The one question that I’ve been asked more than any other since arriving in Wales is “how are you enjoying things?”   My one word answer is “enormously!”  I’ve been overwhelmed by the warm welcome that I’ve received, and impressed by the quality of artistic activity that I’ve seen.

As we enter uncharted territory with an economy under unprecedented pressure, it will be a commitment to quality that offers us the best chance of emerging from the current dark clouds with the arts that we care about alive and intact.  This won’t be easy, and we’ll all have to work hard to ensure that every pound spent stretches as far as it can.

But let’s remember, too, that in times of difficulty and stress, the arts can offer inspiration, entertainment and sanctuary from the everyday challenges that besiege us.  I believe passionately in the transforming power of the arts, and in the many ways that the arts can illuminate our lives and the world around us:  human nature, human possibility.

In our Newsletter you’ll find many examples of the excellent work that is happening across Wales and further afield.  There’s much that we can be proud of.  The Arts Council of Wales is committed to ensuring that the widest possible audience has the opportunity to enjoy and take part in high quality arts activity.  It’s an ambitious goal, but a necessary one – a goal that I’m determined should be at the heart of the Arts Council’s future work.

The past four months as Heritage Minister have been exhilarating, getting to know all sorts of people involved in the arts and culture in Wales.

I grew up in a house full of books and both my parents wrote creatively in their spare time; my mother wrote short stories and the occasional play, and my father wrote poetry. I devoured Welsh language cowboy novels by Patagonian-born author R Bryn Williams including "Bandit yr Andes" and "Croesi'r Paith".

Like most young people in my village, I sang in choirs, acted in plays and competed in Eisteddfodau. Later, my passion for drama led me to a career as a television drama director and producer. But my real passion was for the theatre - acting, writing and directing. Even now, I try to see a show at least once a week.

I believe passionately that everyone in Wales, wherever they live, whatever their background, young and old, should be able to participate in and enjoy the rich and vibrant arts and culture of Wales.

We all have our part to play. As Minister, I am responsible for arts policy in Wales but of course nothing can happen without you - the talented and creative individuals and organisations who are the lifeblood of the sector. Working together we can make a real difference to people’s lives.

Plans for a National Theatre are well underway and the appointment of John McGrath has engendered huge enthusiasm. Last month I announced a total of £1.7m to help improve access to Wales’ national art collections and to create more opportunities for displaying contemporary art across the country. £700k of this will be distributed through the Arts Council of Wales, building on its £17.5million investment in the visual arts since 2000.

Broadcasting in Wales is developing in new directions with, for example the BBC looking at moving the production of ‘Casualty’ to Cardiff and the possible creation of a “drama village”. If these plans go ahead, they can only benefit us all by helping to create and sustain vibrant communities. As we all know, creating access to arts and culture can be as much of an economic regenerator as setting up a business park.

Whilst progress has and continues to be made, there are of course challenges ahead. There is the difficult issue of funding. We all want the arts to continue to expand and thrive, but in the current economic climate identifying new investment for the sector is not going to be easy. That is why it is vital the sector continues to be creative and makes the best use of the funding available.

In such a climate, it is also more important than ever for us to demonstrate the wide-ranging value of the arts, not only through the jobs the sector can provide but also in terms of how art can enhance people’s lives in less tangible but equally important ways. We need to show how the arts can in fact offer excitement, passion and entertainment in the gloomy world of the credit crunch. A great example of this, which I saw recently, is the award winning play ‘Deep Cut’. With work of this calibre, we are defining our own experiences and making sure that Wales is claiming its place on the world stage.  

Let’s ensure 2009 is an exciting and challenging year for us all. 

On Tuesday, 14 October 2008, the Heritage Minister, Alun Ffred Jones, AM made an announcement about the future display of visual art in Wales.

The Minister's announcement referred to the publication of the report by consultants ABL on The Future Display of Visual Art in Wales. The report highlights the need for a National Gallery, which would offer extended display and ancillary space in an expanded and developed Cathays Park site at National Museum Cardiff; and a parallel, but separate, new National Centre for Contemporary Art, which would show contemporary art from Wales, art of international stature from elsewhere, and temporary exhibition work. The ambition would be to create a building of comparable quality to similar facilities elsewhere in Europe.

At present, however, the Arts Council remains focused on completing the existing capital refurbishment and new build programme which, since 2001, has seen some £24.5m of investment in spaces dedicated to exhibiting art in Wales. Projects completed include Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Oriel Davies (Newtown), Ruthin Craft Gallery and Oriel Ynys Môn. Others underway are the significant redevelopment of Oriel Mostyn in Llandudno, Chapter in Cardiff, and what promises to be a beautiful refurbishment and extension of the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery as it approaches its 100th Birthday.

The additional £700,000 investment from the Welsh Assembly Government will significantly enhance the building projects at Oriel Mostyn, Aberystwyth Arts Centre (the exciting artist studio and work spaces designed by Thomas Heatherwick) and the Gallery element of the re-development of Chapter, one of Europe's focal points for creative endeavour.

Arts Council of Wales recognises that the ABL study has gone as far as it can to look at the realities and challenges of creating such new and national facilities in Wales. Large-scale capital investment from Government, Lottery, and other sources remains spoken for or constrained in the immediate future. A new development of this scale will therefore require new partnerships and new investment if it is to be taken forward to a successful conclusion.

For more information, please click on the Web link to the report and executive summaries:
http://www.wales.gov.uk/culture

The Art form Strategies were published in an easy to navigate form on the Arts Council of Wales website on Wednesday 26th November.

http://www.artswales.org/publications/publication.asp?id=627

There’s an important introductory section which sets out our aspirations for the arts in Wales and the context in which we see these strategies contributing to the development of the arts and of contemporary Wales.

The Arts Council of Wales remains dedicated to placing the arts at the heart of Welsh life and creating the best circumstances for the arts to thrive. There is a recognition that this is only possible by developing the resource for the arts and these strategies can also be cross-referenced with the publication of our Corporate Plan this Autumn.

http://www.artswales.org/page.asp?id=179

The published art form strategies are condensed from the longer documents we consulted on at the beginning of 2008. It is an occasion to thank all those who have debated the content of the strategies in different forums over the last two years. The content was refined in the light of the consultation and approved by Council in its July 2008 meeting.

At the same time, strategic directions of critical importance are re-emphasised here. The strategies were also presented to the Minister’s Arts Strategy Board in September 2008. In parallel to these developments, Wales Arts International is publishing its strategy covering its approach to international work in the arts from now to 2013.

The Arts Council of Wales will continue to use public events, art form seminars and conferences to inform its strategic views and develop the ideas underpinning its art form strategies.

