Art in Action was an art and craft festival held in the grounds of Waterperry House in

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

. For 4 days each July artists and craftsmen set up their studios in marquees so that visitors can watch them at work. Visitors could interact with the artists, view their exhibited work, as well as buy and commission art. Art in Action ended after 40 years in 2016 due to key staff members retiring and difficulties in finding replacements for them. Handmade in Britain is hoping to take over this exhibition from 2021. The first Art in Action took place in 1977 with around 50 artists and 14,000 visitors. Since then it has grown to some 400 artists and performers and 25,000 visitors. It was an annual pilgrimage for many people interested in the visual arts. Art in Action was organised by the

School of Economic Science The School of Philosophy and Economic Science (SPES), also operating under the names the School of Philosophy and the School of Practical Philosophy and legally named the School of Economic Science (SES), is a worldwide organisation based in ...

, a registered charity which owns Waterperry House. Most of the 600 staff at the event were volunteers from the School. However in recent years an increasing number of volunteers have come from elsewhere. Art in Action provided a creative environment in which artists and craft workers could demonstrate their skills and engage with the public. Each marquee hosted artists of a similar discipline such as painting, sculpture, printmaking, calligraphy, illustration, textiles, woodwork, metalwork, jewellery, ceramics and glass. Some artists and performers came from countries around the world. In a large "Market" marquee, over 100 designer makers sold their produce. These included leatherwork, toys, ceramics, glass, jewellery, hats, body care and textiles. Art in Action offered a range of practical classes available for both children and adults. Examples included pottery, jewellery making, wood carving,

glass engraving Engraved glass is a type of decorated glass that involves shallowly engraving the surface of a glass object, either by holding it against a rotating wheel, or manipulating a "diamond point" in the style of an engraving burin. It is a subgroup of ...

and

watercolour Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to t ...

. Some classes for adults were run by UK art colleges and institutions. These have included

City and Guilds The City and Guilds of London Institute is an educational organisation in the United Kingdom. Founded on 11 November 1878 by the City of London and 16 livery companies – to develop a national system of technical education, the institute has ...

, the Prince's School of Traditional Arts, the

Guild of Glass Engravers A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...

, the

Art Academy of South East London Art is a diverse range of human behavior, human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imagination, imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no genera ...

and

West Dean College West Dean College of Arts and Conservation is situated in the West Dean Estate, of West Dean near Chichester. The Estate was formerly the home of the poet and patron of the arts Edward James. He was an avid admirer of the Surrealist movement, ...

. Live performances included music recitals, performing arts, lectures and storytelling for children. Visitors could also visit Waterperry Gardens and take a guided tour of the frescoes inside Waterperry House. The event was organised by

Jeremy Sinclair Jeremy Theodorson Sinclair (born 1946) is a British businessman and advertising executive who was a founding director in 1995 of ad agency M&C Saatchi, having earlier been one of the founders of Saatchi & Saatchi in 1970. Early life and educatio ...

from 2005–2014.{{Cite web, url=http://www.artinaction.org.uk/best-of-the-best/, title=Best of the Best Exhibition at Art in Action, website=Art in Action, language=en-US, access-date=2019-02-16

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External links

Art in Action Art festivals in the United Kingdom Festivals in Oxfordshire