THREE cheers for Huddersfield Art Society! For many years, their annual exhibition at Huddersfield Art Gallery was dominated by traditional landscapes.

But this year, there is something for everyone, with much imagination, plenty of different subject matter, and a host of varied materials and techniques.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating, they say, and at the time of writing, sales were up on last year, with another three weeks to go.

Trevor Ferguson’s rather curious oil composition, Quatre Chevaux (Four Horses) uses a Citroen 2CV and two real galloping horses, with Mont St Michel in the background.

David Shearing with his 631,312,748 (watercolour) takes a comical look at numbered cows and in another painting shows a group of sheep keeping each other warm.

Andrew Jenkin has won the Hamer Award with his Autumn Gold watercolour, much more impressionistic than the majority of his work, like one of his medieval series, Sir Guy of Warwick and the Dragon of Longwitton (mixed media).

Ralph Shephard usually goes for biggish works, and his acrylic, Houses on the Beach at Criccieth is quite a remarkable effort, with sparse subject matter, but beautifully painted. He uses a female model well in The Dissenters’ Chapel (acrylic) and Mona Rae at the Cliff House.

Maurice Lockwood’s contributions include a nicely detailed watercolour of Sheep Shearing at Watendlath (watercolour).

For those who like their paintings local, Kin Wah Lee has painted an impressive view, looking down Fitzwilliam Street to the old gasometer and the newer Galpharm Stadium (oil), while Chris Fallowfield brings plenty of realism and colour to his canal scene, Approaching Turnbridge (oil).

Chris also excels with his Beech in January (oil), a tree with lovely shapes and colour.

R E Hainsworth’s Man on Stilts (acrylic) is another of the unusual subjects I have referred to – a dark seascape, imaginatively handled with the lonesome figure.

Alicante is the chosen subject of Keith Harris, with judicious colouring for his Roofscape (oil).

Hazel Hirst has two interestingly handled portraits – Resting (Biro) and Celia (watercolour) and brings a neat satirical touch to the Choir, HMVC by providing featureless faces and putting the accent on the bow ties and white shirts.

Jill Moynan’s darkish, characterful Ruth and Joanne Matthews’ Girl with the Pearl Ring are among several other good portraits in the exhibition, and Carol Wood’s Figure Study (acrylic) also merits a mention.

Keith Docker’s Look At Me has some splendid facial expressions as an admiring crowd besiege their hero.

This exhibition is well worth a visit and runs until November 14.

r AFTER 30 years tutoring the Co-op sponsored art classes in Huddersfield, Betty Thornton is still doing a good job, if their latest exhibition at Huddersfield Parish Church is anything to go by.

Betty herself excels in flower paintings and her Protea with Mimosa and Arum Lilies are excellent studies, though May Elliott’s Rose and Lily of the Valley are running them close.

Rita Wilton’s Driving the Flock is a snowbound scene, well handled, while David Aldridge shows two walkers negotiating the well-known Packhorse Bridge, Marsden, in more pleasant weather conditions.

There are a number of successful animal paintings, including Sidney Holgate’s The Stag, and Barbara Taylor’s Border Collie and Cocker Spaniel.

Joyce Woodward’s Anthony and Cleopatra is a strong and well presented image, and I liked her Golden Girl portrait too.

The architecture of Thelma Gardiner’s Colmar, Alsace, is nicely captured, while her Jars, probably from the same location, exude atmosphere.

Carole Hepworth, with her sunflowers, divided into four sections, contributes a lively and attractive canvas.

There has to be a Castle Hill and Emley Moor mast, of course, and Barbara Sykes tackles the two landmarks in an interesting way, with accompanying verses.

There’s the inevitable Venice, too, with Pat Thorpe’s descriptive work giving us the gondola sailing scene.

It’s a pity, in a way, that not all the pictures are framed.

This situation can easily be overcome, without too much expense, by working to certain sizes and buying ready made frames..

The exhibition runs until November 14.