The Arts Council of Wales's Corporate Plan is now available to download from the website.To access the document, please click on:

http://www.artswales.org/page.asp?id=179

The Arts Council of Wales once again was a partner in the 2008 National Eisteddfod, supporting 'Y Lle Celf' pavilion and many other arts activities between 2-9 August 2008. Over 15,550 visitors came to the Lle Celf this year, even though the weather was erratic!

'Y Lle Celf' showcased the very best in artworks from across Wales and was officially opened on Saturday, 2 August by award winning artist, Iwan Bala, ACW chair, Professor Dai Smith, and Lord Elis-Thomas.

The Eisteddfod and the Arts Council of Wales also presented a unique opportunity for visitors to see the life's work of sprightly 91-year-old artist, Charles Byrd, exhibited together for the very first time. Charles Byrd was born in Pontypridd in 1916 and has lived and worked in Cardiff for most of his life. His figurative, highly detailed paintings depict scenes of everyday life in Cardiff, and are now important historical documents.

During the 1960s Charles Byrd began experimenting with abstract themes and he later created dozens of machines out of a variety of materials, toys and implements; much of it he recycled and transformed into amazing spaceships, noisy whirligigs or colourful towers. The Arts Council used this theme in its children's workshops this year. The workshops were a huge hit and the robots created by the youngsters were very imaginative as you can see from the photographs!

435 artists and makers submitted artwork for the Open Exhibition this year. Five experts - Claire Curneen, Ivor Davies, Tessa Jackson, Nia Roberts and Sue Williams - undertook the formidable task of selecting the artworks for the exhibition: over 150 works of art and craft by 52 artists and makers. The winners were:

• David Hastie: The Gold Medal for Fine Art
  
• Suzie Horan: The Gold Medal for Craft and Design
  
• David Cushway and Bethan Ash -Commended
  
• Anna Pritchard -Young Artist Scholarship
  
• Purcell Miller Tritton -The Gold Medal for Architecture
  
• Smith Roberts- Associates Plaque of Merit
  
• Phillip Henshaw -Architecture Scholarship
  
• Aled Rhys - The People's Choice Award

There were also a variety of stands in the Show Hall by Oriel Makers and Vale of Glamorgan Artists, Suzie Horan and Alison Moger. The Arts Council of Wales also supported ...a chrefft' (meaning '...and craft') which represented young Welsh artists by showcasing their work at the Eisteddfod.

Academi held its Young People's Writing Squad workshops, 'Sgwad Sgwennu' in the Lle Celf. This year poets and rappers, Ed Holden and Aneirin Karadog of 'Y Genod Droog' tutored the youngsters.
All in all it was a very successful but exhausting Eisteddfod! Now we look forward to visiting Bala, North Wales for the next National Eisteddfod in 2009.

To read more, please click on:http://www.artswales.org.uk/viewnews.asp?id=954

The Marketing Symposium 2008 was extremely well attended and this simple fact bears testament to the commitment of arts marketers in Wales. Marketing the Arts seems to be based on a delicate balance of trust between the artist, the marketers and the consumer, and it seems that there has been a significant shift from simply communicating a message to the consumer, to developing a series of subtle relationships with them.

It seems that the arts have long since realised that there is no such thing as a mass mind. Marketing at the mass audience seems doomed to failure as every audience is constituted of highly individual sets of wants and needs. E.M.Forster once said that ‘the books that influence us are those for which we are ready, and have gone a little further down our particular path than we have gone ourselves.’ It is the arts marketers job therefore, by developing these intimate relationships with the consumer, to pre-empt, identify and cater for this continual growth and change within the individual’s creative mind.

The first keynote speech by Martin Rhisiart was a fascinating insight into the world of future studies. He took the long view of the arts in Wales and at the main drivers of change in the next ten to twenty years. He considered the economic growth of countries such as China and India and the projected changes in the labour market.

Users will soon be part of the design process with consumers not simply consuming, but being part of a complex relationship of co-creation. Virtual worlds and spaces will begin to affect marketing in a much more direct way with MRI scanning beginning to show exciting possibilities in how these ‘other’ worlds can affect the human mind. The main drivers of change will of course be micro manufacture, climate change, an exploding and ageing population and migration. Mr Rhisiart’s speech closed on a more positive note as he projected that society is headed for a more altruistic state of mind. In a post-materialistic world, the arts and self-expression will no doubt become powerful tools in exploring humanity.

The first of the breakout sessions was with Elen ap Robert. She introduced us to an exciting collaboration between Galeri, the Welsh Assembly and Caernarfon’s Communities First Programme - Pas Peblig. 80% of the Peblig community are first language Welsh speakers – a quarter of the population of Caernarfon. The project aims to engage with the local community, develop an audience and to provide for members of the community who are currently dis-engaged with the Arts.

Digital marketing was discussed by Fran Graham and the ways that marketers can identify simple and cost-effective ways of best using the digital tools at their disposal. Communicating with an audience in a medium in which they prefer is becoming increasingly important. Facebook, (which has over 7 million users - a large proportion of which are over 25), My Space and Bebo are a rich seam of potential contacts. SMS, virals, blogging and e-mail marketing were all touched upon as well as the importance of spending time online getting to know different communities - the etiquette as well as the practicalities.

Paul White discussed the C.V of the perfect arts Marketer and looked at whether professional standards in Wales could enhance our country by engaging communities and embedding the arts deeper into the cultural fabric of Wales. Providing marketing intelligence, marketing direction, developing customer proposition, managing and providing communications and evaluation were discussed as well as potential working partners.

The floor was opened to delegates in the ‘Big Conversation’ sessions under the care of Ann Kellaway. Many challenges and problems were aired including the need to re-brand the arts and to raise their profile. Some delegates wanted to share ideas as to how to overcome engagement barriers, others were concerned with raising the recognition of arts marketing within the sector. There was a general consensus that the best way to attract cultural tourists was to build a robust, healthy arts scene within Wales, not to stage ‘Welsh’ events. The development of skills and resources were foremost in the minds of the participants as well as the need to take a closer look at audience development.

After a wonderful lunch, the delegates reconvened. Elaine Cabut’s session was one in which we were asked how well we know our audiences. It is often very difficult to gauge reactions with internet comments often encapsulating the very best of or the very worst of opinions. Finding out about the audience enhances their sense of ownership of an organisation and allows a tighter relationship with their wants and needs. The benefits of direct dialogue were expounded upon. Too often we collect ages and gender statistics when we should be looking at beliefs and attitudes. Tools and rights, the drivers for public engagement and helpful organisations were also discussed.

Going that extra mile for an audience was Theatrau Sir Gâr’s preoccupation. Piloting free shuttle buses, text marketing, loyalty cards and a mobile ticketing office, they are reaching a new level of proactivity that is both exciting and admirable.

