Celebrating 300 years of Bowling in Barnes

The fruits of a collaboration between the Bowling Club and Barnes Artists will be on show as part of the fourth OSO Easter Art Fair, at the Arts Centre 17-21 April 2025.  As usual, the Fair will showcase the work of a selection of some 30 talented artists,  featuring a diverse selection of work across different genres and media. This year's show will have a special panel, sponsored by the BBC, featuring a selection of works highlighting the Club. 

One of the these works, 'Celebrating History' by local artist Michelle Hawes, is being featured in the OSO's advance publicity for the show.

The collaboration began in 2023, when the Club was first looking for ways to commemorate the tricentenary of bowling in Barnes, planned to be celebrated in 2025. A number of local artists responded to the BBC's invitation to come along and see whether the Club might inspire their artistic creativity.  The relationship flourished during the 2024 season, when a number of works were produced, including David Pearce's painting  of the coats and hats in the Clubhouse. This was chosen as the main image of the November 2024 Barnes Art Fair, and rapidly found an appreciative buyer.

Although the OSO shows usually include groups of works by individual artists, the OSO was happy to agree to the proposal for a joint BBC/BA panel featuring works with a common Club theme. The BBC agreed to sponsor the panel, seeing it as part of its Tricentenary objective of promoting the Club and green as a major and historic community asset. 

 A number of images of the Bowling Club, including those by Michelle and David,  will also be featured in a forthcoming book of works by Barnes Artists due for publication during 2025.