This is Video of the Week from Wales Arts Review. We’ll be showcasing some of the best 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’s video is a look at ‘Wales Is… Remembering Terrence Higgins’, an exhibition currently on display at St Fagans National Museum of History.
This week’s Video of the Week is an opportunity to find out more about the ‘Wales Is… Remembering Terrence Higgins’ exhibition which is currently on show at St Fagans, featuring work by Welsh artist Nathan Wyburn. The exhibition also showcases objects from the LGBTQ+ history collection, focusing on the themes of pride and protest and featuring items collected by Amgueddfa Cymru.
Born in Pembrokeshire in 1945, Terrence Higgins was one of the first people in the UK to die of an AIDS-related illness in 1982. To mark the 40th anniversary of his death, this display highlights a newly acquired portrait of Terrence Higgins that was created by Nathan Wyburn. Displayed alongside the portrait is the original plaque from the memorial tree that commemorates the people who have died from AIDS in Wales.
The video also includes a glimpse of Wyburn at work on the portrait, as well as a look at the completed image, which was originally displayed in the Senedd in 2022, the venue to which it will return after the exhibition. Wyburn has spoken previously about his desire to depict Higgins as a young Welshman, reimagining his image using the colours from the Welsh flag. The portrait’s unveiling in 2022 coincided with the Welsh Government’s pledge to reduce new HIV cases to zero by 2030 and the launch of a consultation which invited feedback on their plans to achieve this target.
‘Wales Is… Remembering Terrence Higgins’ is on display at St Fagans National Museum of History until 30th June. Further details are available here.