The last seminar of the session, in the company of June Francois and Gemma Hughes offered guidance through the mountains of data that abound. It is often difficult to know where to start. The ADUK website was introduced, a site which holds information that makes deciphering various sources of data much easier. ACORN and MOSAIC create profiles of arts users and can be used to help us answer burning questions with regards to our marketing campaigns and to help us use monetary resources more effectively.

The last keynote speech of the day was given by Rick Bond. In a rather surreal speech he introduced us to the fascinating world of the no-show event. He discussed the commonality between marketers and fundraisers and showed us ways in which he has attracted new donors, and therefore, attendees, through his research. The No-Show Proms sounded like huge fun and finding cost-effective high-impact ways of reaching an audience whilst also giving them a feel good factor is an exciting prospect. He also introduced us to his project ‘Who Dares Cares,’ a website dedicated to making charities money whilst giving the user a fun social platform.

In conclusion, to borrow a phrase from the third session of the day, there seem to be many ‘jungles’ to navigate - data ‘jungles’, digital ‘jungles’, second-life ‘jungles’ and future-knowledge ‘jungles’. It seems that the arts are in a period of huge change and transition. Studying trends and patterns will no doubt help us find foothold in an ever-changing world. The unpredictable financial climate and the bewildering array of choices available to us may seem challenging. It is up to us as individuals and organisations to pick our unique paths through these difficulties whilst learning from the people around us. Symposiums such as this one will no doubt serve as guiding lights.

On July 28, 2008, the Arts Council of Wales announced the appointment of John E. McGrath as the new Artistic Director of the English language theatre company, National Theatre of Wales (NTW).

Born in Mold, North Wales and raised in Liverpool, John E. McGrath is currently the Artistic Director and Chief Executive of the multi-award winning Contact Theatre, Manchester, which has established an international reputation for exciting new work, young diverse audiences, and international collaboration.

John’s previous roles include Artistic Director of Theatre Venture in Newham in London and Associate Director of the renowned Experimental Theatre Company, Mabou Mines in New York.

The proposals for developing the NTW have been supported by the Welsh Assembly Government, which announced in October 2007 that it would make a major investment to establish the new theatre company, as part of an enhanced provision for English Language Theatre in Wales. The Arts Council of Wales was then charged with the responsibility of administering the development of the NTW.

The new company will not be building-based, giving it the freedom to commission and create new productions. NTW will work closely with the existing theatrical infrastructure in Wales to create high profile productions that will sometimes move outside the traditional theatre space.

John E. McGrath will begin his new post in January 2009. There will also be three other new appointments, (to be announced); Producer and two Creative Associates. To read more, please click on: http://www.artswales.org.uk/viewnews.asp?id=937

On August 18 2008, the Arts Council of Wales announced Mari Beynon Owen’s appointment as Commissioner and Bruce Haines as Curator for the Wales Pavilion at the Venice Biennale of Art in 2009.  They will work alongside the new Project Manager, Robert Lowe, and the Advisory Committee, which also has three new appointments – Christopher Coppock, Director, Ffotogallery Cardiff; Maggie Maxwell, Equalities and Diversity Officer, UWIC, Cardiff and Benjamin Ward, Director, Brunswick Arts, London.

They join continuing members: Anthony Shapland, artist, founder and Director of g39, Contemporary Temporary Artspace, Cardiff; Cath Sherrell, Education Officer at Aberystwyth Arts Centre and Emrys Williams, artist and lecturer at Coleg Menai, Bangor.

With the announcement of who will be representing Wales at the Venice Biennale of Art 2009 imminent, the new team has started work to set the stage for the next major international arts initiative for Wales.

The 2009 exhibition will once again be staged at the Ex-Birreria complex on the Island of Giudecca in Venice, home to Wales’ previous presentations, and will be open to the public from 7 June - 22 November 2009.

For further developments and announcements, please visit http://www.walesvenicebiennale.org

Once again this year, the Arts Council of Wales was delighted to support both the Diversity Awards 2008 and Black History Month in Wales.

On Friday 31st October, after much discussion about what glamorous outfits to wear and which menu option to go for, a party of Arts Council of Wales staff set off to Cardiff County Hall for the Diversity Awards. This glamorous event celebrated the achievements of organisations and individuals from across Wales that have played a part in challenging discrimination, promoting diversity in the field of race equality or encouraging community cohesion and positive community relations.

The evening was hosted by Linda Mitchell who introduced us all to a variety of performances by artists originating from Tiger Bay right across to China. The main focus of the event however was on the awards themselves. Arts organisations were well represented amongst the nominees, and two Arts Council of Wales Revenue Funded Organisations were nominated:

Spectacle Theatre were nominated for their work developed in partnership with Bristol based, Asian Arts Academi, that gave students of Coleg Morgannwg Rhondda the opportunity to engage with the play, “A  Lifetime on Tip Toes”, by Mazhar Tirmazi, which focuses on the Panjabi experience of the Partition.

SWICA received an award for the Best Community Group. This award was in recognition of "SWICA's highly successful introduction and development of Swansea MAS Carnival over the past ten years.”

Butetown History and Arts Centre also received an award.

After the glamour and glitz of the previous evening, we were brought back down to earth by an early start the following morning. Saturday 1st November saw the culmination of the celebration of Black History Month at Channel View Leisure Centre. The day was launched in traditional African style through a drum call and accompanying dancers and included exhibitions, stalls, workshops and performances by young people from across Wales.

Arts Council of Wales Arts Director, David Alston, made a speech as part of the opening ceremony whilst we helped out dishing up food to the guests –  cassava, yam or sweet potato anyone? Our knowledge of Gambian cuisine is now extensive and we now know that you must on no account serve sweet couscous with savoury stew!  After coverage on ITV1 Wales’s  "Wales This Week" the event was extremely well attended – we even ran out of food!

Black History Month is coordinated by Black Voluntary Sector Network Wales [BVSNW]. To read more, please click on: http://www.artswales.org.uk/viewnews.asp?id=1023

On 24 July 2008, the Arts Council of Wales (ACW) announced that 22 arts organisations in Wales would receive the new Beacon Company Awards.

Last November the Welsh Assembly Government allocated an additional £4.5m for the creation of a fund, which would be used by ACW over the next three years to make awards to Beacon companies and individuals in the arts who demonstrate excellence and innovation in their field.  The Award period spans two years, (2008-10) and in total the resource for the work of these companies will be £2.9m.

The recipients have already started work on their projects which range from innovative community arts projects, to the provision of opportunities for young people, to artist’s commissions and international touring. To read more about the Beacon Company Awards and the Beacon projects, please click on:
http://www.artswales.org.uk/viewnews.asp?id=1003

The Arts Council of Wales's hugely successful Arts Outside Cardiff scheme was in full throttle for Autumn 2008 with acclaimed international and national artists visiting Wales over the last few months.

