THIS weekend marks the return of the popular Lexden Arts Festival.

At the heart of the week-long event, which takes place at St Leonard’s Church in Lexden Road, Colchester, is the art exhibition which will once again feature works by a number of popular East Anglian artists.

They include weaver Katie Green, acrylics from Dawn Hall, wood turning by Dennis Hales and photography by Richard Hayward.

As well as the centre-piece exhibition, festival organisers have arranged four evenings of entertainment, which starts off with the supremely talented Hannah James, folk musician, singer and innovative clog dancer.

Much more than a concert, her new show, Jig Doll, uses innovative stage techniques and technology to create a totally fresh context for traditional dance. Each performance sees Hannah build music with voice, loops, live instruments and a specially-built dance platform incorporating where various textures and surfaces turn her feet into percussion instruments.

Finally, she brings the individual elements together as she dances and sings to the music she’s created.

She appears at the church tomorrow, April 30.

Then on Wednesday, May 4, writer James Russell is giving a light-hearted informative lecture about two of the area's most acclaimed artists.

Called Eric Ravilious and Edward Bawden: An Artistic Friendship it follows the pair's lives from their first meeting at the Royal College of Art in 1922 to their careers as professional artists centred around Great Bardfield near Braintree.

James curated last year's Ravilious exhibition at the Dulwich Picture Gallery, and wrote the accompanying book. He also has a new book coming out The Lost Watercolours of Edward Bawden, published by Mainstone Press, and Tim Mainstone is coming with copies of all James' Ravilious and Bawden books for sale.

Over the final weekend Hugh Lupton, internationally acclaimed story-teller, is making his 3rd visit to the Festival on May 6, this time with a song and story cycle which he has developed especially for Lexden called The Dreaming of Place.

Then finally on the Saturday, May 7, The Suffolk Villages Festival Soloists will be performing with a concert of Baroque music called 'Oh! the Sweet Delights of Love' with Claire Tomlin and Emma Bishton (sopranos) Louise Jameson (bass violin) and Peter Holman (harpsichord).

Tickets for all the evening events are £10 and all start at 7.30pm. For more details, or to book tickets, go on-line at www.lexdenartsfestival.org.uk