Out & About May 2017

It would be a superhuman feat to visit every artist and show in the three weeks, so the free illustrated directory describing each artist’s work and listing individual opening times and directions is a must to plan a productive route. Copies are available around town and online at www.open-studios.org.uk – you can use it in conjunction with the taster exhibition and satellite shows which, says the scheme’s president, Fawley sculptor Johannes von Stumm, “hint at wonderful treasures to be discovered by poking your head around the door of a sculptor’s workshop or painter’s studio”. All the 2017 Open Studios participants are looking forward to meeting you.

Sandham Memorial Chapel this year with nine other artists. “I enjoy meeting the public, you get a real impression of how they feel about your work. Art is very subjective and so it is a fabulous feeling when you meet someone who is passionate about pieces you have made. “Back in 2010 I tried to impress my new boyfriend with my studio; seven years later we are married and expecting our first baby, so it seems to have worked.” Diccon Dadey, creator of quirky metal sculptures in a barn near Woodland St Mary, is quite a character too – the magnificent steel rhino head on display is a talking point at every show. He picked up his skills in manipulating metal and welding while working in engineering. “I’ve always been quite creative but never saw it being something I could really make a living at. I started playing with some pieces, more as a hobby, and it took off. All those skills came together into creating sculptures that appeal to people, mainly for their gardens.” He ran DadeyMetalArt alongside the ‘day job’ for a couple of years before taking the plunge and hasn’t looked back. “Opening my studio is a great chance for people to browse without feeling they have to make an appointment or buy something and it gives me a good opportunity to gauge the response of potential clients. The one-to-one feedback is really helpful – it always amazes me how many ideas come out of Open Studio months.” Diccon has never needed to spend money on advertising – his work speaks for itself. “My sign-written truck, with a sheep or a horse’s head or a dragon and a couple of owls on the back, soon drums up interest. “We were recently in a traffic jam on the M6, listening to the radio, and heard a call from a listener saying that they were sitting behind a red truck with a life-size horse head on the back!”

Clockwise Susan Kirkman, Sophie Waite, Diccon Dadey

23