Exhibition explores legacy of key Rebecca Riots figure exiled to Tasmania

Nation.Cymru staff

A Welshman exiled to Tasmania for his role in the Rebecca Riots is at the heart of a new exhibition exploring one of the most famous periods of popular protest in Welsh history.

Jac Ty-isha, also known as John Hughes, was from Tumble in the Gwendraeth Valley and became a prominent figure in the Rebecca Riots and the Merched Becca – Rebecca’s Daughters.

In 1843, following an attempt to demolish the Bolgoed toll gate on the outskirts of Pontarddulais, he was transported to Tasmania and never returned to Wales.

His life and legacy have now inspired Tyisha, a collaborative project by photographer Huw Alden Davies bringing together photography, film, performance and creative technologies.

The resulting exhibition will open at Oriel Henry Thomas at Carmarthen School of Art on October 5 as part of Ffoto Cymru, Wales’ international photography festival.

Rooted in Tumble and the wider Gwendraeth Valley, the project explores the history of Jac Ty-isha while examining ideas of place, identity, memory and belonging.

At its centre is a community procession held during the inaugural Gŵyl Tyisha Festival, when hundreds of people dressed as Merched Becca and walked through Tumble.

The Rebecca Riots took place predominantly in west and mid Wales during the late 1830s and early 1840s, when groups of men disguised themselves as women and attacked toll gates in protest at charges imposed for using the roads.

The protesters became known as Rebecca and her daughters, with their actions developing into a wider protest against the economic and social pressures facing rural communities.

Photographer Paul Cabuts is among those contributing to the exhibition and has produced work specifically for the project alongside a selection of his ongoing photography exploring the relationship between past and present.

He said it had been “a real pleasure” to contribute to a celebration of the people and culture of west Wales, where he has worked for the past 15 years.

Other contributors include Huw Alden Davies, Amanda Savinelli and Renata Ostiak, Peter Finnemore, Kathryn Campbell Dodd, Kate Suiter, Mohamed Hassan, Karl Sedgwick and Lucas Davies, alongside students from Carmarthen School of Art.

Organisers describe the resulting work as a multidisciplinary archive connecting artists, students and communities with the history and landscape of the Gwendraeth Valley.

The exhibition has been curated by Kathryn Campbell Dodd and runs at Oriel Henry Thomas until November 6, with a preview evening taking place on October 15.

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