SOTA – State of the Art – gallery opened some four months ago in the heart of Witney, just off Market Square behind Langdale Hall.

Andrew and Jennifer Crowshaw, the gallery owners, recognised there was nowhere in the county dedicated to Oxfordshire arts and crafts. So when Andrew left his military career as an engineer they decided to settle locally, and open just such a gallery. The gallery provides a welcoming, comfortable space with an emphasis on affordable, accessible work that would look well in living rooms and homes. The Crowshaws encourage everyone, especially families, children and young people to come to look at and discuss work on show.

They already work with Abingdon and Witney College and hope the partnership will evolve into the use of the space for the showing of the best of student work. The college’s special needs students are already regular visitors drawing their own inspiration from what they see and experience in the gallery.

The Crowshaws are also keen to encourage Oxfordshire artists and crafts people to make contact with them. They already have work by 55 Oxfordshire makers on their books and are keen to expand this. They get a huge buzz out of showing and selling the high- quality work made by people who initially lack self-confidence in their ability as makers.

Also on show on a regular basis are Andrew’s own wood-turned pieces. Trained as a joiner and carpenter, before joining the army aged 17, he has retained and developed his skills using them to produce stunning, tactile pieces such as Acacia Bowl which retains the essence of the wood from which it was made (a fallen tree from Boars Hill) and has a beautiful aesthetic of its own. Andrew sources his wood from Deep In Wood, timber merchants who specialise in county wood and he usually knows exactly where each piece of wood grew.

As a member of Oxfordshire Craft Guild he is delighted SOTA will host a show by Guild members, hopefully becoming an annual event.

Guild members make and sell pieces that are both beautiful and useful. The Guild is committed to promoting quality in craftwork and in establishing the importance of making as opposed to manufacture. It also encourages working partnerships and the cross-fertilisation of ideas between people working in different media, with different techniques and subject areas: as evidenced by the work by the 21 Guild members taking part in this show.

Jewellery on show includes a charming range in sterling silver made by designer, Annia Marcus, who creates unique pieces, each one crafted to suit the individual wearer. And work by Selma Stagg, who creates ‘stones’ from porcelain, which being both light and strong, enables her to build bracelets, necklaces and earrings, which are eminently wearable and robust. In her ENA series she fuses fiery reds with deep greens to produce eye-catching combinations. By contrast, Tam Frishberg sets out to create stoneware that is functional rather than ornamental. She gets real pleasure from everyday use of her pieces. Whilst she draws much inspiration from old vessels and museum pieces, she also finds there are times when other shapes emerge as a result of the interaction between wheel, hands and clay. Each of her pieces is enhanced by the minimalist approach she takes to her glazing.

Textile artist Judith Gussin uses her expertise as a colour chemist to produce dyed fabrics and embroidery threads to create charming decorated bags and other pieces such as gossamer light scarves of silk habutai and silk mixtures.

The Guild’s show affords an opportunity to visit and explore this delightful, friendly gallery, to talk to Guild members about work on show and perhaps too, to talk to the Crowshaws about your own work and whether the gallery would like to show and sell it.

The gallery is open every day and the Craft Guild exhibition runs until April 15.