Opening the door on a wealth of hidden talent

Art aficionados might rave about the Rijksmuseum and come over all unnecessary in the Uffizi, but perhaps they should look closer to home for their thrills.

Open Studios tours are now common all over the country and allow free access to some amazing hidden talent.

Artists and makers open their studios, which often double as their homes, to the public for the events.

Visitors are rewarded with a rare, personal insight into the work and its creator, and the artist gets valuable feedback and maybe a few sales.

One of the best and biggest of these cultural tours is the North Yorkshire Open Studios, which runs on the weekends June 11-13 and again on the 19-20.

Well organised and in its sixth year, it covers a vast geographical area taking in the Dales, Harrogate, Ripon, Thirsk and Stokesley areas right over to Malton, the North York Moors and a stretch of coast from Saltburn-on-Sea to Scarborough.

There are more than 120 studios open and they vary from harbourside huts to back gardens and stunning country cottages.

There are workshops too and expect to see a host of other visual delights – from sculptural bus shelters and Slow Art in the Dales to installations in Whitby beach huts and a knitted picnic in Scarborough.

Maps and guides are available to help you plot your own trail, but be warned: you'll be spoilt for choice.

n The oldest sweet shop in Britain is the sort of place you'd perhaps expect to find in a place like Pateley Bridge.

What might be less expected is a thriving artist community.

The Old Workhouse used to be, well, a workhouse. Since 1991, however, Harrogate Council has put the buildings to better use, making them the heart of a thriving artist community.

The first of the residents of The Old Workhouse, which was at one time known as the King Street Studios, moved from Otley in 1991. They were glassblowers Wallace and Sanders and jewellery designers Moxon and Simm.

They are both still at the Pateley Bridge studios, where they have since been joined by an art gallery, a milliner, jewellery designers and artists who work with textiles.

Biddy Noakes, who runs the art gallery at Number 3 the Old Workhouse, is one of the active members of the small artist community.

She describes the set up as a "loose co-operative".

Jewellery designer Debbie Moxon, who has recently returned from an Arts Council-funded research trip to Finland, will be displaying some of her stunning pieces of jewellery, created in titanium, as part of the

open studios.

She says working in titanium allows her to infuse the material with stunning colours, far more easily than metals such as silver.

Dave Wallace, one of the glassblowing duo that makes up Wallace and Sanders, met his business partner, Andrew Sanders, while studying at North Staffordshire Polytechnic in 1974.

They have worked as glassblowers since graduating in 1977, first being based in Otley before moving to Pateley Bridge. They have received commissions from the York Archaeological Trust and the BBC to reproduce Viking, early English and Egyptian glassware.

Wallace says: "I should probably have ended up working in ceramics, given that I studied in Stoke, but there was always something about the pliable nature of glass when you are blowing that allows you to be so much more artistic and expressive.

"When Andrew and I work together it is almost like a highly choreographed dance, it is something that people seem to love to watch."

They can expect plenty of crowds over the coming weekends.

Who to see, where to go

Anna Lambert

Anna makes hand-built earthenware vessels presenting her memories of walks, small birds, twigs and other natural beauties. She is based in Cross Hills, near Skipton.

www.junctionworkshop.co.uk

Ian Mitchell

Ian's linescapes are a delineation of the landscape based on stripped down reality. He produces them in his cottage in Staithes.

www.ianmitchellart.com

Andrew Cheetham

Andrew's studio is the bait shed on West Pier, Scarborough. His dramatic paintings include many seascapes, though he is also interested in painting the physical remains of our industrial past. www.andrewcheetham.com

Annabelle Bradley

Blacksmith Annabelle Bradley enjoys the influence of the rich diversity in the Yorkshire Dales landscape in producing traditional and contemporary hand-forged designs in silver, steel and glass. Her work also includes functional ironwork, Her studio is in Malham.

www.annabellebradley.co.uk

Gillies Jones

Studio glassmakers, whose unique aesthetic has inspired commissions from the V & A, and secured them their place in a host of prestigious group shows, such as the Coburg Prize and British Glass Biennale. Keen collectors travel from as far as the States to the pair's studio in Rosedale, in the heart of the North York Moors.

www.gilliesjonesglass.co.uk

Sarah Denny

Sarah Denny is a silversmith committed to hand-making silver vessels using traditional hammering techniques. Her work consists of one-off, sculptural objects, which emphasise the beauty of form in silver. She is based in Tadcaster www.sarahdenny.com

The event's website, www.nyos.org.uk, showcases each artist with more images of their work, as well as having useful interactive maps which will help visitors to plan their route. A free event guide with maps is available from the organisers, Art Connections tel 01756 748529 or email: [email protected]