Studio 6

Rhiannon Gwyn

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A series of craft work in focus from Welsh ceramic makers

Series curation: Wendy Lawrence
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Rhiannon was raised in Sling near Bethesda – a slate quarrying village in North Wales, a place that has, and continues to strongly influence her creative practice. Since graduating in 2019 from the BA Artist Designer: Maker course at Cardiff Metropolitan University, the crafting of her materials has been recognized by the National Museum of Wales when they acquired her work ‘Y Nefoedd yn Toddi i’r Tir’ (The Heavens Melt Into The Land) after it was exhibited last year in their ‘Rules of Art’ exhibition and at the National Eisteddfod of Wales ‘Y Lle Celf’ (2024) exhibition. Other achievements include winning the Emerging Maker award at the International Ceramics Festival in Aberystwyth (2023), being selected for the British Ceramics Biennial ‘Talent Development Programme’ (2022) and awarded funding by ‘Wales Arts International’ (2023) to go on a research trip to the U.S. Her first solo show exhibited at the National Slate Museum showcased the work produced as part of her research and development project funded by the Arts Council of Wales ‘Create’ fund (2024).

‘I’m inspired by the visible layers of various colours, textures and materials in my home landscape of Eryri in addition to the non-visible, subconscious layers of history, cultural heritage, memories and language. By working with local materials, most of which are a by-product of processes used by local industries and organisations, such as, Welsh slate discarded by the local quarry, gorse ash from Eryri National Park’s gorse clearance on the Carneddau mountains and clay found in nearby riverbanks, I have been exploring how materials can act as identity markers; influencing how we view ourselves and the world around us, through the imprinting of emotion onto our surroundings. To capture these layers I explored the full potential of the earth’s raw pigments by making glazes which I use in my work and also by subjecting the slate to metamorphosim.’