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Theme: Art

Oil Painting Masterclass

New year, new start.

Why not start the year by getting creative and come along to the Oil Painting Masterclass at Siop Soar!

Oil Painting Masterclass with artist Gus Payne.

1 – 4pm, Tuesday, 16th January, 2024.

or

6 – 9pm, Tuesday, 13th February, 2024.

(Please note: There is a choice of two different days. The session is during one day only).

A bilingual oil painting session, where you will create a painting in the style of the artist, following him step by step over the course of the session.

Welsh speakers and learners of all levels are welcome at this session.

Registration essential

£5 – Materials included.

Please email siop@merthyrtudful.org

Artistiaid Y Lle Celf 2023

Enjoy a special film documenting some of Wales’ most exciting contemporary artists!

Culture Colony journeyed across Wales to interview artists that presented work at Y Lle Celf at the 2023 Eisteddfod, including Llŷr Evans, Ruth Jên Evans and John Rowley.

Here’s a chance to learn more about their creative processes and to revisit their work.

Gypsy Makers Tour

Launch at Tŷ Pawb 19th January 2024 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm

The Romani Cultural & Arts Company (RCAC) is excited to announce the launch of the latest edition of their ground-breaking Gypsy Maker project. Gypsy Makers is a new touring exhibition that will feature work from artists that the RCAC has commissioned since the inception of the Gypsy Maker initiative in 2014. The Gypsy Makers touring exhibition will show new and existing artworks to mark the tenth anniversary of the Gypsy Maker programme which has been fully supported by the Arts Council of Wales.

Gypsy Makers Exhibition Tour Schedule 2024

Tŷ Pawb Market Street, Wrexham, Wales, LL13 8BY FREE ADMISSION – Monday to Saturday 10am – 4pm Exhibition: 20th January 2024 – 30th March 2024. Exhibition Launch 19th January 2024 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm

g39, Oxford St, Cardiff, CF24 3DT, FREE ADMISSION – Wednesday to Saturday 11am – 5pm Exhibition: 10th April 2024 – 25th May 2024

The Riverfront, Kingsway, Newport, NP20 1HG, FREE ADMISSION – Monday to Saturday 10am – 5pm Exhibition: 5th June 2024 – 27th June 2024

Image: Emergency Artefact (toy), 2023. Metalised polyethelene rescue blanket and cotton thread. Photo and © Daniel Baker

Cymru Fenis 10

Disability Arts Cymru commissioned work by 6 disabled, deaf or neurodiverse artists as part of the ‘Cymru Fenis 10’ programme – 2 on a small scale, 2 on a medium scale and 2 on a large scale.

Enjoy a taste of the artists’ work here!

Giles W Bennett – Nature’s Algorithms

A short video compilation from R&D shows at The Star of The Sea (Borth) Chapter Arts (Cardiff) and The Place (Newport).

The soundtrack is also a compilation of the multichannel audio that accompanies the Immersive Installation piece

Solid State, Liquid Dreaming

A transformative art installation and 48-hour livestream.

ice.strong.melting
paper.air.displaced
breath.water.never mixing
wax.solid.state
sphere.liquid.dreaming
time.forty.eight

Within solid there is liquid within liquid there is gas. The present contains the past laying pathways towards the future. This installation is that connection it is time itself. 2880 minutes of constant transformation painfully slow and positively fast vulnerable to external forces but aren’t we all. A window. Transitional. Entwined.

https://www.julieupmeyer.com/solid-state-liquid-dreaming/

Spherescape – Gold

First in a series of experimental videos translating three-dimensional environments to two-dimensional videos, which can in turn be projected onto three-dimensional surfaces. This video was made by placing a gopro camera on a solar-powered rotating base, which allowed it to spin on its own inside the created environment. Created while artist-in-resident at the Gyeonggi Creation Centre, South Korea.

‘Propinquity – An Evolution’ Landlines Studio

Landlines Studio
Propinquity – An Evolution
2021
brick, charcoal, plaster, slate, soil, soot, stone, rust, copper oxide ink, acrylic, spray paint, botanical matter and stitched elements on canvas and silk.

