I’d share something of it for those who weren’t able to come and visit.

What is Open Studios?

A little introduction for those who don’t know - Cambridge Open Studios runs for 4 weekends in July each year, across the city and surrounding area. Each weekend I choose to take part (this year it was the 2nd and 3rd w/e) I open my home and studio space to the public from 11 am - 6pm each day.

I transform the downstairs of my home (my lounge and kitchen) into an exhibition, displaying my art and art products on every wall and surface area I can find!
Then I distribute fliers, shout about it on social media and wait to see who comes.

The visitors

It’s always such a privilege to see how many people pop in to take a look - this year I had 160 visitors over the 2 weekends. Whether they are just passing and see the balloons, have chosen me as part of a list of places in the area for the day or have specifically decided to come to see my work, I don’t take it lightly, when there are 300+ other artists also taking part around the city.
It’s a wonderful opportunity to share what I do with people - to show where I work, to talk about my process and to hear what people think. Here are some of the comments I heard or that I found written in my visitors book this time round.

"Beautifully vibrant, gorgeous colours, stunning expression, inspiring and interesting work.

So joyful, dynamic but also mindful pieces, happy, lively, cheering, I can feel that doing me good!"

These weekends take quite a lot of effort and disrupt family life a bit, but I feel it’s totally worth it. I love encouraging and inspiring others. There’s been some really interesting conversations and connections, I’ve met some of my neighbours and made some lovely new friends.

On top of that I’ve sold some art! - and my happy colours are now blessing someone else’s home.