From the perky 6ft wooden flower sculptures that sprouted overnight in pouring rain, to this year’s unusual ‘Picture Postcard’ exhibition on the top floor of the old mill gallery, there is interesting new artwork to see at every step of the way up. And the variation in styles makes it accessible to everyone from enthusiastic young children just developing their eye to unsuspecting tourists drawn into Green Dragon Yard by curiosity at the colourful spectacle, to the regular collectors who know the high standard of art to expect there.

The flowers by Anna Poulton and Stuart Whitehead were introduced in time for the Knaresborough in Bloom competition and lightened the serious work of judging.

Inside, going to the opposite extreme from last year’s ‘Bigger Picture’ show (literally!), the new exhibition, ‘Picture Postcard,’ takes an affectionate dig at today’s ‘label’ culture, encouraging the viewer to consider good art before finding out who the artist is. Signatures on all the 6x4-inch postcard-sized originals are hidden, making them intriguingly anonymous.

The mini-works have been delivered from all over the country. They include drawings, little oils, 3D reliefs, watercolours - every medium imaginable and an equally wide-ranging subject matter.

Choosing a little ‘collectable’ offers all the fun of the lottery, as you just don’t know if you’re picking the work of a celebrated painter with longstanding reputation or an exciting new graduate, a former Slade student or the leader of a 70s rock band - who knows?

It’s all very democratic from the artists’ perspective too, giving them all the same chance alongside each other. Unframed and unmounted, the pieces of art are all the same modest price of £39.50, so the old saying could not be more appropriate - ‘you pays your money and you takes your choice’!

For those with a penchant for larger works, gallery owner Alison Breeze is showcasing the work of West Yorkshire artist Norman Eastwood and his two sons, Zachary and Sebastian, throughout the summer months. Between them they, like the Art Apartment, cover a wide spectrum of styles. Zach’s modern sculptural ceramics complement the contemporary straight lines of his brother’s abstract paintings, while their father’s richly oil-painted waterlilies bring grandeur to any wall - as well as an occasional twinkle of humour, too, with his adorable ‘Norm’s Modiglianis’ and luscious apple paintings in ornate trompe l’oeil frames.

Adding local interest, another Art Apartment treat is a selection of hitherto unseen paintings by Adam King, last year’s artist in residence at Knaresborough Castle.