Wivenhoe Art Trail is on the map with culture and crafts

The twice-yearly event has grown more vibrant and more popular each year, with more than 40 artists welcoming visitors into their homes and studios to share their work with the world.

Guests have often travelled from as far as Kent and Norwich to Wivenhoe for the event, but this November trail saw one visitor come all the way from Edinburgh to see the art in action.

Event - Alison Stockmarr is one of six artists who started the trail about eight years ago (Image: Newsquest) The trail featured work ranging from ceramics, sculptures, paintings, textiles and jewellery for people to enjoy or purchase as they walked the charming streets of the town in the winter sun.

Artist Alison Stockmarr, 61, is one of the trail’s six organisers and enjoys exploring collage and recycling in her work.

Alison said: “Art is a small word for a very broad subject— it can be so many things.

“I think for young minds and all ages, it is really good to see the variety and to be inspired and empowered.

“It’s a really good opportunity for people to see art in action, and so many people travelled from all over specifically for the trail and stayed the night in Wivenhoe.

“I think we are well and truly on the map.”

Artists - The art trail had a wonderfully diverse range of work for people to enjoy (Image: Newsquest) The trail showed Alison’s unique collage work at Venue 3, with Margie North’s ‘en plein air’ acrylic paintings at stop 10 and Dante’s Ceramics and Laura Fletcher’s Textiles at another.

Alison said: “The trail is so well-rounded. It’s about sharing our practices, and it’s about real people making a real living doing something that’s really important to them.

“The town has an awful lot of pride at having this lovely trail on our doorstep.”

The next Wivenhoe Art Trail will run in May 2025.

For more information, and to find the artists and their work, visit wivenhoearttrail.com.