CARTOGRAPHIC IMAGINARIES: INTERPRETING THE LITERARY ATLAS OF WALES
Swansea Museum
Sat 6 July-Sun 8 Sept
Twelve English-language novels set in Wales, from Lloyd Jones’ fantastical Mr Vogel to Alys Conran’s tragic Pigeon, are explored through a series of commissioned artworks as part of the Literary Atlas Of Wales project. The interactive online project aims to investigate how literature set in Wales contributes to the understanding of the country and its history. In the commissioned brief, the 12 artists were encouraged to “play with traditional notions of cartographic mapping, and to explore the possibilities of visually communicating the relations between page and place, and well as books and maps”. Each creator takes a diverse approach to this invitation, showcasing the infinite ways of interpreting a printed work or knowing a particular place.
Measuring The Distance by Rhian Thomas is one of the pieces created for this exhibition. Responding to Border Country by Raymond Williams, Thomas takes the semi-autobiographical story of the Price family’s life in a small Welsh village and conveys the power of human attachment to a given place. Thomas’ background is in architecture, rather than fine art, resulting in a unique style that bridges the gap between design and creation. Through the tearing and layering of historic maps, she creates a work that is carefully curated yet wonderfully abstract. The multidimensional craft includes a train line, symbolising the novel’s main character Matthew, whose struggle to distinguish between the current awareness of his environment and the romanticised memories he holds, is a key theme of the book.
Each artist featured in this exhibition has a completely different style, the result of which is a truly contrasting collection of ‘cartographic imaginary’ Wales. Tin-plated cast bronze, photography, sketchbooking, and sculpture are just some of the mediums that will feature in Cartographic Imaginaries. The exhibition will be at Swansea Museum for two months before moving on to Caernarfon’S Galeri, then the Senedd in Cardiff Bay at the beginning of next year. Cartographic Imaginaries is set to be an intriguing and imaginative experience, showcasing a collection of widely distinctive styles.
Admission: free. Info: 01792 653763 / www.swanseamuseum.co.uk
words Lee Lottie Urquhart