HELEN PEACOCKE previews the annual Oxfordshire Artweeks extravaganza, the largest open studio festival of visual art in the country, which starts this month

The popular Artweeks festival highlights the work of so many extremely talented amateur artists in the villages and towns of Oxfordshire and beyond. Yet you can often find such talent on your very doorstep.

The event, the largest open studio festival of visual art in the cuontry, offers both art-lovers and the simply curious a chance to visit three different areas in as many weeks and gets under way on May 13, finally closing its doors on June 4.

It begins in the loosely designated area of North Oxfordshire, which includes the important towns in that area of the county, but stretches from Bampton in the south to Shipston-on-Stour in the Cotswolds in the west, to Banbury in the north, and across to Brackley and Bicester in the East.

The village of Eynsham offers a really interesting package, where visitors can see 11 venues and take a break for afternoon tea at the same time. Maps to guide visitors around the village can be obtained from The Bartholomew Rooms in the Village Square, where the many talented members of the Eynsham Art Group are displaying their work.

While in the square, visitors can also call in at St Leonard's Church, where Alice Walker's intriguing studies of simple and ordinary objects depicted in mixed media are on display. Paintings evoking spiritual, emotional and spacial elements of buildings and landscape by Brenda Hayden are on show at the church too.

A short walk takes visitors to No 6 High Street. Here there is a unique collection of glorious silk and linen garments and accessories, designed and created by June Middleton and Margaret Underwood, all of which are for sale.

Nearby, Myrtle Cottage, Tanners Lane, is the home of watercolourist Julia Loken, whose glowing watercolours are inspired by the plants in her enchanting garden. Julia hopes her works will help others to notice plants in a new way, seeing the full beauty of all nature offers.

Often working with a microscope which highlights the veins and minute petals, Julia is often astonished at the beautiful shapes not immediately accessible to the naked eye. Her many watercolours celebrate such finds.

Go on to 16 Queen's Lane, just a few minutes walk away, to discover the work of seven artists who will be demonstrating their many skills which have created colourful items that can be worn, seen and touched.

In the gardens of 34 Newland Street, visitors will confront an amazing collection of abstract and figurative steel sculptures created by Anne Gingell.

At number 18 in the same street, Jane Tomlinson will be displaying her watercolours which depict the natural world in all its glory.

By turning the corner and entering Mill Street, visitors will discover The Emporium, a recently established innovative shop which specialises in quality cookware, flowers and gifts.

It is here that afternoon teas are being served and a vibrant display of fascinating photographs by four Eynsham photographers can be viewed throughout the day.

The photographers include Tamsin Taylor, whose work, presented on canvas, depicts the wonderful world of books, using images which convey the not just the tactile beauty of the printed page, but all those creases and thumb marks that suggest they have often been read and enjoyed.

Others displaying their work at The Emporium include Karen Foster, whose photography suggests a passion for the shapes and textures of fruits and foods, Marjorie Ottley, who uses digital technology to create stunning pictures and studies of flowers, and Meg Blacker, who began experimenting with photography in 2001.

Stained-glass artist June King, an Artweeks' veteran, has opened her home at 18 Old Witney Road to show her panels, mirrors, jewellery, suncatchers and mosaics, and to round things off, contemporary fine furniture by Roger Cash is on show at Spareacre Works, Spareacre Lane.

Corin Willet, proprietor of The Emporium, says that the remarkable number of Eynsham artists displaying their work says much for the community spirit in the village. She said: "Together, the Eynsham artists are providing visitors with a terrific day out. There's certainly something for everyone during Artweeks."

Artweeks brochures are available at libraries and tourist centres throughout the county, as well as from most participating artists, who mark their studios with the ubiquitous yellow and blue Artweeks flag.

The exhibits in the City area, based in Oxford and the surrounding district, begins on May 20 and continues until May 28. The South area exhibits begin on May 27 and finishes on June 4. For further details about Artweeks visit the website www.artweeks.org