GRAVESTONES, skulls, grassy fields and birds of prey inspired Oxfordshire artists to show off their talents at Oxford Castle.

Nine painters, sculptors and photographers were picked from about 100 artists from across the county to display their work at the venue’s O3 Gallery.

The competition to win a place in the exhibition, part of the 29th annual Oxford Artweeks, was open to all ages.

Some of the pieces are on display in the gallery itself, while others are in the Castle’s other venues, including Malmaison, The Living Room, La Tasca, The Swan and Castle and Cafe 1071.

The three-week Artweeks event encourages artists to open up their houses or studios to let the public see their work.

Hannah Newton, art teacher at King Alfred’s, Wantage, and a member of the Artweeks board, said “This is a fantastic opportunity. Many young artists are incredibly talented but can’t exhibit in Artweeks because they live in shared or family accommodation and the cost of exhibiting elsewhere at a commercial rate may be prohibitive.”

Arthur Laidlaw, 20, said he was proud to have one of his photographs in the exhibition.

The history of art student, who recently started using a film camera instead of digital, said: “I’m really more of a painter and this is a new medium for me, I don’t have time to sit and sketch at the moment. I’m a regular to Oxford Artweeks but this is my first time exhibiting.”

Mr Laidlaw is in the first year of his degree at St Catherine’s College, Oxford, and his picture, Tombstones, was taken at Holywell Cemetery in the city.

Another artist, Veronica Cordova from Mexico City, moved to Oxford to do her MA in Contemporary Art at Oxford Brookes University.

Her three pieces, featuring skulls, are being exhibited in Cafe 1071 and were made using letter press printing and monotype techniques.

Mature student Janet Cross, who lives in Wolvercote and studies part time at Oxford and Cherwell Valley College in Banbury, made her porcelain sculptures during her design craft course.

She said: “The pieces are all to do with journeys. They are all inspired by the warp and weft of textiles and the maps of journeys.

“My family and grandchildren are very proud and will be coming to see the pieces.”

Claire Williams, 38, from Littlemore, a professional photographer, said of her picture: “The photo is of the sea glistening through grasses on a coastal path. It is high resolution which makes it kind of abstract because it’s such high contrast.”

The photo was taken during a short break in Devon with friends. She added: “It was a really nice day so we stopped for a picnic. My friends were snoozing so I was snapping away.”

Bicester Community College pupil Bethany Naylor, 17, made a hummingbird from pages torn out of books, screwed up and stuck down with glue.

She said: “It was designed to represent how something simple and everyday can be turned into a detailed sculpture.”

The exhibition runs until Sunday, May 29.

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