News

Today OFA launches a new arts project in collaboration with Oxfordshire Artweeks. We invite you to send us your artistic responses on the theme of The Phoenix, rebirth and resurgence. As the world slowly emerges from lockdown and the arts begin a period of renewed activity, we want to know what it means to you and how it prompts you to respond creatively. We can accept any medium as long as your entry can be Read more

We are grateful to our friends at Savills, long-standing supporters of OFA, who will be the headline sponsors of this year’s online festival, OFA Virtual 2021. This year the summer season of events will embrace dance, music, animation, film, theatre and discussion. Simon Hope, Head of Global Capital Markets at Savills said “The creative and performing arts are extremely important to the people of Oxford, particularly so in a year such as this. Oxford Festival Read more

Four artists participating in Oxfordshire Artweeks (1-23 May 2021) are producing exclusive short films about their work and inspiration and giving us a behind-the-scenes peek into their studios and what they’re currently working on. The Oxford-based artists we are featuring in our 10-minute film shorts are Elaine Kazimierczuk landscape painter, Becky Paton mosaicist, Piotr Gargas sculptor and Vital Peeters glass artist. Their films will be broadcast across May and June as part of #OFAvirtual.

Oxford Festival of the Arts has announced that historian, author and broadcaster Dr Janina Ramirez is to become OFA’s Honorary Patron. Dr Ramirez, who lives in Oxford, is a researcher, lecturer and course director at Oxford University and is well known to television audiences for her many documentaries. Her most recent series ‘Raiders of the Lost Past’ has just aired on BBC2. Dr Janina Ramirez said, “’I’m honoured and delighted to become an Honorary Patron Read more

On March 11, together with Magdalen College School we hosted ‘How Resilient is the Creative Industry?’ to explore the future for the arts and culture. MCS alumnus Jim Hawker assembled a stellar panel of artists and experts who didn’t pull their punches in exploring the post-pandemic and post-Brexit landscape for the creative industries. Our expert panel were: Dame Harriet Walter actress, John Caird  writer and stage director, Stephen Boxer actor, Tom Piper artist and theatre designer, John Read more

Today as part of #OFAvirtual we launch our Art in Nature creative initiative and it’s open to everyone to take part.

As promised, we are getting back to you regarding OFA 2020. In the current circumstances, the most responsible thing to do is to postpone this year’s event. However, we will time-shift this exuberant celebration inspired by the Field of Cloth of Gold to 2021. It’s a case of delayed gratification! You can expect all the wonderful performances, events and experiences we had planned for this year, you just have to wait a bit longer to Read more