STRABANE'S University of the Third Age is delighted to announce the new art exhibition, featuring the very best in local artwork, which is now on display within the Alley Theatre until July 4 – with their official launch to be held on June 20 at 7 p.m.

The University of the Third Age, affectionately called the U3A, is excited to be exhibiting within the Alley, allowing members the opportunity to share their artwork to a larger audience for the first time and hopefully show potential members what the U3A has to offer them.

For people unfamiliar with the U3A, the group has a long history, dating back to 1927 and humble origins in Toulouse, France. The U3A is now an international movement, with groups spread across the UK and Ireland. The U3A's main aim is to encourage its members to self-managed a U3A branch for older people who are no longer in full time work, providing opportunities for their members to share learning experiences in a wide range of interest groups and to pursue learning not for qualifications, but for fun.

The Strabane branch draws upon the knowledge, experience and skills of their own members to organise and provide interest groups in accordance with the wishes of the membership, hence their recent desire to develop their artistic skills and plan an exhibition within the Alley. Across the whole network the U3A study over 300 different subjects in such fields as art, languages, music, history, life sciences, philosophy, computing, crafts, photography and walking.

Adrian Beattie, curator at the Alley's famous gallery stated, "The U3A have brought together a superb eclectic exhibition, with pictures ranging from landscapes, music, architecture and portraits. This hardworking local community group has produced a beautiful array of images, which one could almost say is like an artistic diary, following the life and travels of the artist over the previous few years."

For further information about the exhibition, which has some pieces of work available to the public to buy, please contact the Alley Theatre on 028 7138 4444.