Art of regeneration

The Art of Regeneration exhibition focuses on how the local area has been transformed from a rural idyll to an industrial powerhouse, before entering a period of post-industrial economic decline during the 1980s that communities, institutions and politicians have sought to counter. This, together with the way attitudes and pressures on the environment have changed from the demands of unbridled exploitation to the need for sustainable development and conservation prompt the question: what is the art of regeneration?

We asked children at Parc Lewis school what changes would you like to see? They said…

‘In Ponty I think there should be less cars and more animals.’ McKenzie
‘I want it to be more trees for oxygen so we can breathe.’ Isabella
‘I think, people should plant more trees in Ponty Park. ‘ Jake
‘Knock down buildings to make more space because it is all squished.’ Lacie
‘Use no petrol and diesel and if teleporting is real, use that.’ Jacob

The Art of Regeneration is a new exhibition at Oriel y Bont, inspired by the changing environmental and economic fortunes of Treforest and the South Wales valleys.

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Storyboards by the Crafty Cuppas alongside drawings by Ernest Zobole

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A postcard by Jake from Parc Lewis School

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Walking the remains of colliery spoil heaps

To look toward what the future might hold for the region and what the changes taking place mean to people, artists Nichola Goff, Sharon Magill and Natalia Dias have engaged with a variety of local community groups and organisations: Artis Community, The Crafty Cuppas, Pontypridd Museum, Rhondda Cynon Taff Creative Writing group and children from Parc Lewis Primary School. While creating their own objects and images using plants found growing on former slag heaps and printed with pigment derived from mining waste, the community have also chosen artworks from the University of South Wales Permanent Collection that reflect the scars of the industrial past.

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The Pink Shop Treforest (2007) by Anthony Stokes

“I chose the ‘Pink Shop’ because I remember going in there as a child. It looks just the same now and my two daughters work in there.” Trudy Coombs

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Miners (Detail) (1984) by Nicholas Evans

“Dark – shows what a miner’s life was really like. I like dark things.” Cheryl Davies

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Who’s afraid of Kasimir Malievich? (2005) by Islwyn Watkins (1938-2018)

“I chose this piece because it inspires debate. And we just proved it.” Chris Hart

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Crafty Cuppa storyboard workshop with Sharon Magill

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Storyboard pages by Cheryl Davies

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Ceramics workshop with Natalia Dias

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Rosa Branca (2015) by Natalia Dias

Natalia Dias was born in Portugal. She was winner of the Gold Medal in Craft at the National Eisteddfod in 2010. “My fascination with naturally occurring geometric phenomena of repetitive growth patterns in plants and crystals is reflected in the symmetry of line and form that is often found enveloping my figures.”

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Cyanotype by Sharon Magill

Sharon Magill teaches digital story-telling at Cardiff University. She studied fine art at Cardiff School of Art and the University of South Wales.

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Succession Detail (2019) by Nichola Goff

Nichola Goff is an artist and printmaker based in the Forest of Dean and interested in the human condition connected to place, freedoms and community. She is a recent alumni of University of South Wales completing an MA Arts Health and Wellbeing in 2018.

Art of Regeneration?