Arts Outside Cardiff is funded by the Welsh Assembly Government and the Arts Council of Wales and was created to ensure audiences outside the Capital city can experience first class performances and productions from renowned arts performers and theatre companies.

Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan, a recent Beacon Company Award recipient, is enjoying its third successful Arts Outside Cardiff year and welcomed the legendary Billy Cobham and Asere's jazz/Latin/funk band to Wales on a tour that began on October 2nd in Galeri, Caernarfon and ended in Belfast on October 25.

Another international musician visited Wales in November thanks to Arts Outside Cardiff, Mwldan, Creu Cymru and Koni Music; the inspirational Stella Rambisai Chiweshe and the Heart of The Earthquake Band. Stella and the band presented an evocative musical experience that utilises an unusual instrument, the mbira, the most important traditional instrument in Zimbabwe.

Mwldan also welcomed back Mappa Mundi, the renowned Theatre company's new production, 'The Canterbury Tales', which opened on October 3 and toured through Wales and England until November 15.

Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon also had a busy Arts Outside Cardiff Autumn period. Brycheiniog co-produced a new production of Cyrano de Bergerac with Theatr Na Nog, ‘Cyrano’.  Theatr na n’Óg is celebrating its 25th anniversary in style with this exciting production. It toured Welsh and English venues throughout October and November with 3 nights at the Greenwich Theatre, London.
Brycheiniog will also be presenting the Wales Theatre Company's Romeo and Juliet, Billy Cobham and Asere, The Vagina Monologues, Kindertransport from Aberystwyth Arts Centre, hot new British Choreographer Hofesh Shechter, Ladyboys of Bangkok, Bellowhead, Fascinating Aida, BBC NOW and the London Mozart Players' new show adapted by Lynne Plowman, 'Dr Caligari and Benjamin Zephaniah.'

The Torch Theatre, Milford Haven, presented ‘Cinderella’ and ‘Neville’s Island’ as their Arts Outside Cardiff productions. ‘Neville’s Island’takes place on a lake surrounding a little island called Rampsholme, near Derwent Water where its hapless heroes are marooned after a corporate team-building session goes awry.

Llyfr Mawr y Plant

Aberystwyth Arts Centre toured the award-winning international hit, 'Kindertransport' to seven venues across Wales in October visiting Sherman Cymru, Theatr Hafren, Theatr Brycheiniog, Taliesin Arts Centre, Galeri Caernarfon and Clwyd Theatr Cymru.
 Written by Diane Samuels and directed by Dan Danson, Kindertransport is the moving story of a mother and daughter, as Faith unravels her mothers past to discover that she was once a Jewish orphan, sent to the UK in 1939 to escape the Holocaust.

In North Wales, Theatr Bara Caws, Galeri and Theatr Gwynedd's highly successful 'Llyfr Mawr y Plant' continued its successful tour, also supported by Arts Outside Cardiff. The delightful children's storybook characters, from Siôn Blewyn Coch to Wil Cwac Cwac came to life on stage with special compositions by Catrin Edwards, Music Direction by Emyr Rhys and choreography by Cai Thomas. The show was written by Gareth F. Williams and directed by Tony Llewelyn. A treat for children and grown-ups!
For more information regarding the Arts Council of Wales's Arts Outside Cardiff Scheme, please click on http://www.artswales.org or email:info@artswales.org.uk

Ruthin Craft Centre continues to go from strength to strength in its new building. Having received glowing praise in the national press for the architecture and facilities, the two subsequent exhibitions, firstly work by David Watkins and secondly the Raising the Bar exhibition: work by various international artists working in metal, have maintained the high standard in presentation set in the opening exhibitions.

It was especially rewarding to see work by Claire Curneen and Pamela Rawnsley featuring in the smaller galleries alongside this international standard showcase in the main gallery. Both artists have been Creative Wales awards winners in recent years and their latest work marks a significant professional progression.  This bringing together of the best of international work and the successful nurturing of homegrown talent is a testament to the best of the work of Ruthin Craft Centre. To read more please click on: http://www.artswales.org.uk/viewnews.asp?id=1024

Oriel Mostyn have been awarded £300,000 towards their capital development as part of the Assembly Government’s Visual Arts development programme.

Alex Hugo has been appointed to succeed Tracy Simpson as Director of Oriel Wrecsam.  Alex previously worked at the Glynn Vivian Gallery in Swansea.

Llyfr Mawr y Plant

Llyfr Mawr y Plant and Llyfr Bach y Plant have been on national tours in October and early November.  These productions, based on the much loved classic Welsh language children’s compendium of stories, have been very well attended and have proved extremely popular with audiences.  Llyfr Mawr was one of the first Welsh language Musical Theatre Productions on the main stage at the WMC.  Galeri and Theatr Bara Caws are hoping to continue to work together to produce another family friendly show in the future. Both productions were recipients of two Arts Outside Cardiff Production & Touring grants.

Gwynedd Council and the Arts Council of Wales have recently collaborated on a pilot project known as ‘Criw Celf’ (Art Crew). Based on the successful ‘Writing Squads’ model developed by Academi, the idea was to work with primary schools to identify 15 pupils in Years 5 and 6 within the county demonstrating exceptional talent in the visual arts and to nurture and develop that talent beyond the scope of the regular school environment.  The pilot has been extremely successful and Gwynedd and the Arts Council of Wales are now considering how it may be possible to extend it – both by continuing to work with this cohort of pupils and others.

Author, Rod Sweet and artist and photographer, Tim Williams have recently signed a book publishing deal with Mark Batty publishing in New York.  The book will be distributed in the UK by Thames and Hudson in early 2009.  'Instructions for the Apocalypse' combines fiction, archive photographs, new photographic work and the encompassing theme of the exploration of contextuality.

Rod Sweet is a journalist/writer based in Penmaenmawr, Conwy and Tim Williams is a lens based artist is based in Pontllyfni, Gwynedd. The project initially received an Arts Council of Wales Small Grant for development and shows how important and significant these awards can be at crucial points in artists’ careers.

Composer Guto Puw and chaired bard Llion Jones – both of whom lecture at Bangor University - have been commissioned to create a work to celebrate the opening of Hoddinott Hall in Cardiff Bay.

Ysgol Glanaethwy continue their extraordinarily successful year by competing in the finals of the BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year competition in Liverpool on November 8th. Their 18th Birthday Celebration concert in the Wales Millennium Centre on November 28th is also a sell-out.

