OSR Projects CIC, Somerset

Welcome to @OSRProjects , home of @OdArtsFest - thank you so much for joining us! ⁠ ⁠ For all of our new followers out there, here's a little introduction to what we're about:⁠ ⁠ Firstly a bit of context about West Coker - in his 1957 ‘Annals of West Coker’ Matthew Nathan claimed that:⁠ ⁠ “Nothing much ever happened at West Coker. No great man was born or lived or died there. No battle was fought near it nor did any constitutional crisis have its rise in its neighbourhood. It was never the centre of great industry nor the source of wide spreading trade. No relic of saint nor monument of art nor scene of natural beauty ever attracted visitors to it.”⁠ ⁠ In this place where nothing much ever happened, much of the ‘nothing’ happened here at the Old School Room.⁠ ⁠ Built in 1850 it was only a school for 26 years, and for the next 147 years this has been a place of meeting, gathering and learning. Christmas parties, wedding receptions and discos, baby weighing, theatrical performances, milking demonstrations for school children, coffee mornings and jumble sales. Talking, laughing, swearing, fighting and drinking tea.⁠ ⁠ This is where we come together.⁠ OSR Projects is an acronym of Old School Room. ⁠ From our base in West Coker, Yeovil, Somerset we have produced ambitious, playful and socially-engaged art projects since 2011, in the South West and further afield.⁠ ⁠ Founded by artist Simon Lee Dicker and graphic designer Chantelle Henocq, we place people at the centre of artistic activity through creative partnerships, community collaboration, and diverse modes of engagement.⁠ ⁠ @OdArtsFest @OSRProjects ⁠ @community_clay_ ⁠ [ID: a wide-angle view of a narrow road running alongside a stone building with a small courtyard and metal fence - this is the Old School Room / OSR Projects]

!OPEN CALL NOW CLOSED! Next Wednesday I'm doing a super-local After Session at the New Inn at West Coker in Somerset, hosted by OSR Projects. There will be short presentations by Simon Lee Dicker, Chantelle Henocq and Susie Clark, and we now have space for ONE MORE ARTIST to give a really relaxed 5 minute presentation on their work. The artist presentations will run ahead of an hour-long relaxed Q&A that I'll be doing about all things art-world related, followed by a book signing. No need to send info or images - just email [email protected] and we'll select a name at random Deadline END OF SATURDAY! Yes, that’s tomorrow. As a thank-you, we can offer you a free guest ticket (you obvs won't need a ticket).

🚀🎨🐂 🎉Listen up West Country people - I'm coming for you! 🎉🐏🖼👩‍🎨 My After Sessions West Country tour is starting this Sunday - and a number of venues are already sold out. For each event* we'll have presentations by local artists, an extended Q&A during which you can ask me ANYTHING, then time for a drink and a chat, and a book signing for How to Enter the Art World After. PLEASE book if you plan to come to one of these - they're all small events (some as few as 25 places) and I won't be selling tickets on the door. *Bruton is different - that one's a panel discussion with Polly Morgan, Boo Saville and Nicola Turner. It's going to be really good.

As part of the ‘After Session’ with Hettie Judah hosted by OSR Projects, Simon Lee Dicker along with Chantelle Henocq and Susie Clark will be giving a short insight into his current work. Simon Lee Dicker’s practice is rooted in an ongoing inquiry into landscape and the traces, material, historical, and emotional, that human activity leaves on the natural world. Working across ceramics, installation, moving image, writing, drawing and digital 3D modelling, he explores matter in states of flux and the permeable boundaries between post-industrial terrain, ecological processes, and the more-than-human world. In 2011 Simon co-founded OSR Projects with Chantelle Henocq: an artist-run organisation that connects people through artist-led activity, exploring new ways to see, hear, feel and think. From OSR Projects’ base in rural Somerset, they produce ambitious, playful, socially and critically-engaged art projects, placing people at the centre of artistic activity through creative partnerships, community collaboration, and diverse modes of engagement. Where: The New Inn, West Coker, BA22 9BD When: Wednesday 20 May, 11am-1pm 👆 Tickets available in bio 👆 Tickets £5-£7.50  Artwork titles: Rudera - of the rubble, 2026 (film still) The five sisters, 2026 woodfired ceramic press mould with Cornish granite, Lothian shale and Coker wood ash When a thought becomes like a wire in the mind (SE), 2026 Pencil on paper @simonleedicker @osrprojects @odartsfest @hettiejudah @thenewinnwestcoker

