A new tourist trail devoted to local artists is being launched this weekend with an open day from 10am - 5pm this Sunday - Mother's day.

Studios that can be visited on the open day include Alan Watson in Rendall, Sam MacDonald in Kirkwall, Ian Urquhart in Orphir and Pam Farmer in Sandwick.  The trail also includes island artists Edwin Rendall on Westray, Doug Muir on Sanday, and Leila Thomson's studio in South Ronaldsay.

The work that can be seen will certainly find wide appeal, including paintings, tapestries, drawings and photographs that take much of their inspiration from local land and seascapes and metal pieces that feature a variety of fish.  Much of this work has already been praised by visitors to Orkney and it is believed that the trail will therefore attract many additional visitors and result in increased sales for the artists involved.

The Artist's Studio Trail follows in the footsteps of the highly successful Craft Trail established by the Orkney Marketing Scheme in 1996 and will also allow visitors to view work in progress as well as buy finished work or commission a special piece.

One of the founding members of the trail, Pam Farmer, who has a photographic gallery in Sandwick said, " I am extremely pleased that the Orkney Marketing Scheme continues to actively work to heighten awareness of the breadth of artistic talent that exists within Orkney.  The introduction of the Artist's Studio Trail will encourage visitors and local people alike to seek out, and hopefully purchase, artists' work that has hitherto only been seen at occasional exhibitions.  I welcome this initiative."

She continued "We hope that by holding our open day on the Sunday coinciding with Mother's day, there will be a lot of people out and about looking for something interesting to do.  I would encourage people to pick up an Artist's Studio Trail leaflet from the Tourist Board office before Sunday, to enable them to make the most of the trail."

Louise Swanney, marketing assistant at Orkney Enterprise, explained, "Visitor surveys have consistently told us that the trails are seen as very popular attractions.  But although there are a number of artists studios open to the public, visitors are not generally aware of these and we expect the trail to not only provide this awareness but also significantly increase visits and resulting purchases."

Further information on the Artist's Studio Trail can be found in a leaflet that has been produced with assistance from the Orkney Marketing Scheme and is available from the Tourist Board offices in Kirkwall and Stromness.