Galeri - Prosiect Animeiddio

The second children and young people’s film festival PICS 2 was held in Galeri between 7-9 November.  The festival opened with the premiere of two locally made films. The first, ‘Elvis Preseli’ is a short animated film by children and staff of the Brynffynnon Referral Unit in Y Felinheli and organised by Galeri, Caernarfon. A BBC Wales ‘fly on the wall’ documentary captured the creation process and was also shown at the premiere event.  The children also collaborated with S4C’s soap, ‘Rownd a Rownd’, the results of which were shown on ‘Uned 5’, S4C’s Children’s television programme on the 12 November.

The second film, Observations of an Alien, is by artist Sean Harris and explores cultural identity from the viewpoint of an outsider. It features the big screen debut of crowned poet Iwan Llwyd and contributions from pupils of Ysgol Brynrefail in Llanrug.

Sound artist Simon Profitt was awarded a grant towards Locator 2, an environmental movement project in collaboration with dancer Simon Whitehead and Migrations International Dance programme.

Film maker Sally Pearce was awarded a grant to develop her film concept ‘Chernobyl Horses’ - a project based on the Przwalski horses released into the Exclusion Zone around the Chernobyl Power Station.

Dancer Helen McGreary was awarded a training grant to study specialist Afro-Caribbean, Brazilian, Cuban and Hip Hop dance in Bristol.

International Opera Director Patrick Young was awarded a research and development grant to research the possibility of a Welsh language large scale opera using professional and semi professional talent in association with the National Eisteddfod.

Visual artist Sarah Southall received a grant to develop a project with the National Trust properties in North Wales.

Interviews took place in late May for the vacant Arts Development Officer post based in Carmarthen, and I am pleased to announce that Rolande Thomas was appointed. He is a very welcome addition to the team, and continues to test the public transport network in his brave quest to prove that occasionally it is possible to travel around the Principality without having to cross Offa’s Dyke!

It is with sadness that we say goodbye to Lynwen Rees at the end of December 2008. Lynwen has worked tirelessly for the Council for over 20 years in many guises, and has shown great integrity, dedication and commitment. I have personally worked with Lynwen for over 15 years, and will miss her good humour, experience and knowledge tremendously.

Arts News

The Waiting Room

An immensely busy period as always. Cwmni Theatr Arad Goch held the official opening of their new home in Aberystwyth in July amidst a weekend of celebration. The Company’s new community play “Yr Ystafell Aros/The Waiting Room”, by Caryl Lewis, tours throughout Wales in November and December.

The Friends of the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery celebrated their 50th anniversary in 2008, with a specially selected exhibition of work representative of the broad range of work in the Gallery’s Permanent Collections of fine and applied arts.

The Welsh premiere of “The Edge of Love” was held in Swansea in June. The film, which revolves around the lives of Dylan Thomas, Vera Killick and Caitlin Thomas, was filmed mainly on location in Laugharne.

Artswave Wales and Ireland launched the ‘Art on Board’ project in June, featuring the work of Welsh and Irish artists and celebrating the regions immediately surrounding the ports of Fishguard and Rosslare.

The WALESESTONIA Festival took place and promoted the work of many individuals and companies, which included the Estonian National Ballet, performing ‘Hamlet’ at Taliesin Arts Centre in October.

Small World Theatre’s incredible new home adjacent to Theatr Mwldan – also promoted as “a creative space for a creative community” – was officially opened by Rhodri Glyn Thomas in June.

Iesu - Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru

Oriel Myrddin held an exhibition – “Sparks” - celebrating the creative talent of pupils from Carmarthenshire schools involved in their outreach programme throughout 2008.

The rapidly expanding 3rd Festival of Digital Storytelling (with an international reputation and audience to match) was held at Aberystwyth Arts Centre in June. The only event of its kind in Wales, it featured keynote speakers from Britain, Alaska and Norway.

Mid Powys Youth Theatre celebrated their 21st anniversary in October with “The Snow Queen”, a production written by previous members Brad Birch and Andrew Sterry.

Brynamman-based “Mess up the Mess” Theatre Company was presented with an Impetus Award at a ceremony held in the National Botanic Gardens in July. The award was presented by the Children’s Commissioner for Wales, and was one of only 15 such awards given for school or youth projects addressing issues of global human rights.

Rebecca Griffiths, winner of Young Musician of Dyfed

Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru toured the controversial play “Iesu!” written by Church in Wales Priest, Aled Jones Williams. The work explores the relevance of Christ’s sacrificial death in today’s conflict-ridden world, and featured a woman portraying Jesus!

The Final of the Young Musician of Dyfed took place at Theatr Mwldan in November, attracting growing audiences and featuring many talented young artists. The winner, Rebecca Griffiths, 17, of Milford Haven, impressed judges with her virtuoso Clarinet performances.

Cwmni Ieuenctid Ceredigion – CIC! – celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2008. Their first production at Theatr Felinfach was created in response to the closure of the Dairy Crest milk factory, eerily echoing recent closures in the Aeron Valley, and the basis for their production “Milcshêc!” at Felinfach in October.

During September the Riverfront Arts Centre in Newport presented ‘Osez!’ - a week-long site-specific outdoor project involving a collaboration between choreographers Sean Tuan John (Wales) and Karine Ledoyen (Quebec), seven dancers from Wales and seven from Canada, who took it in turns to make different short pieces which were performed outside on the quayside every night.

Beacon Company Award recipient, Cardiff’s Theatr Iolo, celebrated 21 years of creating theatre for young people on Saturday 11th October at the Sherman Theatre. Following a presentation of More Grimm Tales the audience joined in the celebrations with a birthday party in the presence of Jane Hutt, the Minister of Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills and Julie Morgan A.M for Cardiff North.

Women's Arts Association‘s ‘Postcards From Home’ Community Arts Trail ran at The Old Library Cardiff during September. You could wander through the ‘Living Room Installation’ and enjoy artworks produced by women from this inspirational project or partake in a number of workshop activities such as create your own postcard artwork with artists Becky Adams and Holly Davey, or a Vinyl Design Workshop with artist Judy Foote. Digital Postcards artwork was screened throughout the day on the Queen Street screen in the city centre, guaranteeing a large audience.

Also in September, Pontypridd’s Ynysangharad Park hosted ‘Motionhouse’, co-presented by Community Dance Wales and Rhondda Cynon Taff Community Arts, this was described as ‘risk-taking, exhilarating dance at its best on the tennis courts in the sun’.

Otello - WNO

Welsh Independent Dance's ‘Dance Bytes / New Graduates’ showcase took place at WMC and Dance House respectively. WID's annual platform for recent dance graduates with a Welsh connection was a fitting showcase for emerging talent and included a double-bill featuring work and the contrasting choreographic styles of previous Creative Wales winner, Tanja Raman and Sean-Tuan John. This was preceded by the first round of ‘Dance Bytes’ - WID's annual choreographic opportunity for emerging dance artists which for the first time took place on WMC's Tesco stage.