Acting as a visual timeline, this work commemorated 100 years of the house using the entire pigment collection and 100 stitches. Seven months ago, the painting was buried horizontally alongside the pond, half above the soil, half below. Rebirthed, it has returned to its initial place within 2020 exhibition.

As part of the Bodfa Continuum exhibition at Plas Bodfa
9-24 April, 2022

History, storytelling and contemporary art collide in this fusion exhibition occupying the entirety of Plas Bodfa. This immersive exhibition exists in the space between fiction and non-fiction, real and imagined, yesterday and tomorrow.

Mae hanes adrodd straeon a chelf gyfoes yn gwrthdaro yn yr arddangosfa ymdoddedig hon sy’n meddiannu Plas Bodfa. Bydd yr arddangosfa ymdrwythol yn bodoli mewn gofod ffuglennol a ffeithiol, y gwirionedd a’r dychmygol, ddoe a heddiw.

More about the show : plasbodfa.com/bodfa-continuum

Joskin Ripper by Helmet

The surfaces of Plas Bodfa become a three-dimensional theatre for the skateboarders of Helmet.

Exploring the walls, floors, thresholds and doorways, they play with gravity, time and space.

Included as part of ‘Sui Generis – the Possibilities of a House’ at Plas Bodfa, Anglesey, Wales 2019.

www.plasbodfa.com/sui-generis

Kialy Tihngang – Fetissoes

23.10.23 – 6.11.23 I’ll be using my Digital Residency to present research for my recent body of work, Fetissoes, where I speculate that a group of enslaved African people jumped overboard their captors ship into the ocean and combine European maritime technology (the master’s tools) with fetishes (African religious objects with magical powers) to create […]

Philippa Brown – horror-scapes: a sticky and haunting fever dream

9.10.23 – 20.10.23 During the residency with Arcadecampfa, I will be creating and posting a short film ‘sketch’ everyday for 12 days between 9th-20th October, a daily Horror-scape. I will use the platform to investigate lo-fi filming and editing, performance and sound through the lens of folk horror, psychedelia and oracles. This may or may […]

Gweni Llwyd

15.9.23 – 29.9.23 I’m excited to be using the Arcade/Campfa digital residency space to build a bug. This bug may be an experimental multi-layered, digital Frankenstein, who will nest on the cargo site – sharing its secrets, stomach contents and multiplying itself. I aim to investigate ideas of ‘bug’ as an unexpected problem as well […]

Owain Train McGilvary & Taluah Thomas – TriTRItri

8.9.23 – 23.9.23 TriTRItri, the word tri (3) repeated in different registers. This work is a kaleidoscopic exploration of queer imagery, sound and spoken word using The Three Crowns (a gay pub that was destroyed by fire in 2014) as it’s springboard. The video is a result of various discussions and sharings between McGilvary and […]

Stones Stories, Norman Payne

These stories are inspired by Norman Payne’s site specific installation at Plas Bodfa. They are written and performed by Norman Payne as a mocumentary to accompany his installation.

Void Fraction – a journey through limestone.

Very proud to share our collaboration with the Geological Society of London. We were invited to present Void Fraction as a masterclass, an example of how artists can engage with geoscience.  “Finding your Artistic Voice in the Natural World” shows ways in which geology and art can be creatively combined. This is part of their Geoscience Everyday Competition leading up to Earth Science Week 2023.

North Wales Africa Society

North Wales Africa Society (NWAS) is a friendship and community organisation based in Gwynedd, North Wales, UK.   NWAS is a collective of members of the African diaspora community, and people who have interest in Africa.

Gwerin

An exhibition by Queer People of Colour

Curated by Neo Ukandu

Featuring: Vidhi Chaudhary, Dainty Dafana, Ophelia Dos Santos, Tammy, MÉlanffro Madziva, Ali Malik, Isra Mohamed, Tuck Muntarbhorn, Sabine Wilson-Patrick

You can check it out from Fri-Sun for the rest of September at Dyddiau Du!