As part of the ‘After Session’ with Hettie Judah hosted by OSR Projects, Susie Clark along with Simon Lee Dicker and Chantelle Henocq will be giving a short insight into her current work. Susie Clark is a curator and creative producer with 25 years’ experience across non-profit, private and commercial art worlds. Based in Somerset, she supports artists in presenting work to new audiences in unconventional spaces. Susie recently curated the group shows ‘Uncertain Objects: part 1’ in a derelict Frome shop, and ‘boxwalking’, across a disused stable and beer hall in rural Somerset. She is a non-executive Director of OSR Projects CIC. Earlier in her career, Susie worked at Kate MacGarry and Sprüth Magers in London, and curated a private art collection across London and New York. She has an MA in Curating from Goldsmiths. Where: The New Inn, West Coker, BA22 9BD When: Wednesday 20 May, 11am-1pm 👆 Tickets available in bio 👆 Tickets £5-£7.50  Photo credits: - Installation view ‘Uncertain Objects, part 1’ 2024 featuring works by Martin & Youle @martinandyoule and Annabel Pettigrew @annabelpettigrew ; photo: Tom Hull @tomhullphoto   - Installation view ‘boxwalking’, 2025, featuring works by Charlie Youle @ch.youle , Simon Mathers @simathers , Amala Finch @amalastudio.space , Nina Murdoch @nina.murdoch ; photo: Susie Clark @clarksusie   - Installation view ‘boxwalking’, 2025, featuring works by Martin & Youle @martinandyoule and Charlie Duck @charlie.duck ; photo: Susie Clark @clarksusie @osrprojects @odartsfest @hettiejudah @thenewinnwestcoker

As part of the ‘After Session’ with Hettie Judah hosted by OSR Projects, Chantelle Henocq along with Simon Lee Dicker and Susie Clark, will be giving a short insight into her current work. Chantelle Henocq is a Somerset-based artist and designer with over 30 years’ experience in the design industry. In 2024, she shifted her focus away from working on the computer to concentrate on ceramic sculpture, creating playful pieces inspired by nostalgia, childhood treats, and salty bar snacks. Her work combines illustrative forms with hand-painted lettering, blending humour and craftsmanship. Before founding OSR Design, Chantelle built extensive experience at leading London graphic design agencies, working with a broad range of clients including Mappin & Webb, TK Maxx, Royal Mail, Guy’s & St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, Walkers, and Durex. After relocating from London to Somerset, Chantelle co-founded OSR Projects CIC in 2011, an artist-led organisation supporting contemporary visual art. Alongside her studio practice, Chantelle continues to work as a graphic designer, specialising in the cultural sector and collaborating regularly with galleries and artists. Where: The New Inn, West Coker, BA22 9BD When: Wednesday 20 May, 11am-1pm 👆 Tickets available in bio 👆 Tickets £5-£7.50  @chantellehenocq_ceramics @osrdesign @osrprojects @odartsfest @hettiejudah @thenewinnwestcoker Photo credit: @katydocking

