*Stop Press
Extended Opening Hours For Final Week (check full programme for special events too)

Tuesday 5th 12 – 4pm
Wednesday 6th 12-4pm
Friday 8th 12-3pm

From 26th March to 8th April 2016 at 1 Thrifts Walk.

A story tale themed exhibition with a twist from Collaborating Cambridge artists, Abi Stevens, Jill Eastland, Alan Rogerson, Yasemin Gyford, Karen Stamper & Henry Shepherd for a fortnight this Easter holidays. Expect anything – from a Madhatters tea party for families, political art commenting on Cambridge’s housing crisis, ghost stories, poetry, the launch of SHINDIG’s interactive art shop – and more.

The exhibition has a range of art for sale from independent artists in the city, includes free events and workshops, many for children and families, some strictly for adults, all will be fun. Look out for the hashtag #WeAreFamily16 for family friendly events, as part of the Art Salon’s We Are Family project – www.cambridgeartsalon.org.uk/we-are-family/

Collaborating Cambridge is a broad group of Cambridge based artists. With the emphasis on collaborating, they produce work for group exhibitions and events.

‘This is an exciting time for us as we are transitioning into a charitable association which gives us more opportunity to help the people and community we love. I set up Collaborating Cambridge because there are so many good quality artists in Cambridge but not enough platforms for them – buying from an independent artist is one of the best ways to support your local art scene,’ says Faye Wright, founder of Collaborating Cambridge.

Faye herself can also be found at the likes of Stir Cafe, hosting family arts events.

It’s important for artists to have space to breathe, experiment and sell to sustain their practices and grow. So we are also launching feedback boxes at this show to help develop the project – inviting the public and other artists to pass on their thoughts.

Please come along and support Cambridge artists by enjoying this work and buying from them. Prints for £20 and under, as well as cards and original art will be for sale. There will also be the chance to donate directly to Collaborating Cambridge, with fundraising buckets throughout.

‘Not so private’ view / opening night (FREE all welcome, bring a bottle!) #WeAreFamily16

All welcome, kids and adults, come and join in and see the amazing outcomes of the artists’ interpretations of the ‘stortelling’ theme.

Saturday March 26th, 6 – 9pm

Alan’s adults comic workshop (FREE)
Monday March 28th, 1-3pm
Selected range from Alan’s Art Kiosk for sale.

Allographic poetry and storytelling (FREE)
Tuesday March 29th, 6-9pm
www.facebook.com/events/1002573416502568/
Poetry books will be on sale.

Mad Hatters Tea Party (FREE) #WeAreFamily16
Childrens arts and crafts party
Thursday 31st March 12 noon – 2pm
Prints, cards and original art will be on sale.

Cambridge Storytellers ‘Local legends and Fen Mysteries’ (FREE)
Friday 1st April, 6-8pm
www.facebook.com/events…/566856856805952
Prints by selected artists will be on sale from under £20

Furry Tales (FREE)
A family art & story workshop, getting ready for Strawberry Fair!
Saturday 2 April 12 noon – 4pm
Prints, art and cards will be on sale

Ghost Stories (ticketed – please contact SHINDIG for details)
Saturday 2nd April 6-9pm
Launch of interactive SHINDIG art shop

Kids collaging with Yasemin (FREE)
Sunday 3rd April 12 noon – 2pm
Prints, art and cards for sale

Soundscape stories (FREE)
Guided visualisation & meditation with singing bowls
Wednesday 6th  April 7pm – 8pm
Prints, cards and original art for sale

Virginity Café
(A taboo breaking philosophy cafe involving virginity stories)
Friday 8th April,3-5pm
Prints, cards and original art for sale

Closing gathering (FREE All welcome, bring a bottle!)
Friday 8th April,6-8pm
Prints, cards and original art for sale

We’re delighted to announce the first show in our new pop up art space, nestled in the heart of Chesterton. Thrifts Walk Studios, has five independent artists based there, who have worked with residents in the city to restore the disused space so that it is usable, into a pop up ‘art shop’ where the artists can meet their customers and the public direct, plus a gallery and a garden where artists can sell, exhibit and exchange ideas with other makers. The gallery exhibitions are, of course, open to the public, with work for sale.

