Llwyn Celyn Residency 2016-2018

Llwyn Celyn is a 15th-century medieval hall house, situated in the Llanthony Valley in the Black Mountains of South Wales. It was first seen by the Landmark Trust over a decade ago, when it was in a dangerous state of disrepair. (www.landmarktrust.org.uk/llwyncelyn)

I was one of four Artists in Residence commissioned by The Landmark Trust and the Peak arts organization to produce work in response to the renovation of the site. I made visits to Llwyn Celyn every 1-2 months to make sketches, collect some of the discarded material, meet with site workers and volunteers, and I took part in a workshop with local schoolchildren. I also went on walks around the site and recorded what I saw and heard through the seasons.

As well as showing a portfolio of sketches and studies, I produced 2 large-scale drawings on paper.

I conceived ‘House’ to resemble one of the old richly-layered interior walls, to make visible some of the history of Llwyn Celyn that I imagine is held within it. I used multiple images, including rubbings of farm machinery, image-transfers of 19th-century ledgers, and anonymous initials and names carved into the cowshed door.

For ‘Map’, I wanted to evoke the wider landscape in which Llwyn Celyn has existed for almost 600 years. Inspiration came from the local walks I took through the seasons, where I could see the buildings from above. Past testimonies and poetry about the Ewyas Valley are incorporated into the piece, along with my own notes from visits throughout the residency. I was also fascinated with the historical field names and uses, researched from old tithe maps of the area.

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