Work from the last ten years of Eisteddfod Gold Medallists goes on display at Wales Millennium Centre during its tenth anniversary year. Striving, as ever, to showcase the best of Wales to the world, Wales Millennium Centre is to host a special exhibition as part of its tenth anniversary year, showcasing the work of the National Eisteddfod of Wales’ Fine Art and Craft and Design Gold Medal winners. Fittingly entitled ‘Aur’ (‘Gold’), the diverse exhibition, on display 18 Jan – 16 March 2014 at Wales Millennium Centre and neighbouring Craft venue, Craft in the Bay, will offer a true celebration of art in Wales at the beginning of the 21st century.
The exhibition is a collaboration between Wales Millennium Centre, the Maker’s Guild and the National Eisteddfod. While the work of ten gold medal award winning fine-artists will be on display at Wales Millennium Centre, Craft in the Bay will also exhibit the craftwork of ten gold medallist makers, in what is set to be a truly memorable, high calibre exhibition.
Of particular note is this year’s Denbighshire and District National Eisteddfod Gold Medallist for Fine Art, Josephine Snowdon. Josephine’s work was first exhibited at Wales Millennium Centre during the Graduate 2012 exhibition, and it was through this exhibition that Josephine first heard of Y Lle Celf (The Art Space), the open exhibition for visual arts at the National Eisteddfod, where artists can submit their work, the best pieces being selected by the panel. Submitting her work to the open exhibition this year, Josephine went on to secure the coveted Gold Medal prize.
A considerable number of the artists taking part in the ‘Aur’ exhibition have gone on to collect further honours following their achievement in the Eisteddfod. In Fine Art, some have gone on to win the Hunting Art Prize and the Jerwood Painting Prize. Others have been shortlisted for the Artes Mundi international art prize. Several, including Bedwyr Williams and Peter Finnemore, have represented Century.
Wales at the Venice Art Biennale. A number of Gold Medal winners for Craft and Design have represented Wales at SOFA (Sculpture, Objects, Functional Art + Design) in the USA. Many have also regularly represented Wales at the international art fair for contemporary objects, Collect, at the Louise Miles-Crust, Head of Programming, said: ‘We’re very pleased in our tenth year to be working on this unique new exhibition with The Makers Guild in Wales and the National Eisteddfod of Wales.
It’s a first to have these artists and makers showing together in one exhibition, and we’re incredibly excited by the high calibre and range of work that we’ll have on display. Aur truly does showcase the very best of what Welsh arts and crafts has to offer to the World.’
“Is there a better way to celebrate a tenth anniversary?” said National Eisteddfod Visual Arts Officer, Robyn Tomos. “I’m certain that the public will be thrilled by such an exhibition and artists, both emerging and established, will be inspired to participate in the next Eisteddfod’s Open Exhibition.”
The Eisteddfod Open Exhibition, Y Lle Celf, is considered to be one of the pinnacles of the visual arts calendar in Wales, aiming to honour excellence and celebrate the commitment, vision and innovation of practitioners of contemporary visual arts in Wales. Whilst Y Lle Celf offers a window to the world on the visual arts activity in Wales today, the National Eisteddfod has hosted an ‘Art and Crafts’ exhibition, since 1865 – it is older than the regalia of the Gorsedd of the Bards. The Gold Medals are amongst the few national accolades awarded to Wales’ artists and makers.
The exhibition will be on display 18 Jan -16 March at Wales Millennium Centre and Craft in the Bay.