Ymddiriedolaeth Ynys Enlli Cyf

Bardsey Island is a wild Welsh island located 2 miles off the Llŷn Peninsula. With a rich wildlife, dramatic coastline and fascinating history, there is plenty to discover from a day trip or a holiday on this unique island.    

Aildanio 2022-23 Arts Prize Exhibition

Dydd Sadwrn 16 Medi 2023 – Dydd Sul 5 Tachwedd 2023
10:00 am – 4:30 pm

Bydd ‘Aildanio’, yr arddangosfa Gwobr Gelf Celfyddydau Anabledd Cymru (CAC) yn teithio’n genedlaethol ar draws chwe oriel yn dechrau yn g39 Caerdydd o 18fed Tachwedd 2022.

Gwenllian Davenport – Afoniaieth

3.7.23 – 14.7.23 Afoniaeth is a made-up Cymraeg word, a blend of two Welsh words: afon + barddoniaeth // river + poetry. Within her online residency, Gwenllian will explore her local rivers’ language through sound, film, photography, print and sculpture. Questioning how we might translate a river and discover its afoniaieth. Gwenllian Davenport is a […]

Plas Bodfa Projects

Unique, inclusive, creative projects with roots on the Isle of Anglesey with branches throughout Wales and the world, combining contemporary art and storytelling with the sciences and an entanglement with all aspects of our surroundings.

Julie Upmeyer

Julie Upmeyer is an artist and initiator. Deep-diving into a particular material or process, she creates sculptures and objects, performances and installations.

Neale Howells – Artist

(Warning – Strong language from the start) Neale Howells has an exhibition at MOMA Machynlleth – Bring the Story Inside – April 22nd to 10th of June 2023. This film catches Neale in his studio for a quick chat….

Learn more about Bring the Story Inside here

Sara Wheeler

Dr Sara Louise Wheeler is a freelance poet, littérateur, and artist. She writes the column ‘O’r Gororau’ (‘From the borders’) for Barddas Welsh poetry magazine, where she explores topics relating to marginal experiences, including disabilities; she also writes a bi-monthly column for Golwg360. Sara undertakes consultancy work on accessibility and is a member of numerous committees and networks relating to equality and diversity; she is also Vice-Chair of the central literature committee for the National Eisteddfod of Wales, is a member of the Executive committee for PEN Wales, and also the Board of Governors for Ysgol Morgan Llwyd. Sara works in and around North-East Wales, providing workshops relating to creativity and wellbeing. Sara won the DAC ‘Creative Word’ (Welsh medium) competition 2022 with her poem ‘Ablaeth Rhemp y Crachach’, which she subsequently translated and published in her bilingual pamphlet of poetry ‘Trawiad/ Seizure’. Her artwork ‘The sands of hearing time’ is featured in the DAC Arts Prize exhibition ‘Aildanio’ and is currently on display in Tŷ Pawb, Wrecsam. Sara is currently preparing a children’s book called ‘The Silver Princess’, based on the story and artwork she recently published in ‘Cylchgrawn CIP’; she will publish Welsh and English versions of the study, with original artwork.

Socials: @serensiwenna (Twitter ag Instagram) Saralouisewheelerneeedwards ar Facebook.

View some art by Sara here

Exhibition: The Living Room

28 April – 11 May

Faadi/Y Stafell Fyw/The Living Room is an intergenerational photography and fashion project sharing intimate family settings within Somali Welsh homes. With an emphasis on celebration, the project includes images of young local models in bridal wear, community members modelling cultural clothing such as Hidyaah Dhaqan and Diraq, brotherhood and soft masculinity and the traditional dance of Ciyaar Somali. 

 Around 40-50 community members participated in this photoshoot, either as models, dancers or providing materials and traditional clothing. This is the first intergenerational project which showcases the Welsh Somali experience and life with an emphasis on the young women in the community. The revival of the traditional dance Ciyaar Somali in the past year has been an excellent opportunity for younger community members to connect to their cultural heritage, and as a wedding and celebratory dance, we thought it would be important to document this very important moment for the Welsh Somali community in Cardiff.

