Art exhibition preserves Welsh landscape

Pierhead Future’s Gallery is hosting an art exhibition to encourage our generation to observe and celebrate the contemporary Welsh landscape.

Local artist Eloise Govier’s paintings and sculptures preserve in time a vision of our modern, transformed country. Belonging to The Landscape? offers a commentary on man-made additions and structures to our scenery and identity.

Eloise’s exhibition highlights industrial vulnerability, like Port Talbot’s steelworks or Milford Haven’s decommissioned oil refinery. This shut-down mean changes to our iconic landscape.

Her art is intended to make us stop, look, and think of our non-renewable or renewable energy choices, and what they entail for future generations.

'Milford Haven By Sea'. Pen, Gouache and Ink on Hand Marbled pape

‘Milford Haven By Sea’ by Eloise Govier, using pen, Gouache, and ink on hand marbled paper, created to preserve the Welsh landscape in optimistic art

Located near the Senedd, the exhibition coincides with the assembly’s Climate Change Engagement Strategy for Wales, and its low carbon ambition strategy by 2020.

“The transition to low carbon means our landscape is transforming,” said Eloise. “Energy is always advancing, and wind turbines won’t be here in the possible future.”

The funky digital processes of her paintings, alongside age-old methods of drawing and painting are what a visitor described as “a nuclear fusion.” Eloise wanted the bright, contrasting colours of her Expressionist and Colurist pieces to draw visitors to the all-important environmental themes discussed.

Front sculpture: ‘Coracle’ by Eloise Govier, made from mosaic tiles and plaster of Paris, representing a fishing device and sheep transporter in old West Wales that references former craft and industry.

“I wanted to spotlight issues and open up areas of discussion – especially inter-generational discussion,” she said.

Families can enjoy the exhibition’s child-friendly resources, work-sheets, and navigational activities that Eloise included to support child learning.

Created in response to the Welsh Government’s Well-Being of Future Generations Act, the artwork represents Eloise’s belief that the Government are positively forward-thinking.

The Well-Being Act, effective April 2016, will improve energy strategies to ensure Welsh heritage is conserved. Assembly member Joyce Watson, supporter of Eloise’s exhibition, fully backed the Act.

“We are now seeing, alongside our traditional heavy industries,” said Joyce, “the rise of new energies such as tidal, which I have championed for many years.”

We asked the people of Cardiff how the landscape has changed for them…

Voxpop: How do you think environmental issues and energy structures have affected the Welsh landscape?

Kevin Thomas, 56, Cwmbran, taxi driver. “It’d be such a shame if the Welsh landscape were to dissolve. Climate change scares me because I don’t want to be flooded. We have so many natural disasters and things we can’t control, so we need to control how we react and keep our environment clean. I like the idea of offshore wind stations in south Wales because of this.”

Jean Saunders, 71, Llandaf, retired Florist. “The government try to keep abreast environmental concerns and get the best they can afford from funds, but there are so many big developments that have changed the mountains over time I couldn’t possibly remember them all.”

Jean Saunders, 71, Llandaf, retired Florist. “The government try to keep abreast of environmental concerns and get the best they can afford from funds, but there are so many big developments that have changed the mountains over time – I couldn’t possibly remember them all.”

Ben Giles(left) , 17, Llantwit, sports student. “There’s loads of wind turbines round us, and a massive power station we - all hate in Trefforest. It always seems to be grid-locked. Our generation aren’t concerned with the landscape really though, I know people our age are too obsessed with modern things to give up, it’d be too hard change loads now.”

Ben Giles(left) , 17, sports student, Llantwit: “There’s loads of wind turbines round our area, and a massive power station we all hate in Trefforest. It always seems to be grid-locked. Our generation aren’t concerned with the landscape really though. I know people our age are too obsessed with modern things to give them up, it’d be too hard change loads now.”

Elspeth Hopkins, 43, Vale of Glamorgan. “Cardiff has done really well to keep green areas. The development of Cardiff has been a good thing in one way, but with the number of people commuting in and out it’s had an effect on the landscape. There’s so many roads, it does affect you a lot. But on the other hand with its coal history, it was pretty dirty and grimy. It’s cleaner now than in our youth, probably.”

Elspeth Hopkins (left), 43, bank assistant, Vale of Glamorgan. “Cardiff has done really well to keep its green areas. The development of Cardiff has been a good thing in one way, but with the number of people commuting in and out it’s had an effect on the landscape. There’s so many roads, it does affect you a lot. But on the other hand, with its coal history, Cardiff was pretty dirty and grimy. It’s cleaner now than in our youth, probably.”

Michael Viney, 67, Newport. “It’s not just an issue to wales, but to everyone else, but it’s a worry for the welsh with all the greenery. The government aren’t doing enough, they don’t even try, they tell you they do.”

Michael Viney, 67, Newport, retired shop keeper: “It’s not just an issue for Wales, but to everyone else in the world. However, it’s a worry for the Welsh with all the greenery and beauty in our environment. The government aren’t doing enough. They don’t even try, although they tell you they do.”

Emma Galletti di Cadillhac, 19, Hollywood Bowl Assistant. “The Welsh landscape to me is very vast with lots of fields, that what I think of and it’s important we keep that going with renewable energy developments. Global warming will probably have a big impact on the agriculture and farming, but there’s way too many buildings pumping out gas and toxicity, you’re basically fuelling the death of a dying breed.”

Emma Galletti di Cadillhac, 19, Odeon assistant, Roath: “The Welsh landscape to me is very vast with lots of fields, that’s what I think. It’s important we keep that going with renewable energy developments. Global warming will probably have a big impact on the agriculture and farming, but there’s way too many buildings pumping out gas and toxicity. We’re basically fueling the death of a dying breed.”

Eloise Govier, Carmarthenshire, often undergoes litter walks to help rid the landscape of harming rubbish such as plastic and glass.

Artist Eloise Govier from Cerdigion often undergoes litter walks to help rid the landscape of plastic and glass, which can become embedded into grass

Exhibition details: Pierhead Future’s Gallery, Cardiff Bay, CF10 4PZ

4- 28 October 2016

Open daily 10am – 4:30 pm

Audio commentary from bothEloise and Dr Payne is available for visitors of the exhibition. Eloise literally found common ground with environmental historian Dr Jill Payne in their discussions of the transforming Welsh landscape, and the potential dead end of energy.

Eloise Govier – Belonging to the Landscape? A visual of the exhibition can be found here.

Find out more about Eloise Govier on her official website

Learn more about the Welsh Government’s Renewable Energy Topic

Further information about the Welsh Government’s Climate Change Strategy