Collection of works from two leading Welsh artists goes on display

A new exhibition showcasing paintings by two influential artists is set to open later this month in north Wales.

Hosted at Ffin y Parc Gallery from 17 April to 9 May, the exhibition will celebrate the lives and works of Claudia Williams and Gwilym Pritchard.

Though the couple created together throughout their marriage, their works explore different themes, with Gwilym focusing on Welsh landscapes and weather, while Claudia took inspiration from personal relationships.

The gallery commented: “It is a pleasure and a privilege to show this collection of Claudia and Gwilym’s work which has come direct from the family. During a long and happy partnership lasting over 60 years, they became an important part of Wales’ artistic life.

“Their dedication to their art is rare and admirable. Their contribution to Art in Wales, spanning decades, is immeasurable.”

Gwilym was born in Llanystumdwy and studied at Coleg Normal, Bangor and at the Birmingham College of Art.

Claudia, born in Purley, trained at the Chelsea School of Art and as a budding artist won the Young Person’s Prize for art at the 1950 National Eisteddfod in Caerffili.

Three years later, the two married and settled on Ynys Môn, where Gwilym worked as a teacher and Claudia for the Workers Educational Association.

Gwilym began to attract attention as an artist in the 1960s for his dramatic and boldly coloured paintings which distilled Wales’ landscapes.

During this time he exhibited regularly in London. In the 1970s, both became members of the Royal Cambrian Academy and began to paint full-time.

The couple travelled extensively with their children in Europe, and Claudia created many notable works in Skiathos, Provence and in Rochefort-en-Terre, Brittany, where they lived for 15 years.

During this time they founded a school for the creative arts, and exhibited extensively in France, with Claudia winning first prize in the Salon de Vannes in 1989.

Gwilym received the silver medal from the Société Académique des Artes-Sciences-Lettres in Paris in 1995, and was made an Honorary Fellow of the University of Wales in 1996.

They returned to Wales in 1999, settling in Tenby, where they continued to earn recognition and exhibit in galleries throughout the country.

Their work is held in many public collections, including the Universities of Bangor and Aberystwyth, the civic galleries in Southampton and Newport, CASW, the Welsh Arts Council, and the National Museum of Wales.

The artists’ eldest son, painter Ceri H. Pritchard, said: “Foremost among my childhood memories are the images of both of my parents working constantly at their respective easels, surrounded by piles of oil colours, brushes, rags and the powerful odour of turpentine.

“They were both always enthusiastic about their work, constantly sharing ideas about painting, places to paint and artists that they admired.

“In these early years, my father’s income came from teaching, something he didn’t really enjoy, although ex-pupils I’ve met have told me how engaging and inspiring he was. My mother regularly sketched and drew us children, a regular feature throughout our home life.

“The weekends very often included a trip out, mainly to places where my father loved to paint around Anglesey – Penmon, Mynydd Bodafon, Parys Mountain, sometimes to a beach where my mother could watch and sketch families and children playing.”

He continued: “We moved house five or six times in these early years, a pattern that they continued throughout their lives, making a total of some twenty-odd changes. Remarkably, they still found time to paint and exhibit, given all the upheavals of moving houses.

“They worked independently, each in their own space; however, they would consistently discuss, critique, and offer suggestions to each other on the work in progress.

“Their painting was motivated by their personal loves and interests. For my father, it was primarily the land he grew up in, and for my mother, it was people and family.

“The paintings in this exhibition demonstrate the changes and variety of their work over time.”

Claudia Williams + Gwilym Pritchard Paentiadau | Paintings will show at Ffin y Parc Gallery, Llandudno from 17 April to 9 May. More information is available on the gallery’s site.