Kith & Kin is a new exhibition from Cambridge portrait painter, Heloise Toop and will run from 11 to 25 March 2016.

You can visit the exhibition between 10am and 5pm on

Saturday 12th / Sunday 13th
Friday 18th/ Saturday 19th / Sunday 20th
Friday 25th (9am – 5pm, with a private view for families midday – 2pm) / Saturday 26th

Kith and Kin, explores the connections between the family we have and the family we choose. Throughout 2016, Cambridge Art Salon is loosely curating a programme of talks, exhibitions and research as part of We Are Family  – a new project that explores the value of family and intergenerational arts in the community.

Heloise, who works primarily in oils, studied at The Heatherley School of Fine Art in Chelsea and has embraced portraiture as her ‘path to happiness’. Art critic, Clive Christy has described her paintings as ‘strong and yet very sensitive… she seems to capture a vulnerability and humanity in her works’. A review in Style Magazine wrote ‘Heloise’s mastery of the paint palette is breathtaking; from delicate eyelashes to wispy strands of hair, her depiction is stunningly realistic’.

In 2009, at just seventeen, Heloise had a painting selected to show at the Mall Galleries in London. She also exhibited, by invitation, at the 2013 ‘People’ exhibition at the Bankside Gallery. Five of her paintings were shown at the ‘Debut Contemporary Art’ Gallery in Notting Hill, London and she has exhibited and led a portrait painting workshop at Impington Village College’s Annual Art Exhibition.

More recently, Heloise was one of two artists live painting at New Artists Fair in London.

Her commissioned work includes a portrait of Dr Rebecca Lingwood, the first female director of Madingley Hall, Cambridge and Professor Michael Green, a fellow of Clare College, Cambridge and former Lucasian Professor of Mathematics.

Of her latest pieces Heloise says  ‘As a portrait painter, I always strive to convey some kind of human emotion in my work. In my most recent paintings I have focused on the relationship between siblings, and the relationship between my friends and I. There are sets of portraits that interact with each other through eye contact and smirks. Each set tells a different story. Alongside this brand new work, I will also be exhibiting some large scale oil paintings featuring friends dressed as fairytale characters, and some honest portraits of those close to me. My Kith and Kin‘

The Abbey community will be celebrating the festive season with their very own Winter Lights Festival. The Christmas lights switch on is happening on Wednesday 16 December and will include a Lantern parade along Wadloes Road followed by a community meal by Food-cycle, an Art Fair, and community performances.

The Cambridge Art Salon is delighted to be able to support this community event with funds raised by the EastSide Creates programme.

Local artist Jill Fordham, who has a studio at Unit 13, has been running lantern workshops ahead of the festival and we hope everyone who has participated will come along with their creations and help light up Wadloes Road.

If you need some inspiration, here are photos from previous lantern workshops.

The light switch on is outside Barnwell Spar at 6pm Wednesday 16 December.

ABOUT JILL FORDHAM

Jill grew up in Cambridge and has explored many different areas of art and craft over the years. She attended art college as a mature student, where she learned her skills as a stained glass artist and for a short period, has worked in the stained glass studio of Susan Matthews, stained glass artist and curator of Ely Cathedral stained glass museum. Jill has been working in this medium now for 20 years, and has sold her work at various fairs and galleries in and around Cambridge.  As well as undertaking private commissions both designing and restoring stained glass windows, mostly for private clients. Past commissions have included work for Ely Cathedral and Chilford Hall. For the past ten years Jill has taught stained glass courses for manor community college, Whitehouse arts, Rowan foundation, and for school groups, as well as teaching general art/craft to special needs groups, such as Castle school and the Alzheimers’ society.

You can see some of Jill’s beautiful glasswork on her website http://hurdy-gurdyglass.co.uk/