Join us for An ‘After Session’ with Hettie Judah hosted by OSR Projects.     Where: The New Inn, West Coker, BA22 9BD When: Wednesday 20 May, 11am-1pm 👆 Tickets available in bio 👆 Tickets £5-£7.50  Free tickets available for those who need them email: [email protected]   Join Us For An Informal, Intimate, Daytime Event Built Around Art, Conversation And Community.   The morning session will open with three short informal presentations from OSR Projects directors, each of whom will share their recent and current work @simonleedicker , @clarksusie and @chantellehenocq_ceramics   Hettie Judah then takes a seat at the centre for an open, hour-long conversation, taking questions about the art world, about her work, about navigating a creative life. Bring whatever’s on your mind.   Hettie will also be selling and signing copies of her new book, How to Enter the Art World…After— a myth-busting guide for artists whose lives are complicated and human. “Vital guidance for all artists. Empowering, encouraging and enlightening.” — Robert Diament, Talk Art   About Hettie Judah: Hettie Judah is a writer and curator. She is a regular contributor to The Guardian, Frieze and The Times Literary Supplement, and writes a monthly column for Apollo magazine. Between 2016 and 2024 she was the chief art critic for the British daily newspaper The i. She was the curator of the acclaimed Hayward Gallery touring exhibition Acts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood. @hettiejudah @thenewinnwestcoker @osrprojects

Announcing The After Sessions: part 2 I'm coming West (well, to part of it - I'll be back in June for Cornwall…) Links to book all sessions in bio. Please book in advance, capacity for all events is limited and tickets are going fast. The After Sessions are small, local, events held in the spirit of my new book 'How to Enter the Art World After' - each sessions starts with presentations with local artists, followed by a relaxed hour-long Q&A seated in a circle, ending with time to chat over refreshments and a book signing. Every event will be different - different art, different artists, different questions, even different formats. How to Enter the Art World After is out now, published by @hoxtonminipress If you'd like to host an after session in your studios/ art centre/ pub, in the UK or beyond, please email: [email protected] 17 May 2-4pm, @drawingprojectsuk , Trowbridge 17 May, 6-8pm @bathartdepot , Bath 19 May, 10-12am @silkmillinfrome , Frome 19 May, 7-9pm @makersyardsomerset , Frome 20 May, 11am-1pm @osrprojects , West Coker 20 May, 7-9pm @boleegallery , Bruton 21 May, 10-12am @thedaylightcollectivesw , Exeter 21 May, 7–9.30pm @field.system , Ashburton 22 May, 2-4pm @theburtonatbideford at Bideford 22 May, 7-9pm @thegoodspacedevon , Dawlish 23 May, 5-7pm @kit.form , Jamaica Street Studios, Bristol 24 May, 2-4pm @sandyhillarts , Corfe Castle #howtoentertheartworld #howtoentertheartworldafter #theaftersessions #myartafter #artists

🎺 We’d like to welcome our new non-executive director for OSR Projects CIC. Meet Al Kennedy, a designer, business consultant and arts practitioner based on the Somerset Levels. Trained at the Royal College of Art and also with an MBA from the University of Exeter, he has spent 25 years building creative agencies, training companies and social art projects across London, Bristol and Somerset. ⬆️ Link in bio to read more about Al and what he’s up to. @_alkennedy Thank you to everyone that applied - we very much appreciate your support and interest in the future for OSR Projects 🙏

We had a few days in Cornwall and saw the epic immersive moving image work by @emilijaskarnulyte now showing @tatestives until 12 April 2026.

🙌 Thank you to all the wonderful creative people we have had the pleasure of collaborating with this year 🍾 Artists, curators, writers, visitors, volunteers and friends. We may have spent months hatching plans, weeks building exhibitions, or just sat next to each other at a talk, or shared a laugh and some food together… we love you all and wish you the best for 2026! 📷 mixed bag some @katydocking 😉

👋 Never ‘goodbye’ with OSR Projects just, see you later! After seven years on our board Bob Gelsthorpe has decided it is time to move aside and give someone else the chance to work with us. It has been a total pleasure hatching plans and making things happen with Bob, and we really appreciate all that we have achieved thanks to his knowledge, generosity and hard work. Thanks to his support OSR Projects is now stronger that it has ever been, with four editions of Od Arts festival under our belt, (the first one co-curated with Bob) and regular pottery workshops that are going from strength to strength. Bob is keeping himself busy as producer ad Ffotogallery, Cardiff and we wish him all the best with all his creative endeavours. Big love OSR Projects Team 😍