Fear not! Now that OS is over for another year, and the organisers are drawing breath before beginning all over again for next year, we've decided to make the web pages even easier to find. When you go to the home page of our website, you'll see that the 'Visual Arts' tab now reads 'Visual Arts & Open Studios'. From there, it's just one click to reach the tab dedicated to OS.

While you're there, please do have a look at our Gallery pages - we've got lots of picture from the Open Studios weekend. If you're not among them, please do send your images to me and I'll put them up asap.

Gaye Jee

On September 22nd, we're lucky enough to have Bertie Pearce trying out his latest talk - "Creating an Imaginary World" - about the history of stage design - at the Green Lane Music Room. Bertie is both erudite and hilarious and is well known as a speaker and magician (and Punch & Judy Professor!) to many CA members. Don't miss this opportunity to catch him!

CA's fourth Open Studios, held last weekend, 3rd & 4th September was a brilliant success with over 40 artists participating. See Sue Petszaft's report here and a selection of pictures from the studios here.

​Sue Petszaft, a founder member of Crowborough Arts, has decided to stand down. Sue has co-ordinated and run our successful Open Studios event since it started, as well as acting as Chair and serving on the Steering Group. Current CA Chair, Angela Vernon Bates," writes: "Sue has worked generously and tirelessly for Crowborough Arts from the beginning and has helped to build it into the successful community multi-arts organisation it now is. 

"She will be greatly missed by everyone for the huge input and energy that she has put into our events and she has helped widen our horizons to embrace many different activities.

"I shall miss her personally.  We have worked together from the beginning and in 2015 we shared the job of chairing Crowborough Arts.  She has always been a great friend and support and I wish her every success in future ventures.

"Thank you Sue, from us all - Crowborough Arts is where it is now because of you!"

Mary Harris, who had done so much in promoting CA via her life drawing and portraiture sessions, has had one of her woodcut prints chosen for display by The Royal Society of Marine Artists' annual exhibition at the Mall Gallery. The exhibition takes place between 5th and 14th October 2107. Mary's picture was chosen from over 1300 submitted works, so congratulations are most definitely in order! 

Mary says, "I have always liked the Mall Gallery as it is 'person sized' and accessible. The picture is based on a visit to Hartland, where the rocks are incredibly rich black and triangular, and fading into a misty horizon. I was staying at Merlyn Chesterman's studio to learn more about woodblock cutting and printing, and I knew straight away that this was my chosen subject. It took three days of hard work to cut the black silhouettes and then a separate block for the coloured sea.