ARTISTS all over Devon will be inviting people to look behind the scenes during this year’s Devon Open Studios between September 9 and 24.

More than 350 artists will be demonstrating and showcasing their work in creative spaces across the county, including gardens, galleries, sheds, attics, a yurt and and historic mill. 

Many of the artists have taken their inspiration from the natural world – flora and fauna, coast and countryside. Others have been inspired by difficult topics such as mental health. There is art to delight and inspire as well as creativity to encourage deep thinking.

Local people and visitors to the county will be able to see art and craft including painting, photography, sculpture, textiles, prints, ceramics and furniture.

The event is organised by Devon Artist Network who anticipate that it will give a boost to the local economy. During Devon Open Studios last year, more than half a million pounds was generated in sales of artwork to nearly 50,000 visitors. Purchases ranged from greetings cards and small gifts to large garden sculptures and paintings.

Avenda Burnell Walsh of Devon Artist Network board said: “Visitors will be able to enjoy free exhibitions and demonstrations, take part in workshops, meet the artists and celebrate the range of talent across the county. This is a really important event for Devon’s economy. 

“Local people and tourists enjoy the opportunity to meet artists and buy their work, whether it’s a small purchase or a major investment. And for those who can’t afford to buy anything at the moment, we’re encouraging everyone to share their favourite art on social media to help spread the word.”

There are experienced artists as well as new talent; all of them keen to share their inspiration and creativity with visitors. Artists include:

EAST DEVON Alex Boon Alex Boon has moved away from academia, where he worked in environmental science, and now combines his knowledge of nature with his artistic skills. Alex is passionate about nature journalling – creating his own beautiful nature journals as well as encouraging others to do so. Alex believes in the physical and mental health benefits of engaging with the natural environment and keeping a journal. 

He is keen to help others get involved through the delivery of workshops and courses that combine nature walks, drawing from nature and studio sessions. 

Alex will be showing his work as part of a group of artists at Colyton Artisan Quarter

EXETER Alice Clough With a background in archaeology and an interest in folklore, Alice Clough is inspired by the journeys humans have taken through time. She will be showing the new prints she’s been working on, along with a selection of ceramics. 

Alice has been exploring different print techniques to create lino prints, monoprints, and hand debossings, which are created by pressing an image into the paper giving depressions in the paper – the opposite of embossing where the image is raised up.

Alice will be showing her work with other artists at Positive Light Projects in Exeter

MID DEVON Catherine West has gathered a group of artists inspired by nature and wellbeing to show their work in her garden and studio in Crediton.

Catherine uses natural dyes, cyanotypes and stitching to create her textile work. One soft sculpture takes the form of a backpack printed with flowers using natural dyes. The sculpture is made of natural materials which change over time; the colours change with the sun’s rays. 

A skeleton magnolia leaf incorporated into the sculpture has become more fragile, and Catherine has reinforced it with delicate stitching. The sculpture tells the story of the baggage we carry with us, literally and figuratively. 

Catherine’s “Unfurling” is a series of work displayed in her greenhouse. A textile laptop sits on a vintage wooden desk. The screen is made with cyanotypes (sun prints), the cable of hand spun woollen thread and the three-pin plug was created from a recycled blanket. 

Around the greenhouse sit framed prints of ferns made using different techniques including eco-printing, cyanotype and slow stitching from shadow drawings. 

The 2023 summer solstice sunset inspired Catherine to make a woollen patchwork using reclaimed wool blankets dyed with dahlia, comfrey and other plants. Babs Behan is a botanical artist, working with natural dyes which she makes from local plants. For her latest project, Babs is extracting pigments from traditional Dartmoor dye plants such as bramble, hawthorn and alder, as well as experimenting with invasive species including Japanese Knotweed and Himalayan Balsam. 

She uses the pigments to make simple brush strokes and creates beautiful images which she feels are an expression of the whole journey from extracting the pigment to creating the picture. Babs also hand carves wooden blocks to make prints of leaves and other decorative natural shapes. During Devon Open Studios, visitors will be able to see Babs’ work at her studio in Widecombe-in-the-Moor.

NORTH DEVON Amy Jobes creates evocative impressionistic oil paintings inspired by the huge skies and distant horizons of the North Devon Coastline. This is Amy’s third year taking part in Devon Open Studios, and she’ll be converting her log cabin garden studio into a beautiful gallery space to display a diverse range of works from greetings cards to huge statement oil paintings.

Amy said: “It's wonderful to join forces with so many other Devon artists for the biggest art event in the county. I love meeting the people who come to visit; we welcome locals as well as visitors who’ve travelled from around the county. 

“As a seascape artist I am inspired by the wild and dramatic coastline here in North Devon. Open Studios is a chance to talk to people in depth and in person about why I paint, and I love to discover my visitors' own personal connections to the work.

“Often people see my paintings and share fond memories of time spent at their favourite beach, which I always enjoy. 

“Life puts pressure on us all in all sorts of ways, but a visit to a vast and expansive natural environment can be incredibly grounding, putting everything in perspective. I think that resonates with a lot of people.”

SOUTH HAMS and PLYMOUTH Printmaker Joanna Haigh is inspired by the natural world. She was brought up in Devon and returned two years ago to live on the edge of Dartmoor, where she enjoys taking walks to seek inspiration for her work.

Joanna creates reduction linocut prints where each colour layer is carved into the same lino block. A layer is carved to print the first colour, then the next layer is carved to create another colour, and so on. 

