Joint Exhibition
BORDERLAND VISUAL ARTS&CHESHIRE ARTISTS' NETWORKSaturday 31 October until Christmas Eve(each exhibition taking up half the gallery)
Left: Fragments in Motion - Mixed media by Sarah Parry
Right: Low Tide, Red Wharf Bay - Pen & watercolour by Chris Robertshaw
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 Borderland Visual Arts Winter Collection
Borderland Visual Arts provide a network for practicing artists living in and around Oswestry. Members meet on a regular basis to share ideas, support each other and organise events.
 Clockwise from top left: Sheep at the foot of Chirk Viaduct - Mixed media by Jood Gough; Orchid & Fruit - Mixed media by Lesley Fisher; Nearly there - Oil on canvas by Bernard Moore; Misty Morning - Freehand machine embroidery by Alison Holt
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Cheshire Artists' Network
Members of this thriving artists’ collective from all corners of Cheshire work independently across multiple disciplines and come together to exhibit and promote their work.
Clockwise from top left: Secret Forest - Fused glass by Lyndsay Atkinson; Beneath the Rainbow the Light Shines Brightest - Photography by Allisdair McNaull; Two Tulips & A Toucan - Mixed media by Malcolm Powell; Glimpses of the Landscape - Mixed media by Rosemary North
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A Way of Seeing with Reg Turrell
SUNRISE SILHOUETTES
I love to start the morning by drawing back the blinds on the east windows. Watching the sunrise unfold excites me as the intense orange sun slowly lights up the sky.
For this painting, I started with Transparent Orange washes on High White paper. Then, while the paper was still damp, I dropped Flame Orange and Process Yellow acrylic inks into the paint. To help spread the pigments, I used granulation medium. Once the surface was dry, I drew the silhouettes using black water-soluble pencil and wax pastel. The power lines were an important part of the composition because they added rhythm and drama.
In my first version I put in some blue sky. I decided it would be more dramatic without, and the luminosity was more intense. Sometimes a false start leads to a better finish.
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Meeting the ArtistsSaturday 26 September
It was great pleasure to welcome the two Cheshire-based art groups, ReMix and Textile 21, to exhibit their works at the gallery over the months of September and October - and a big thank you to those artists from the two groups who participated in our Meet the Artists Saturday in September. It was inspiring to see how each artist brings their own personal creativity and identity into their art - from paintings, pastels and  drawing to ceramics, textiles and thread, printmaking, sculpture and mixed media. We are grateful to you all for sharing and showing off your beautiful and powerful work.
Thanks also to all visitors, buyers and supporters who came to engage with the artists and find out first-hand the stories and techniques behind their work.
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Art & Craft Workshops We host a mix of creative workshops led by skilled artists and makers. Please see our website for details and booking.
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Our Shop and Café
In our shop, see a wide range of work made by local artists and craft makers. Buy original contemporary art, cards, prints, ceramics, jewellery and textiles, along with work in wood, metal and glass. Gift vouchers can also be purchased.
Our spacious and welcoming café is a popular gathering place that draws both locals and visitors from further afield - perfect for morning coffee, a light lunch or a leisurely pot of tea and slice of cake.
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Upcoming Exhibitions
NEW YEAR OPEN EXHIBITION 2027
Saturday 16 January to Saturday 27 February
NORTH WALES POTTERS' EXHIBITION
Saturday 6 March to Saturday 24 April
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A Storm in the Hills
From local author and sculptor JK Davidson, a new novel using as backdrop the Roman invasion of Britain
Gwyn's world is wiped out in a single hour of violence. He escapes with only his life and a sworn oath of vengeance. Yet that is only the start of his troubles. Kidnapped, he is sold into slavery - across the sea into Gaul and the alien world of the Roman Empire.
When that empire invades his homeland, Gwyn grabs the chance to follow the Roman army and fulfil his oath. But can he sustain his hatred for the man who destroyed his people? Or will the love of another stay his hand?
Cover artwork by the author
Published by Leaf by Leaf Press
On Amazon you can find the book here |
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Other local events and information
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National Service of Remembrance
Sunday 8 November from 10.30am
Assemble on Bailey Head (Guildhall)
Oswestry residents are invited to come together for the town’s annual Remembrance Sunday and Parade. As per tradition, the Parade will assemble on the Bailey Head at 10.30am. Porthywaen Silver Band will lead the procession to the Memorial Gates at Cae Glas Park where a Remembrance Service will be followed by two minutes’ silence before wreaths are laid. The Parade will then makes its way back to the Bailey Head prior to dismissal by the Parade Marshal. Another service will be held at the Memorial Gates on Armistice Day (Remembrance Day), Wednesday 11 November at 11am.
 Rupert Brooke, Skryos 1915
Oil on canvas by Stephen Hopper
English poet Rupert Brooke was born in Rugby on 3 August 1887. He joined the Royal Navy after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, and took part in the disastrous Antwerp expedition in October the same year.