The Welsh National Opera wowed audiences once more with their exciting production of ‘Otello’ at the WMC with Dennis O’Neill in the main role. This was Director, Paul Curran’s first UK mainscale opera debut. (Paul is the General Director of the Norwegian Opera).  Designer Paul Edwards created a pageant of decorative costumes, some influenced by the richness of illustration found in the medieval Book of Hours.  With further Operatic treats such as ‘Janáček's Jenůfa’ and a revival of Rossini’s ‘Blood Wedding’ this Autumn season, the WNO are really spoiling us!

Deep Cut - Sherman Cymru

Sherman Cymru presented their award-winning production, “Deep Cut” in September, questioning the events surrounding the deaths at the infamous Deep Cut Barracks. The production had been critically acclaimed at the Edinburgh Festival where it won the Amnesty International Freedom of Expression Award as well as The Stage awards for best actor and best actress. The run at home sold out.

The Grand Pavilion Porthcawl has recently opened its brand-new lower entrance, which also provides access for disabled people to the main auditorium via a lift.

Chapter’s eclectic festival of theatre, installation and sonic art, Experimentica 08, took place in October.

Riverfront Newport presented 'Yesterday' by award-winning artist Jasmin Vardimon. The show was preceded and complimented by the first ten-minute foyer 'Dance Short', coordinated by Emma Carlson.

Abby Sohn presented her multi-media installation 'In Light and Shadow We Rotate' in Nash Point Lighthouse. The project explored relationships between sites and histories through ritual.

Ghosts in Armour - Riverfron

Opened in August and running until mid-October at Riverfront Newport, Punctum Photographic’s compelling multi-disciplinary exhibition “Ghosts in Armour” drew great acclaim from visitors. The artists had gained special access to the abandoned Whitehills steel works in Newport before its demolition and to a host of former employees. Northern Broadsides’ performance of “Accidental Death of an Anarchist” was also well received at the Riverfront in October.

Mid Wales Opera toured into the region this month, performing “The Tales of Hoffman” at the Coliseum Aberdare in October and at Riverfront Newport a fortnight later.

A national conference presented by Touch Trust in association with WMC asked the question “Inclusion, integration and accessibility in the arts?” in October 2008.  The conference highlighted the work of Touch Trust whilst providing the opportunity for discussion and debate on the values, obstacles and challenges to inclusive community arts.
International dance sensation Hofesh Schector brought his Hofesh Schector Company to Sherman Cymru in October as part of a UK tour supported by the Dance Touring Partnership. Sherman Cymru and Theatr Brycheiniog were able to join this consortium initiative thanks to an Arts Council of Wales Lottery grant. The company included Jenny White, ‘spotted’ by The Observer whilst with Diversions. The Sherman auditorium was packed for “Uprising/In Your Rooms”.

Hofesh’s choreography returns to Wales in February with CanDoCo at Newport’s Riverfront. The all-Wales tour coordinated by RCT Theatres, Genticorum & Calan played a final sell-out gig at the Muni Pontypridd during half term. The evening combined interpretations of traditional Québécois folk songs with a collection of original instrumentals written in the traditional Québécois style by the three-piece traditional band. They were supported by young, Welsh traditional group, Calan.

Music Theatre Wales opened their world premiere of ‘For You’, written by Michael Berkeley and Ian McEwan, to huge acclaim in the Royal Opera House, London at the end of October. The Daily Telegraph gave it three stars, saying that it “proves to be an absorbing and effective black comedy of rare narrative clarity, accompanied by some skilfully wrought music…  Berkeley's score is confident, lively and clever.”

Hijinx Theatre‘s latest show 'The Other Woman' by Paul Swift is presently touring Wales and England. The First World War drama received a special performance at the WMC on November 11 to mark Armistice Day on the 90th anniversary of the end of the Great War.

Rhondda Cynon Taff Theatres’ co-production of Frank Vickery’s “Erogenous Zones” with Grassroots Productions was presented during October at the Coliseum Aberdare, the Parc & Dare Treorchy, the Beaufort Ebbw Vale, Blackwood Miners Institute and the New Theatre Cardiff.

New Senior Adviser for Arts, Creative Industries and New Media

Louise Wright joined the British Council Wales team at the beginning of October as the new Senior Adviser for Arts, Creative Industries and New Media. Louise will be working closely with Wales Arts International and others to identify opportunities for Welsh capacity in the arts and creative industries to contribute to the British Council's cultural relations work. She will also take on a wider UK responsibility for developing the British Council's work in new media arts.
http://www.wai.org.uk/news283

Cerys Matthews

Celtic Connections 2009

Wales Arts International is pleased to report that five Welsh acts will be performing at the Celtic Connections Festival in January 2009. 9Bach, Allan Yn Y Fan, Bethan Nia, Cerys Matthews and Euros Childs have all been selected to take part at various concerts throughout the two-week festival, which runs from 15th January until 1st February 2009. Celtic Connections features artists from around the globe alongside the very best of Scottish talent.
http://www.celticconnections.com

CINARS 2008

More than 1,000 participants from all around the world – including artists, agents, presenters, producers and observers – are expected to attend the 13th edition of CINARS Platform in Montréal, recognized as a key event for performing arts professionals.

Wales Arts International is supporting a group of six programmers and two producing companies, led by Creu Cymru, (the Development Agency for Theatres and Arts Centres in Wales) to attend the 2008 event.  During CINARS 2008, Wales Arts International aims to support the international working of theatre programmers in Wales and to develop its Wales-Quebec relationship, specifically in the performing arts. It hopes to facilitate the collection of evidence that will underpin future support for international trade events in the performing arts.
http://www.wai.org.uk/news292http://www.cinars.org

Amy Santoferraro at Fireworks Studio, Cardiff

International ceramic artist Amy Santoferraro will shortly be coming to the end of her 2-month residency at Fireworks studio in Cardiff. Supported by Wales Arts International, Amy has been working alongside some of Wales’ most eminent ceramic artists based at Fireworks.http://www.wai.org.uk/news291

WALES @ WOMEX -A Story from Seville

651 exhibitors; 49 artists on five stages from 40 countries – that’s WOMEX. It’s the most important international professional market of world music of every kind.

Having never been to anything like this before I was really excited, a bit nervous and not sure what to expect.  Believe me though, it was amazing!

The conference centre at Fibes, Sevilla was huge and WOMEX was housed in two hanger-like rooms.  This international fair brings together professionals from the worlds of folk, roots, ethnic and traditional music and also includes concerts, conferences and documentary films.

