It’s that time of year again when I don’t want to be a writer. I want to paint! I want to get that big box of art supplies out of the cupboard and fill the house with the incredible smell of oil paints and turps. A smell that takes me right back to my childhood.

Amongst last year’s Open Studio’s discoveries at Krowji, a reinvigorated grammar school in Redruth, were the paintings of Mike Hindle and the delicate illustrations of Esther Connon. This year, my imagination was captured by the work of Jon Doran, Kerry Harding, Nicola Mosley and Falmouth Alumni artist Alasdair Lindsay.

As I ventured further afield I also unearthed a rich seam of talent in a cluster of studios at Trewidden. Dan Pyne, Paul Wadsworth, Nickie CarlyonJane Ansell, Jayne Anita-Smith and Jo Jewers, displayed a fantastic variety of work and a return will definitely be pencilled in for next year.

In its thirteenth year, Open Studios includes an impressive number of participants with 293 artists, craftsmen and designers opening their personal spaces and running workshops from Saturday 27th May to Sunday 4th June. All are listed in a nicely designed free guide which encourages art lovers to create a personalised trail to discover the new artisans.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to visit them all this year, but hopefully, as the year’s progress, I will get the chance to discover most of the artistic talent that this lovely county has to offer.

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