ACCIDENT OF BIRTH
A unique and moving photographic Oxhibition at Salisbury Oxfam Gallery
January 7th – 29th 2010

Salisbury based photographer Clare Allen Crook is holding an exhibition of photographs entitled Accident of Birth documenting her work with the Sri Lankan people following the tsunami in 2004.

Clare has worked as a photographer in London, New York, Afghanistan, Italy, Africa and Bermuda. In 2004, Clare was caught up in the tsunami in Sri Lanka and decided to remain there to make a photographic record of the aftermath and subsequent rebuilding process. On her return to the UK she became co-founder of a charity called Rebuilding Sri Lanka, which has remained operational ever since, providing sustained support and rehabilitation to the coastal villages and communities affected by the tsunami.

Clare says: “It is an accident of birth that separates us from the millions of people living in acute poverty throughout the world and the answer is not a complicated one. They need our help and we can give it to them. It is my hope that this exhibition will generate an understanding and compassion for a scarcely known country and the serious plight of its remarkable people.”

All sales and proceeds raised by Accident of Birth will go to Rebuilding Sri Lanka and Oxfam International.

Rebuilding Sri Lanka is a registered charity (No. 1109622). For more information on its work, visit www.rebuildingsrilanka.org.uk

The shop is packed with customers; presents, festive food, Oxfam Unwrapped gifts and much more are flying off the shelves. Christmas time is almost here!

This of course means a couple of changes to our usual opening hours:

***Late night opening***
Thursday 17th December – 9am – 7pm

Wednesday 23rd December – 9am – 5pm
Christmas Eve – 9am – 1pm
Christmas Day – CLOSED
Boxing Day – CLOSED
Sunday 27th December – CLOSED
Monday 28th December – CLOSED
Tuesday 29th December – 9am – 5pm
Wednesday 30th December – 9am – 5pm
Thursday 31st December – 9am – 5pm
New Year’s Day – CLOSED
Saturday 2nd January – 9am – 5pm
Sunday 3rd January – CLOSED
Monday 4th January – 9am – 5pm

… then open as usual (Monday to Saturday 9am – 5pm)

Very Merry Christmas to you all!

We are pleased to announce that there will be a new Oxhibition from 21st November at Salisbury Oxfam’s Gallery.

Since we opened our gallery in April 2008, we have been contacted by many local artists, so this prompted us to have this wide ranging exhibition, we will be show casing the works of more than 15 artists until Christmas.

Also, please join us for “Meet the Artists” day, on Saturday 21st November between 11am and 2:30pm, where you will have opportunity to enjoy a variety of art works with drinks, nibbles, and meet the exhibitors.

Our latest Oxhibition is now open in the gallery above Salisbury Oxfam bookshop. It will be open from the 10th October through until the 12th November.

There will also be a chance to Meet the Artists and get a further insight into the work at a special event on Saturday 17th October between 10am and 4pm.

Victoria Maxwell

Victoria has spent much of her life travelling down to South Devon, exploring the dramatic coastline, whether it be rock pooling on a hot summers day or battling along the coast path against the sea mist and horizontal rain in the depths of winter.

‘This is where my inspirations lie – my bolt hole and sanctuary from the stresses of everyday life. My paintings respond to the physicality of the landscape that inspires me and try to portray the crashing, dramatic beauty which fills all of our senses.’

She graduated Nottingham Trent University with a BA (Hons) in Fine Art and she spent a year travelling and working through New Zealand, Australia and Asia. On returning home she began working with various art organisations and for a council in their Art Development Office running art workshops and youth club activities.

Victoria has lived in Salisbury for five years and currently teaches Art and Design at Bishop Wordsworth’s School. She is also the school leader for a number of expeditions across the world.  Along with groups of students she has travelled to Morocco, Peru and Africa where they have done hugely rewarding charitable work as well as exploring the countries and cultures.  Spending time in such dramatically diverse landscapes has continued to fuel her passion for capturing the world around her.

‘It is so wonderful to have the opportunity to draw inspiration from different climates and cultures and I know that all these experiences inevitably filter into my work.’

For the moment though, her artistic heart remains firm to the coastal paths of South Devon and she is delighted to have the opportunity to share some of her work with you.

Odyssey is a group of textile artists who met whilst studying embroidery and stitched textiles at East Berkshire College in Windsor. Formed in 2001, the group organises exhibitions to showcase the work of its members, as well as meeting regularly to provide support and encouragement to each other.

In autumn 2003, we booked our first exhibiting venue, signed the contracts and committed ourselves to putting on a joint exhibition. As well as scary, it was exhilarating, a lot of fun – and we haven’t looked back since!
The strengths of our group lie in our shared history, our willingness to support each other, and our diverse approaches to textiles. By continuing to meet regularly and offer critical support to each other, we hope that we will be able to continue to develop our skills and expertise in order to explore further the expressive potential of textiles.

Members: Ann Beare, Ewa Exley, Judi Fairbairn, Elizabeth Hinkes, Jackie Langfeld, Caroline Leonard, Pennie Marsden, Jacqui Nash, Nicky Ransom

Items from the new Oxfam Unwrapped are now available to buy from Salisbury Oxfam. Christmas may be a little way off, but Unwrapped gifts are perfect for other occasions, such as Birthdays, too!

We thought, this year you might like to find out a little bit more about how we spend the money used to purchase Oxfam Unwrapped gifts to help those that need it most. So we’ve tracked down a video from Oxfam GB on just how the small gifts that make a big difference work:

If you can’t make the video work click here to read about the process instead.

This year, there are also some special edition Oxfam Unwrapped gifts featuring Flanimals created by Ricky Gervais.

Flanimals don’t live on our planet, but we’re sure they would want to help Oxfam Unwrapped sort it out, a gift at a time. Unfortunately, the Flanimals can’t really do that much. But these gifts will help people living in poverty to change their life. Rather than pay for one specific item, these gifts fund areas of Oxfam’s work such as HIV/AIDS education or advocacy and campaigning.

To find out more about these extra special gifts you can click here.

What can I do?

Shopping – Pick up an Oxfam Unwrapped catalogue and pick a gift in either Salisbury Oxfam store. You can also pick your gift online here, and either order it to be sent to you, or then go and buy it in our stores.

Flanimals are created by Ricky Gervais and illustrated by Rob Steen. To find out more about Flanimals visit www.flanimals.com Flanimals are © Ricky Gervais. Illustrations © Rob Steen. Character art from the book properties entitled “Flanimals” and “More Flanimals” Courtesy of Universal Studios Licensing LLLP. All rights reserved.