Elfyn Lewis Môr a Mynydd | Video of the Week

Introducing Video of the Week from Wales Arts Review. We’ll be showcasing some of the best new art in Wales with a new video shared every week. From music to drama and everything in between, videos will not be limited by medium. Today we take a look at a video in which painter Elfyn Lewis explains the processes and influences that go into his craft as he launches his first solo exhibition, Môr a Mynydd, in Edinburgh.

This week’s video features Welsh painter Elfyn Lewis discussing his process and the influences behind his debut solo exhibition, Môr a Mynydd. Lewis, whose paintings are being showcased at the &Gallery in Edinburgh until 4^th August, spent the last 18 months producing a collection of new paintings following his contribution to the gallery’s three-person exhibition, viewpoints, in March 2020.

In the video, the painter explains that the works in his exhibition are influenced by his hometown of Porthmadog and the surrounding landscape of north Wales. He discusses his desire to reimagine the sea and mountains of his childhood home, and describes himself as a “facilitator” that helps the paint to tell its story.  Lewis, who now lives and works in the Grangetown area of Cardiff, has won several awards and prizes for his work, including Welsh Artist of the Year in 2010 and the Gold Medal for Fine Art at the 2009 National Eisteddfod.

Discussing his influences, Lewis explains that his exhibition’s name – Mor a Mynydd – which translates from the Welsh for ‘Sea and Mountains’, was inspired by Helen Frankenthaler’s iconic 1952 painting ‘Mountains and Sea’. He also notes that while his works are abstract, their names – like Bryn Glas, Coed Du, Porth y Cwch and Ynys y Big – are rooted in real Welsh places.