More than 250 works by amateur and established Welsh artists are on display at the National Library of Wales until September 2025. No Welsh Art can tell the story of the country through visual art, but most importantly, it debunks the myth that there is “no art” in Wales. This country
At a time when the public continues to call for a permanent national art gallery in Wales, the famous statement that “there is no such thing as Welsh art” has been roundly rejected in an imaginative exhibition at the National Library of Wales.
More than 250 works by beloved Welsh artists such as Gwen John and Kyffin Williams have been placed alongside works by unknown and amateur artists at the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth, in an attempt to tell the nation’s story through visual art and to destroy the myth that there is “no art” in this country. Art historian, collector and exhibition curator Peter Lord said the comment made by Llewelyn Wyn Griffith, then chairman of the Arts Council of Great Britain’s Wales committee, in 1950, reflected the creativity of the period. He described it as “absurd” but its impact remains.
Lord began collecting Welsh art in the 1980s, securing not just works that could be considered high-level art but works that told the story of Wales.
“I created my collection because we don’t have a national gallery of our art history. That makes us quite special in Europe. “Almost every country, even the small states, has a gallery of this kind,” he said.
The exhibition, which runs until September, features 150 works from his collection and 100 from the library’s collection.
“What we’re trying to do with this exhibition is to create a model for a national gallery of Welsh historical art,” Lord said.
Fans of the mountain landscapes of Kyffin Williams and the fragile nature of Gwen John’s work will find paintings to enjoy in this exhibition. There is also a portrait by Williams of the writer Llewelyn Wyn Griffith. But there are also many works by “ordinary people” such as Thomas Rain of Llanidloes, who carved figures and inscriptions into stone tablets, which will be new to visitors.
The exhibition is not shy about showing racism towards Welsh people in art, such as cartoons of poor people riding goats. It also shows how some Welsh people chose to embrace and promote this image, as depicted in a pub logo painted around 1835. A particularly interesting section of the exhibition includes three paintings from the Depression era of the 1930s, including ‘Coal Tips’ by the artist Archie Rhys Griffiths, which shows three women collecting lumps of coal.
It also focuses on protest art, such as ‘Tŷ Haf’ by Peter Davies, which depicts a house burning down after an arson attack.
‘It was a very powerful and political painting,’ said Lord. ‘It sums up what the whole exhibition was trying to do, which is to ask questions about ourselves, our relationships with other nations and our future aspirations. ’
The exhibition also includes rarely seen works in the past, such as a self-portrait by the artist Edward Owen, painted in 1732. It was lost after it was exhibited in Cardiff in 1927, but it was resurfaced after an American dealer took an interest in it. In fact, it had the name of the country of Wales on the reverse.
Many people have joined the Lord’s call for a national gallery. Welsh poet John Barnie, from Abergavenny in Monmouthshire, said: “Wales urgently needs its own national gallery. It is the only solution. Without it, our art will remain an invisible treasure.”
Sculptor and craftsman David Petersen, from Saint Clears in Carmarthenshire, expressed his disappointment in the visitors’ book: “Why has it taken so long for this magnificent exhibition to open?”
The exhibition, titled “No to Welsh Art”, will run until 6 September 2025.
source: https://www.koha.net/tr/index.php/kulture/ekspozite-qe-hedh-poshte-mitin-se-nuk-ka-art-ne-wales