Beautiful and dramatic ‘Shapes and Shadows of the Ridgeway’ were captured by writers, sculptors, artists and photographers in the Swire Ridgeway Arts Prize exhibition held in Uffington on 18 and 19 April. The annual exhibition, which celebrates the spirit of the Ridgeway and the landscape that surrounds it, attracted more than 120 entries and 300 visitors this year.

The overall Swire Ridgeway Arts Prize winner is Katherine Smith from Oxford who wrote an acrostic poem and an evocative personal account of witnessing the sun crossing the Uffington White Horse during the days of the Winter Solstice titled: ‘21st Celebration: A Winter Solstice’. Katherine visited on a cold and sunny day at the end of December and describes ‘a celebration of the awesome power of the Sun at its scarcest moment of the year.’

Lucy Stopford, chair of the judges wrote: ‘Katherine Smith’s written entry is a brilliantly evocative contemplation of time and place. The writer fluently describes the magic of the prehistoric landscape and the 'open secret' of the white horse revealed through the changing shapes and shadows cast by the sun during the course of a day.

‘Set within in the context of a married lifetime and over a hundred generations who have cared for the Neolithic carving, we are invited to share the writer's sense of wonder at passage of time through the turning of the earth and renewal of the seasons. A joyful and thoughtful piece that captured the judges' imagination.’

Winner of the Wall Art category is Emma Coleman-Jones from Oxford for ‘Brightwell Barrow from Castle Hill, impending storm’ a charcoal and chalk drawing on blue-grey paper. Robin Danely, the judge, commented: ‘This sublime piece has incredible presence despite its small scale and spare mark-making. It conveys both delicacy and power in its atmospheric rendering of the shapes and shadows of the Ridgeway, and I was especially moved by the dramatic beauty of this stormy day.’

Winner of the Photography category is Sophie Matthew from London with her photo ‘Winter Sunrise by White Horse Hill’. The judge, Hedley Thorne, commented: ‘By balancing the warmth of the morning sun against the deep, cool contours of the landscape, Sophie Matthew creates a masterful play on contrast. Rather than centring the White Horse, she allows the hill’s unique and natural geometry to take centre stage, letting the iconic figure emerge subtly as it ascends toward the Ridgeway in a beautiful harmony of light and form.’

Winner of the Sculpture category is Karen Vogt from Faringdon, Oxfordshire, with her stone carving ‘Circling Kites’. The judge, Martin Smith, commented: ‘I selected the stone carving, with birds, and perhaps the shadows of birds, because it was both well executed and seemed to be closest to the theme of the exhibition.’

Oxford author Syvia Vetta, who judged the Writing category chose Katherine Smith’s poem and non-fiction because it transports the reader to a place on the Ridgeway in a particular moment in time as well as the theme of ‘Shapes and Shadows’.

People’s Choice. Visitors to this year’s Swire Ridgeway Arts Prize exhibition were invited to select their favourite work of art. The runaway winner was ‘Barrow Stone (Lambourn)’ by Amanda Bates from Kingsclere near Newbury. Her black and white detailed and atmospheric picture of trees growing over sarsen stones at Lambourn Long Barrow was very popular.

All entries submitted to the Swire Ridgeway Arts Prize will be available on the Friends of the Ridgeway website https://ridgewayfriends.org.uk/swire-ridgeway-arts-prize-2026/

The Swire Ridgeway Arts Prize has been organised by the Friends of the Ridgeway since 2017. There are four categories, open to professional and amateur artists, photographers and writers: wall art of any medium; photography; sculpture including glass and ceramics; writing in prose and poetry. Every year there is a new theme to reflect the Friends’ objective to celebrate the spirit of the Ridgeway.

Further information

Wendy Tobitt, representing The Friends of the Ridgeway

wendy.tobitt@btinternet.com