30/7/2010

As part of Cyfarthfa Castle’s centenary celebrations, an exhibition of the work of two of Britain’s greatest artists, including local man Penry Williams, will be on display ffrom this Sunday.

Selected works of Williams and Joseph Mallord William Turner will be on show to August 31 in Cyfarthfa Castle Museum and Art Gallery’s wedding room.

The Museum and Art Gallery was primarily founded to publicly display the work of Merthyr Tydfil’s greatest artist, Penry Williams.

Born in 1802 at 3 Bridgefield Terrace, Merthyr Tydfil, Penry was the son of a house decorator and used to work with his father decorating the homes of the ironmasters.

One day while working for the Crawshays, Penry was caught by William Crawshay II as he sketched sheep on one of the window shutters. Instead of being angry that Penry had painted on the shutters, Crawshay identified a huge talent in him and as a result paid for Penry to attend the Royal Academy in London, from which he graduated from in 1824.

At that point critics proclaimed him to be as good an artist as Turner, which is why today he is known as the Welsh Turner.

Turner himself was known to be an English Romantic landscape painter, watercolourist and printmaker. He was considered a controversial figure in his day, but is now regarded as the artist who elevated landscape painting to a fame rivalling history painting, and is commonly known as "the painter of light".

While not suggesting Penry was a good as Turner, this exhibition will be the first time that the general public have had the opportunity to compare and contrast both men.

On display will be 10 paintings on loan from the Tate Gallery, London, covering all stages of Turner’s career, including two sketches from Turner’s time passing through Merthyr Tydfil in the 18th century; these will be exhibited alongside 20 Penry Williams pictures from Cyfarthfa Museum’s own collection, including one of his masterpieces Procession to the Christening, and one Penry Williams painting on loan from the National Museums of Wales.

Heritage Minister, Alun Ffred Jones said: “I am delighted that this exhibition is opening in Merthyr Tydfil. Turner is one of the world’s greatest painters and visited Wales on a number of occasions. Just earlier this month his watercolour sketch of Flint Castle, in north Wales, sold for more than half a million pounds at Sotheby’s.

“This exhibition will be a fantastic opportunity for people in the Valleys, and indeed across Wales, to see some of his beautiful works, including some of Merthyr itself. At the same time it will be interesting to compare them with the work by one of Wales’s greatest painters, Penry Williams.

“This exhibition is another example of the Welsh Assembly Government’s commitment to supporting and promoting our Wales’s rich cultural heritage.”

There will also be daily 15 minute gallery talks at noon every Monday to Friday throughout August, as well as weekly watercolour classes and a family colouring workshops course. “

The free Exhibition has been part funded by the Heart and Soul Campaign.

Group booking is essential. For further information please contact Cyfarthfa Castle Museum & Art Gallery on (01685) 723112 or visit www.museums.merthyr.gov.uk