THE first exhibition by members of West Burton Art Group outside their own village is at the Chapel Gallery in Hawes.

The 40 works by 13 artists using watercolours, oils, acrylics and collage, range across land, sea and townscapes, from Edinburgh scenes to Jane Bates’s Himalayan Poppies, and show a remarkable variety of styles and subjects for such a small group.

Michael Wheeler, whose North Sea shows an oil rig in stormy waters, formed the group which meets every Wednesday morning in West Burton Village Hall.

There is no formal tuition and no talent is necessary, though plenty is on show.

The gallery was opened a year ago by Anne and Tim Smithies to showcase the work of local artists. Anne Smithies, a working artist in a variety of media, including glass-fusing, fabricdyeing and book-making, says the support and encouragement of local artists is at the heart of what they do.

The gallery has a rolling programme of exhibitions every three weeks, with more than 30 artists having work on display and for sale throughout the year. There are workshops on everything from woodturning to to glass-fusing, soft furnishing, lino-printing and a host of other crafts. See chapelgalleryhawes.co.uk or call 01969-667558 for more information.

Betsy Everett