The Wales at WOMEX stand was a joint venture between Wales Arts International (WAI) and Welsh Music Foundation (WMF) and was a base for a host of organisations and individuals including Theatr Mwldan, Theatr Brycheiniog, Label Abel, Rhys Mwyn and Mabon. With SAIN opposite us, there was a real feeling that Wales had arrived in WOMEX.

We were there to promote and develop new international leads, contacts and opportunities for musicians and the music sector from Wales. Wales Arts International, (with support from the British Council), created a new Directory of World Music From Wales: both a USB electronic directory and a hard copy to introduce new contacts to world music from Wales.

From the beginning the Welsh stand was busy with people from all over the world coming to find out about Welsh talent as well as to promote their festivals and music. We met many key contacts from other arts councils from every corner of the world, which we hope with time will help us to develop new possibilities for artists from Wales.

One thing we learnt was that to make an impact at WOMEX, artists need to be selected for showcasing. Every evening a variety of showcases take place in Seville itself on three different stages. Cimarron, a band from Colombia promoted by Dilwyn Davies of Mwldan, were showcased and have been offered new performances as a result.

Wales Arts International’s Eluned Hâf met with Gerald Seligman, Director of WOMEX, to discuss how Welsh music could feature at future showcases. Seligman was very supportive and WAI will be following up with the advice given in partnership with the Welsh Music Foundation over the coming months.

All too soon, it was over, and on the final day we attended the WOMEX awards.  This year the main award went to the Hungarian band Muzsikás who are part of the antecedents in the folk music movement in the early 60's in Hungary.

And so it was back to Wales on Monday and WOMEX was over for another year.  For the next three years it is being held in Copenhagen. 

To learn more about WOMEX you can visit the website at:http://www.womex.com

When we launched the Cultural Olympiad in Wales in September at the Wales Millennium Centre, I invited the Welsh Paralympians, David Roberts of Pontypridd and Simon Richardson of Porthcawl to be guests of honour.   They brought their medals with them – it was both humbling and inspirational to be with them.

Beijing and the Paralympic Games of 2008 were also inspirational.   Beijing, for the way in which the entire city embraced disabled athletes from all over the world and the Paralympic Games for the display of skills, not to mention sheer determination, to be seen at the Olympic venues.

I was there to see how BOCOG (Beijing Organising Committee of the Olympic Games) approached the Paralympic celebrations and the 2008 Cultural Olympiad.   I was travelling independently and on behalf of the Legacy Trust UK in Wales which was funding my visit.   Of the four projects supported by the Legacy Trust that will run up to London 2012, one, which we’ve called Prometheus, will focus on disabled groups throughout Wales. So how did Beijing do it?

I had been to Beijing before some 10 years ago.  How things have changed!   Ten minutes after landing at the new Capital Airport I was already climbing into a taxi and on my way!

Thirty minutes later we were parking in the centre of Beijing by the side of the fabulous Forbidden City where my traditional and rather modest hotel was located.  En route from the airport I saw that the freeway had one lane for the sole use of Olympic and Paralympic teams... I was to notice this throughout Beijing.

The highlight of my visit was to visit the final day of the Young Advocates Programme run by the British Council.  Two hundred young people from all over the world, half of whom were disabled, had been invited to Beijing for the Paralympic Games.  In a week-long project they worked with professional dance practitioners including YEAST and NORTHERN BALLET to develop skills in dance, music, film making, sports and animation.  The bonds that had developed between them all were highly visible, highly supportive and life-changing.   

One blind young woman from Jordan danced to the accompaniment of a Chinese youngster who played the piano with his feet.   The star of the company was quite plainly James Lusted, a twenty-year old from Colwyn Bay who led several of the workshop groups, acted as first aider and who thought “the food in Beijing was much better than the local take-away on the North Wales coast”!    The final event of the day was a showcase of performances, of animation films and of films made during the previous few days.  What mutual respect these young people had for each other. 

What a contrast a couple of days later to attend a performance of “My Dream” at the Poly Theatre in downtown Beijing.  This was a two-hour long performance given exclusively by Chinese disabled young people – mostly sight and hearing impaired but with contributions from some without limbs.   This is a show that has been in development for a few years in response to Beijing 2008.  It was spectacular but it was patronising and ultimately, despite the great skills being demonstrated, it was disappointing.

I searched in vain for street performances.   I visited several exhibitions noticing that the labelling and captions were tri-lingual – Mandarin, English and French (the latter being the official language of the International Olympic Committee and International Paralympic Committee).  However aside from the city dressings of banners and flags and outdoor screens there were no outside performances in evidence. 

It would appear that the Chinese authorities had become increasingly concerned about gatherings in public following the torch relay debacle and so any animation of public spaces had been prohibited.   This was a major disappointment particularly in the Olympic Park for which I eventually managed to find a ticket.  Wide boulevards between the stadiums were empty of any arts or performances.  “Be visible” could well become the most important refrain of our own Cultural Olympiad.

Against the stunning backdrop of Somerset House, October 4th marked the beginning of Origin - The London Craft Fair. Organised by the Crafts Council, the national development agency for craft in the UK, the event has quickly become a ‘must see’ on the craft calendar and typifies the high quality, exciting work going on in the craft sector today.

Now in its third year, Origin provides the opportunity for makers and their audiences to meet, with nearly 300 exhibitors and many thousands of visitors attending over two weeks.

In 2008 seven makers from across Wales were selected by a prestigious panel of industry experts to exhibit at the event.

• Rebecca Ellen Edwards (Barry, South Wales), printed and embroidered wallpaper.
  
• Virginia Graham (Cardiff), hand built functional ceramics.
  
• Anna Lewis (Swansea), Mixed media contemporary Jewellery
  
• Claudia Lis (Montgomery, Powys), celadon glazed ceramics
  
• Hikaru Noguchi (Carmarthen) knitted scarves and blankets
  
• Laura Thomas (Cardiff) woven textile and cast acrylic
  
• James and Tilla Waters (carmarthenshire) wheel thrown ceramic vessels

Although initially there were fears that this year’s fair would be marred by external economic factors, the nervous anticipation was soon put to rest as the event proved highly successful for all the Welsh exhibitors with sales in excess of £30,000.

Laura Thomas is also celebrating her success as winner of the Wesley-Barrel Craft Award for interior textiles. She beat over one hundred other applicants to receive the £3000 prize and is particularly looking forward to the business mentoring that forms part of her award.

As well as Laura, both Anna Lewis and Virginia Graham were able to showcase new work developed as a result of their Creative Wales awards. Virginia used the event to launch her new textile range and was grateful for the opportunity to test the market.