In February 1915, he set sail for the Dardanelles - and onboard ship developed septicaemia from a mosquito bite. He died on 23 April 1915 on a French hospital ship moored off the Greek island of Skyros in the Aegean Sea, and was buried in an olive grove on the island. His best-known poem, The Soldier (1914), reflects the pre-war mood of idealism and patriotism - before the brutal realities and true costs set in.
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Heritage railway and museum
Click here for timetable and here for tickets
Handover of model locomotive Cambrian Heritage Railways has recently been successful in bringing a 100-year-old steam locomotive model back to Oswestry Station. The model, Cambrian Railways locomotive No 98, is owned by the National Trust but is now on indefinite loan and on display in the Oswestry Station Building.
This beautiful piece of high-precision engineering was built c 1907 by apprentices, foremen and craftsmen, working after hours, at the Cambrian Railways Works. The full-size engine was the last passenger locomotive built for Cambrian Railways – the lines which ran from Oswestry to Aberystwyth, Barmouth and Pwllheli.
The handover took place on 28 October, and was attended by Town Mayor Jonathan Upton, Conservation Manager Richard Pennington from the National Trust, and senior representatives from Cambrian Heritage Railways.
 Pictured left to right: Councillor Jonathan Upton, Mayor of Oswestry; Richard Pennington, National Trust Conservation Manager; Rob Williams, CHR Chairman
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OSWESTRY INDEPENDENT CINEMA See regular screenings now at Maona Cinema
Visit www.maonacinema.com for details and bookings
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HERMON ARTS Click HERE for upcoming music events
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Oswestry & Borders Repair Café
Bin it? No way!
Memorial Hall, Smithfield Street, Oswestry
Saturday 28 November, 12-3pm
A team of skilled volunteer repairers give their time and expertise for free to help people fix items that might otherwise be thrown away.
Skilled volunteers help individuals repair their broken items for free. Items can include: Mechanical, electrical, electronic and wooden objects; Bikes; Furniture; Glass and ceramics; Musical instruments, IT hardware and software; Vintage valve radios; Textiles and clothing.
You can also bring your repairs to the Midweek Mend sessions at the Climate Action Hub, 36 Bailey Street, Oswestry (Wednesdays 11am-2pm).
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Detail from Dance at Bougival, 1883, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
At the National Gallery until 31 January 2027
This sumptuous exhibition, brough together from collections across the world, focuses on one of the most compelling threads in Renoir’s career: love and human connection. Over 50 paintings from the 1860s to 1880s include Bal au Moulin de la Galette, the artist's sweeping scene of a Sunday afternoon dance in Montmartre, on view in the UK for the first time.
Dance at the Moulin de la Galette, 1876, Musée d'Orsay
The exhibition is organised jointly by the Musée d’Orsay, the National Gallery and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and forms part of a three-city presentation following its Paris showing and ahead of Boston. |
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Hokusai: Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji
From the Iuchi Collection
Dulwich Picture Gallery
Until 17 January 2027
The exhibition presents, for the first time in the UK, the complete set of Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji, created between 1830 and 1833 by Katsushika Hokusai, Japan’s most celebrated printmaker.
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Scientists suggest precise date for Van Gogh's Starry Night
Paintings crescent moon and stars point to July 22, 1889
 Vincent van Gogh's most famous sky now has a likely date: July 22, 1889. A new study in Scientific Reports argues that The Starry Night captures the pre-dawn sky over France's Saint-Rémy-de-Provence on that morning, when a slim crescent moon, bright Venus and the Hyades star cluster in Taurus would have appeared close together - just as they do in the painting, reports Popular Science. Researchers blended astronomical simulations and historical weather logs alongside Van Gogh's letters and sketches to narrow in on the timing.
Earlier scholars tied the work to June, based on a letter the artist sent to his brother on the 18th of that month describing ‘a new study of a starry sky’. But the moon's phase at that time didn't match the final painting, said to have been inspired by the view outside Van Gogh's asylum window. Researchers ultimately identified three dates that aligned with the weather and star configuration seen in the painting, but July 22 was the closest match. July's hotter temperatures also better fit with Van Gogh's written mention of cicadas, according to the study. |
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 A vibrant, not-for-profit art space packed full of contemporary artworks from local and national artists. We host a regular rotation of exhibitions, art classes, craft fairs and other community-focused events - bringing together creative individuals and art lovers from our local communities and beyond.
CONTACT US
Tel: 01691 657575
email: willowgalleryoswestry@gmail.com
Website: willowgalleryoswestry.org
Facebook: Willow
Address: 56 Willow Street, Oswestry, Shropshire SY11 1AD
Gallery/Café open Tues-Sat 10am-4pm (3.30pm café last orders)
Closed: Sundays/Mondays/Bank HolidaysEditor: Hilary Moorcroft
November 2026
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WILLOW GALLERY Oswestry 
