General Features

For four days each year, Waterperry House and Gardens near Wheatley are taken over by over 200 artists showing and demonstrating their skills at Art In Action. Its an event that regularly attracts over 25,000 visitors to see, hear, touch, smell and have a go at art!  Its organised by the art faculty of the School of Economic Science who are a London based educational charity.

As well as traditional art like painting, sculpture, ceramics, woodwork, textiles, calligraphy, printmaking, glass, metalwork and jewellery, Art in Action also presents performing arts like dance, music and story telling with lectures, talks, tours and a host of food and refreshments available as well.  There are practical classes and have a go sessions for visitors and a market with around 100 arts and crafts stalls.  Artists come from all over Oxfordshire and the rest of the UK and have to apply for the limited hotly contested places.  The organisers also invite special exhibitions from around the world and had two marquees this year showing Chineese and Indian art.

Mark Watson went along on the first day of the event for BBC Oxford and spoke to many artists and the event organiser Jerry Sinclair.  You can hear his reports by clicking on the links below and see some of the artists at work in our Gallery.