Literary Atlas artwork hits the road

Wales-wide roadshow showcasing new artworks commissioned in support of the interactive online Literary Atlas gets underway.

The Cartographic Imaginaries exhibit will visit six venues across Wales in the next 12 months culminating in a six-week installation at the Senedd in Cardiff Bay between January and February 2020.

Literary Atlas, a joint venture between Cardiff University and Swansea University and in partnership with Literature Wales and the Wales Institute of Social and Economic Research, Data and Methods (WISERD), plots locations featured in English-language novels set around Wales.

Hundreds of works of fiction were studied, however, the project chose to focus on 12 books in detail. Researchers recorded all geographical references mentioned in the stories allowing users to follow each plotline around Wales and the world. The interactive tool enables and encourages them to explore the locations and places that have shaped the novels and their characters.

To support the project, 12 artists were commissioned to create original artworks to reflect each book.

• John Abell - Revenant by Tristan Hughes (2008)
• Iwan Bala - Twenty Thousand Saints by Fflur Dafydd (2008)
• Valerie Coffin Price - The Rebecca Rioter by Amy Dillwyn (1880)
• Liz Lake - Shifts by Christopher Meredith (1988)
• Richard Monahan - Aberystwyth Mon Amour by Malcom Pryce (2009)
• George Sfougaras - The Hiding Place by Trezza Azzopardi (2000)
• Joni Smith - Mr Vogel by Lloyd Jones (2004)
• Amy Sterly - Pigeon by Alys Conran (2016)
• Locus - Sheepshagger by Niall Griffiths (2002)
• Rhian Thomas - Border Country by Raymond Williams (1960)
• Seán Vicary - The Owl Service by Alan Garner (1967)
• Cardiff University Student Project – Strike for a Kingdom by Menna Gallie (1959)

Oriel Davies in Newtown is the first venue to host the touring exhibit (9 February - 18 March), followed by Pontio, Bangor (7 March – end date TBC), National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth (23 March – 8 June), Swansea Museum (6 July – 8 September) and Galeri Caernarfon (13 September – 25 October).

Professor Jon Anderson, of Cardiff University’s School of Geography and Planning, who led the project, said: “We’ve seen a high-volume of visitors using the website and exploring the interactive map for each of the 12 novels and developing their understanding of the relationship between geography and literature."

Explore the interactive Literary Atlas and view the selected artworks.

Find out more about the upcoming exhibit venues.