The colours are built up from the palest to the darkest, and only a limited number of prints can be made. Joanna usually creates just eight or 10 prints from a block, all very slightly different due to the hand printing process.

She enjoys the thought process she needs to go through before creating each piece, working out if an image will translate into print. Her colour palette includes blues and greens reflecting the hues of the natural environment. 

Rather than using a stark black as her darkest colour, she often uses a very dark purple to create a softer effect.

Joanna will be working on prints at her studio near Ivybridge during Devon Open Studios so that visitors can see how the work is made. She’s also looking forward to visiting other artists’ studios to see their work.

Lucy Bell A few years ago, Lucy Bell signed up for a ceramics evening class and immediately became hooked. During the Covid lockdown, she bought a pottery wheel and began creating at home. 

She finds that making provides her with a single point of focus where the mind can’t worry about other things. Lucy has been working with a criminal justice project, using the therapeutic benefits of creating.

She has been collecting seaweed and other natural materials to experiment with surface decoration and creating different textures on her ceramics.

Lucy will be showing her work with other artists at the Clay Yard in Totnes.

TEIGNBRIDGE Chrissie Hunt Ceramicist Chrissie Hunt uses mark making to draw onto clay. She uses the texture, form and quality of the line to express elements of the landscape. As well as her vases, she’s been creating some new forms.

Chrissie loves sitting on the beach and looking back at the landscape which inspires all her work. She sees the cliff faces as the sides of pots, and the fields and undulations as the three-dimensional volume of her vessels. 

She’s been experimenting with this sense of volume by creating enclosed vessels with apertures for single stems. This process of creating new work also involves experimenting with shape and decoration, deciding where the belly of the vessel should be, working with the marks created by the rhythm of the making process, and deciding how to draw using slips and glazes. 

Chrissie has also been working with different clays to achieve the contrast she is looking for, testing different slips on terracotta as well as black clay.

Devon Open Studios visitors will be the first to see the new work created during this period of experimentation. Chrissie is looking forward to hearing people’s reactions to this new body of work. She will be showing her work alongside three other artists at the Tin Shed Studio in Shaldon near Teignmouth.

Susie Honnor is taking part in Devon Open Studios for the first time. She brings a new dimension to potato printing, using the special textures to make colourful patterns on cushions and lampshades. 

Susie was inspired to start making when she and her husband created a new room at the top of their garden. The space was so wonderful that she felt it should be used every day, and began experimenting. 

Using six pots of fabric ink to create a range of shades and colours, Susie takes advantage of the natural qualities of the potato to make her marks. She chooses her potatoes for their shapes and uses a lino cutter to make patterns. The skin of the potato picks up the dye to give a clean edge, while a different effect is created by the cut potato edges.

Although the process is low-tech, Susie carefully considers every detail at each stage to produce her special designs.

Caring for the environment is important too, and Susie pays careful attention to the sustainability of every part of her making — her choice of inks, fabrics and cushion pads as well as packaging.

Susie will be showing her work alongside botanical artist Rosie Sanders in Bovey Tracey.

Noah Michael Taylor Noah Michael Taylor designs and makes furniture and sculptures using metal with other materials such as glass and wood. Recently, he made the decision to step away from full-time employment in arts education, and is now reinvigorating his creative practice. 

To support his development, he is learning new skills, including wax modelling and bronze casting. In the future he aims to use his teaching experience to deliver classes in small scale bronze casting and metal sculpture. 

Noah will be showing his work alongside sculptor Zoe Singleton at her studio in Liverton, near Bovey Tracey

TORBAY Olya Baklan is originally from Ukraine and now based in Torbay. She feels the energy of life which she demonstrates in her watercolours. Her inspiration comes from nature and wildflowers which she refers to as ‘the quiet poetry of rural life’.

During Devon Open Studios, Olya will be welcoming visitors to “Watercolour Paradise” at Artizan Gallery, Torquay. Where she will be showing her work and demonstrating watercolour techniques. Olya believes that there are no untalented people, and the art of all her students is a unique reflection of their personality, their thoughts and emotions. 

WEST DEVON Jordan Eastwood set himself a 100-day figure drawing challenge. He wanted to practice his skills and create more confident lines, so he decided to share his daily drawing process on social media. The posts quickly became popular, and people have been keen to buy the drawings. 

Jordan has also been working on a burnt charcoal sculpture which forms the central part of his exhibition for Devon Open Studios. His aim is to create an immersive environment in his studio, using visual art with a soundscape and specially created smells. 

This work focuses on loneliness and isolation, reflecting Jordan’s struggles with mental health. His aim is to open up the conversation about mental health and use his art to encourage others to confront their own emotional challenges.

Jordan said: “I have a strong need to create works that will totally engage people, helping them experience feelings and new ‘environments’ that they may never have before. My hope is to give people a sense of perspective, a real insight into how another person thinks and feels. 

“I feel that visual arts have to fight quite hard to be fully appreciated in the current social climate, so to tackle that, I intend to fully immerse people by plunging them into a deep atmosphere.”  Tavistock.

During Devon Open Studios, as well as seeing artists at work, visitors will also be able to try their hand at creating something in one of the workshops, which include sketching in clay, eco dyeing, cyanotypes, paint & stitch, life drawing, stained glass, and woodcarving.

Devon Open Studios is the annual flagship event of Devon Artist Network. Guides can be found at community venues, libraries and tourist information offices. An online version is also available, along with more information about each of the artists on the website devonopenstudios.co.uk .