Water Saving Solutions

Africa is synonymous with drought but how may associate the Cape with this affliction? Being of Mediterranean climate this region relies on winter rainfall to fill its dams.  This year it looks as if it has fallen short – again.  But the locals are pragmatic.  When I last visited top Cape artist and ceramicist Helen…

Many Shades of Green

Before we launch our next exhibition we must deal with the season of abundance upon us, and it’s a bumper year at our Fillingdon Gallery garden. First up on the homemade stakes have been pots of pine-nutty pesto whizzed up in the blender from a lush crop of lurid green basil grown in the greenhouse,…

The Joy of Giving

Last month we were invited to partake in the Art4Africa fair in Bedfordshire, raising money for Rise Africa, a charity dedicated to the education of orphans in Tanzania.  This week we were delighted to pay the charity £1,200.00 which will provide three youngsters with schooling for a year.  Overall the event raised in excess of…

silver jubilee

“Silver Summer” current exhibition Saturday 2nd – Saturday 16th July 2016 – FINISHED

Open daily 10am – 4pm at Fillingdon Farm (on A40), Piddington, Bucks HP14 3BL A wide range of unique contemporary paintings, sculpture (including outdoor pieces), ceramics (featuring large garden pots), jewellery and craft. Parking is plentiful, entry is free and refreshments are available.  Donations to the charity Farm Africa are welcome.

safe packaging from SA

Six Steps to Sending Ceramics Safely

Our latest consignment from Africa to UK consisted of 289 fragile works of art weighing over 680kgs in nineteen large boxes – and there was not a single item broken.  What a fantastic result.  Everyone involved takes such care and it is worth spelling out the invaluable assistance we receive from Johannesburg. They use the…

Chiltern Hills

The Long & Winding Road

Out walking our dog recently on a gorgeous sunlit late spring evening, I took this photograph from the top of our field across the Chiltern Hills.  The words of the Beatles song kept lilting through my mind as I gazed upon the distant road winding its way through the green fields of wheat.  And I…

Story of an Old Bag in Church

On the other side of the world in a small community called Samford Village, Queensland, Australia, I have a close and dear friend who a sings in the choir of the local Catholic Sacred Heart Church.  One Sunday a few months ago, she spied a newcomer in the front pew.  Not only was that unusual…

Cape ceramics

A Gentle Giant

Yes, Hennie is a big man.  But he is not just physically tall.  He is a giant in the world of ceramics.  As one of South Africa’s leading ceramic artists, Hennie’s CV shows his meteoric rise through the classic art shows of the country and is littered with awards and accolades.  But he also is…

bluebell woods

Classic Blue & White

Blue and white is the classic ceramic colour combination used by potters over the centuries around the world. Timeless, classless. fresh and so very beautiful, it is a simple winning formula with universal appeal.  And, its inspiration?  Perhaps nature.  To walk in our local woods at the moment is a heady experience.  They are a…