This project is a collaboration between Asma Elmi, founder and creative director of Al Naeem, and Young Queens. Al Naeem is a magazine which centres on Black and Muslim fashion, photography and art. Young Queens is an arts group for young Welsh Somali women from Cardiff, founded by Hayaat Women’s Trust, with funding support from Heritage Lottery.

Credits

Directed by Asma Elmi

Executive Producer: Izzy Rabey

Photographer: Yasmin Jama

Videographer: Saif

Stylist & Set Design: Asma Elmi, Haida Hamidi

Cast: Young Queens, Marwah Ahmed, Nadia Nur, Muna Ali, Mohamed Hassan, Kamal Yussuf

Thank you to: Al Naaem Magazine, Young Queens, Hayaat Women’s Trust, Heavenly Boutique, Blossom Bay Events.

Open Wednesday – Saturday, 12 – 5pm

Exhibition: Assignments 23

9 June – 8 July

This Summer we are delighted to present ‘Assignments23’ at Ffotogallery, in what will be its first time travelling to Wales. Organised by the British Press Photographers’ Association (BPPA), this flagship exhibition will feature the best in British press photography selected from an open call. This follows its initial ten day run at London’s Bargehouse on the Southbank in May.

We are excited to host the ‘Assignments23’ exhibition here at Ffotogallery, not only as it’s the first time being exhibited in Wales, but also as it showcases photographs that will play a vital role in helping us to remember and reflect on some of the key events to have taken place in the UK in the last year.

“The BPPA are delighted to bring ‘Assignments23’ to Wales for the first time following on from our London exhibition. It is our aim to take the photographs on from their initial showing to other parts of the UK, giving them a wider audience and we’re delighted to be working with Ffotogallery to bring this incredible representation of British press photography to Cardiff.” – Chair of the BPPA Paul Ellis

The exhibition comprises photographs submitted via the ‘Assignments23’ open call, with selections made by a panel of jurors including Phil Coburn (Daily Mirror), Talar Kalajian (Agence France-Presse), Matthew Fearn (The Telegraph), Alan Crowhurst (Getty Images) and Freddie Sloan (Hello Magazine).

Open Wednesday – Saturday, 12 – 5pm

River of Time – Sean Harris

Animation artist Sean Harris creates a large installation over a river in the Clwydian Hills, bringing the ancient history of the region to life.

Spike Blackhurst – Against All Odds

I have created these sculptures to increase awareness of how emotional abuse can affect our internal organs. Emotions are often very abstract to try and describe. However, by allowing them to be viewed in a physical form offers a more inclusive audience and a deeper understanding, than just reading or listening about such trauma. Within this collection of sculptures, four have been forged from metal and connected with Raku fired clay, reflecting the strength and fragility that these materials can offer. After thirty years of working with metal, this is the first time I have incorporated clay into my work, this has been a challenging journey, filled with new discoveries and will now become part of my sculpture process for the future. The fifth sculpture “Intuition” is forged entirely from steel to demonstrate the strength we have inside of us. With the gut often named ‘the second brain’ or ‘the voice to listen too’, it translates as our intuition.

Tanchwa – Mary Lloyd Jones

Mary Lloyd Jones paints Tanchwa – Explosion, inspired by Yr Ysgwrn, the poet Hedd Wyn’s family home, in preparation for a major exhibition of her work.

Photography Courses

Sub Sahara Advisory Project are excited to offer free photography courses through the Jamii Project, for wellbeing in Afro-Carib communities in Wales. 

The courses are open to all for ages 14+ and include 6 sessions every other Saturday, starting from 6th May, 11am-1pm, in YMCA Plas, CF24 3AG.

There is no requirement for previous photography experience but we ask there is commitment for the full 6 sessions.

There are limited spaces, so please get in touch asap with your contact information and secure your space via email: rehana.jaffer@ssap.org.uk

Catherine Taylor Parry

To welcome the Spring, our artist of the month is painter Catherine Taylor Parry, whose colourful paintings bring a sense of joy, excitement and serenity to the viewer.

We asked Catherine a few questions about her work. Below are her responses…

Enjoy some of Catherine’s art here