art


VITALISTIC FANTASIES Elysium Gallery, Swansea Sat 4 June-Sat 16 July


Postponed by – what else? – the pandemic, Vitalistic Fantasies is finally landing in Swansea. An expansion of the similarly delayed 2020 BEEP


Biennial (covered previously in this very spot), this exhibition showcases works from the British Contemporary Painting collective, inspired by one particular phrase from art critic Isabelle Graw’s 2018 book, The Love Of Painting. “One key reason I call these fantasies ‘vitalistic’,” Graw writes, “is because they imaginatively assume qualities of living beings such as subjectivity, liveliness, and animation for dead material. In a vitalistic fantasy, human attributes – like self-command, will, and energy – are projected onto lifeless material”.


Painting


Hailed as one of the most “glamorous and radical” in her field today, Graw occupies that rarified space of symbiosis between critic and creator in the


way that John Berger radically altered the way we view western art in the 1970s. Both Berger and Graw deem viewership itself to be an active part of art: what we see in a painting gives it a life of its own, contributing to the artist’s own vision and the signs of life they leave behind in every brushstroke.


It’s an especially interesting idea today, where more actively participatory mediums hold sway over popular culture; paintings, by comparison, are traditionally static and passive. The BGP group’s response to Graw’s ideas endeavours to challenge this by presenting us with visual vessels we can ‘project’ ourselves onto. Vitalistic


previewed on Sat 4 June at 7pm; an online artist talk follows at the same time on Wed 13 July.


Fantasies will


Admission: FREE. Info: elysiumgallery.com HANNAH COLLINS


be


TEMPORARY ATLAS: MAPPING THE SELF IN


THE ART OF TODAY Mostyn, Llandudno Sat 25 June-Sun 25 Sept


Supported by


Wales, Fondazione Imago Mundi and Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche, Temporary Atlas: Mapping The Self In The Art Of Today is an exhibition that looks to question the traditional ideas of mapping by turning


Arts Council


of drawing maps on its head. The brainchild of Mostyn’s director Dr Alfredo


the practice


Atlas features multiple artist- cartographers, including Jeremy Deller, Sanford Biggers and Kiki Smith – as well as three specifically commissioned


Cramerotti, Temporary


namely Manon Awst, Adéolá Dewis and Paul Eastwood.


Welsh artists,


Temporary Atlas looks to sharpen our understanding of individual experiences.


the exhibition look inwards at topics like identity, spirituality, emotion, the subconscious and mental sensations. Maps articulate the


The pieces within


through their use of mapping to communicate with the society we exist within.


artist’s own


Admission: FREE. Info: mostyn.org EMMA WAY


30 experiences


COLLOQUY Craft In The Bay, Cardiff Bay Sat 11 June-Sun 7 Aug


Curated by Mary Ann Simmons, Beate Gegenwart and Kye- Yeon Son, this exhibition’s title means conversation, and has communication and discussion at its centre. Whether to share thoughts or


Colloquy features pieces including 3D works, wall pieces, jewellery and intricate makes. A partnership between UK and Canadian artists, all with an interest in metal, it brings together a culturally diverse group of individuals united by a love of metalwork. Having shared their ideas amongst each other for the past two years, each artist has a unique style.


create future opportunities,


The artists which feature within the exhibition include the Gower Peninsula’s Beate Gegenwart, whose work with copper, steel and brass focuses on themes of belonging. Mary Ann Simmons is a more complex box maker, and creates three-dimensional art pieces using scoring. Sculptures by Rauni Higson depict the mountains of Snowdonia, while Llyn Peninsula- based contemporary silversmith Yusuke Yamamoto’s work derives from everyday observations.


Admission: FREE. Info: makersguildinwales.org. uk


EMMA WAY


EAST IN COLOUR Oriel Davies, Newtown Until Mon 28 Nov


Capturing her identify, her unapologetic self and the neglected words of her community, freelance photographer and Cardiff University student Ashrah Suudy’s project East In Colour looks to focus on colour and imagery through the focus of Somali


her mother’s wardrobe. Suudy’s garment focus is prolifically juxtaposed by the grey skies and urban backdrops of Butetown, Cathays and Grangetown to signify her heritage. Suudy, born and raised in Cardiff, was given her first film camera by her older brother and now hopes to portray a more diverse, contemporary Welsh culture.


garments, adopted from


Her first short film, 2021’s In A Room Full Of Stages, was commissioned by BBC Arts, BBC Cymru Wales, Ffilm Cymru Wales, and the Arts Council Of Wales, in which she combines her interest in film with the sisterhood within Cardiff’s Somali community. Spoken word poetry, such as the touching We Are The Roots That We Seek is also featured in a show which hopes to allow Black and Muslim girls


within contemporary culture. to see


Admission: FREE. Info: orieldavies.org EMMA WAY


themselves


CREFFTWR Turner House Gallery, Penarth Until Sun 12 June


From


shoemaking, from critically endangered crafts to


basket weaving to


current, popular crafts going, this exhibition of heritage crafts looks to bring traditional forms of craft to


handmade original pieces next. Personal accounts of the artists that made them will also be included.


the forefront by displaying


These people keeping traditional forms in Wales alive have also experienced the changing landscapes of craftsmanship – something photographer Dewi Tannatt Lloyd helps to preserve with his commissioned series of craft studio photography.


exhibition highlights the work of Heritage Craft members based in Wales: Welsh crafts at the very centre of Welsh life, notably slate craft, wool crafts and pottery.


The


Presented by The Turner House, The Heritage Crafts Association and made possible by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Heritage Crafts work closely with individuals who grieve the loss of traditional craft skills and wish to sustain them for the future.


Admission: FREE. Info: turnerhouse.wales EMMA WAY


the most


Nkanga Otobong


Bryan Lavelle


Paul Croft


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