Two weeks ago, I went to a social media seminar (courtesy of the Open Studios network and WarwickTweetUp) and it seems it’s all about getting our news ‘OUT THERE’ and not in a space-rockets/aliens kind of way although that might extend our audience and bring in some unusual green visitors to our forthcoming Artweeks Christmas Exhibitions.

It was clearly worthwhile heading up to Rugby College for the day, and not just because there were Cadbury’s Roses on the tables. It gave me a push into writing an idiot’s guide to Social Media for Artweeks artists (I hold my hands up to being the idiot in this case) which you can read at http://www.artweeks.org/sites/default/files/manual/What%20is%20social%20media%20-%20for%20artists.pdf and one of the artists who came with me set up an Artist facebook page the following day (Jim Robinson the artist) and Lo! And Behold! he sold a picture within 24 hours. RESULT!

I was also encouraged to blog Artweeks news… and so, after a half-term braving the hurricane in the welsh valleys, I find myself setting pen to paper (metaphorically) to get cracking: all very seasonal as we’re in the thick of bonfire season.

And it seems as good a day as any to begin because this morning I picked up the latest Oxford Times with the November Limited Edition magazine included. Within its pages, there’s a cracking three page feature article on artist Jane Tomlinson who has produced a new quirky map of Oxford in pen and ink which publishes this month. It’s fascinating – full of interesting nuggets of information on the city’s heritage jostling with Alice in Wonderland’s white rabbit and Inspector Morse’s Jaguar and the original will be on show at her Eynsham venue on 23rd-24th. I recommend you grab a copy (I’ve ordered two as it’ll fit in a stocking just perfectly) and, like Lewis Carroll'a Alice I'm curious: just as I spotted rowing boats and bikes galore, what will you spot on Jane's map that's particularly pertinent to you?

Esther, Festival Director