Anna Lewis also wrote a report for us about her experiences at Origin:

Origin Report

Anna Lewis

This was the first time I have exhibited at Origin so I was initially unsure how it would compare with my previous experiences of showing at Chelsea Crafts Fair a few years earlier.  I was also anxious about sales and feedback as not only was I showing a new collection of jewellery this was coupled with worries how the current economic crisis would affect the show.  I need not have worried.  Overall the show was very successful for me, the economic slow down did not appear to affect peoples desire to buy work and my customers loved the new designs, which was a relief.

The Crafts Council made sure the whole event was incredibly well organised and beautifully presented.  The set up of the marquee was light and spacious and felt clean and contemporary. 

I showed my new collections ‘katami’ and ‘Omamori’ which incorporates printed wood and silk combined with silver and stones.  The work is inspired by themes which run through all my collections such as memory, superstition and the meaning of objects like amulets and heirlooms.  Trying to push the display of my work this time I chose to show some larger one off pieces and photographs in white vintage frames and other pins were suspended in antique glass domes which many people commented on.

Along with good sales to many private clients I was also lucky enough to receive interest in the collection from several galleries such as Contemporary Applied Arts, The Scottish Gallery and Ruthin Craft Centre who will shortly be showing my work.  Trade orders from The Workshop in Lewes and Mission Gallery were also important factors.  Other contacts with galleries, press and buyers I’m sure will result in future opportunities and the show is a great place for networking with new customers and also fellow exhibitors.

There was some very interesting work on display this year and many visitors commenting on the strength of the selection for week 2 of the event and I feel that there was a strong presence in representing contemporary craft from Wales.

**

In all it appears that Origin 2008 can be considered a tremendous success which will see long term benefits for all the Welsh makers involved and the Welsh craft sector as a whole. Now we await Origin 2009 at which this success can be further built upon.

On Wednesday, October 1 2008, the four main distributors of National Lottery funding in Wales: The Arts Council of Wales, Big Lottery Fund, Heritage Lottery Fund and the Sports Council for Wales, held an information event at The Gnoll, home of Neath Rugby Club.

The National Lottery Roadshow provided an opportunity for members of the public to learn more about lottery activities and funding in the Neath Port Talbot area.

The Arts Council of Wales presented recent Beacon Company Award recipient, Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea as a great example of Lottery funding working in the area.

To learn more about Lottery funding, please click on:http://www.lotteryfunding.org.uk

Many local promoters throughout Wales will be bringing colour and cheer to their communities over the coming months with a little help from Night Out - "the scheme that reaches the parts of Wales ..." well you know the rest!

Night Out has been striving hard to ensure that promoters are able to book quality shows and has organised a number of tours including one with Beacon Company Award recipients Clwyd Theatr Cymru TYP. They will be bringing Twilight Tales - winter tales from around the world to sixteen venues in twelve counties throughout the festive season and Night Out are thrilled to be launching this tour at a new scheme venue, The Oliver Jones Memorial Hall in Dolywern, Wrexham, on Saturday 29th November.

Two of these shows will be promoted by local young people through the Night Out Young Promoters Scheme.  Pupils at Pontnewynydd Primary School in Torfaen are excited to be working with their local Communities First and community members to bring the show to their school on Tuesday 9th December, while members of Soffryd Youth Club and Youth Council in Blaenau Gwent are working hard to organise a fantastic event on Sunday 21st December.
 
Opera Playhouse will be visiting over ten communities throughout December with "Christmas in the Parlour" a Victorian evening of festive tales, sing-along carols, fun, laughter and some of the most beautiful music written for the voice.
 
We were very lucky to be able to secure seven dates from Proteus Theatre from Hampshire who will be taking their version of Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen" to communities in north and south Wales in December and January.  The exciting show promises to be a unique fusing of film, circus and music.
 
Wales' Cwmni Theatr Arad Goch are touring a new play aimed at young people by talented Welsh writer Caryl Lewis.  ‘Yr Ystafell Aros’ is about growing up which looks our idea of success and how different individuals within one family can be.

The Selfish Giant

Sherman Cymru's delightful and highly recommended ‘Cinders’ is visiting a few venues in South Wales in November before returning to the Sherman Theatre for December.  We also have children's shows from two puppet theatre companies in December.  Freehand Theatre have a couple of dates for ‘Little Red ...You Know Who!’ and Sealegs Theatre are bringing ‘The Selfish Giant’ to Brynmawr.  Perennial Night Out favourites Circus Berzercus will be visiting a few venues in December and January with their very funny combination of circus, clowning and magic.
 
One last word goes out to Dan and Jeff, the ‘Potted Potter’ boys who experienced a first for them in Dowlais, Merthyr Tydfil where a small audience member insisted that they be shot with a water pistol rather than accept a chocolate frog.  Dan was therefore forced to fire a very large water pistol at a very tiny blonde girl in front of more then a hundred people- apparently only in Wales!
 
All of these events plus lots of other great performances are listed on the Night Out website athttp://www.nightout.org.uk 

The Clore Leadership Programme was created in response to the difficulties many organisations have experienced in recruiting and retaining leaders at many different levels. It is an initiative of the Clore Duffield Foundation which aims to strengthen leadership across a wide range of cultural activities including; the visual and performing arts, film, heritage, museums, libraries and archives, creative industries and cultural policy and administration. It is designed to help develop the skills, knowledge, networks and experience of potential leaders in the cultural sector.

The Clore Leadership Programme believes that at present we have some outstanding cultural leaders in the UK, but that they tend to emerge by accident rather than by design and the aim of this programme is to put some of the "design" in place, so that over time we can create a new generation of potential leaders.

I started my fellowship in September this year and I am planning to complete it full time over 12 months. The Programme is flexible and within my own cohort there are people who are completing the fellowship alongside their current jobs or freelance careers. There is certainly no single model to being a leader so Clore offers a range of different opportunities and it is very much a programme that works to every individuals own needs and objectives.

There are four main core elements to the programme; a range of tuition opportunities to develop skills in areas such as finance, media training, emotional intelligence, fundraising and governance; a three to four month secondment to an organisation very different to your own previous experience; a research project investigating an area of culture that has relevance to your own field of work; and you also receive a mentor.

So far, I have completed two residential training courses and am currently concentrating on my research project working with Cardiff University, I have yet to pin down all my thoughts but I am looking at investigating the role of National organisations in relation to diversity and the production of cultural identities.

Being a Clore fellow has given me access to a great number of opportunities and it has widened my horizons in a way that previously I probably didn’t realise was possible. The best thing is definitely having the time to think, to meet new and different people and to develop my own ideas around leadership and the future development of culture in Wales.

If you want to know more about the Clore Leadership Programme or what I am getting up to over the year visit the website http://www.cloreleadership.org or contact me on evansee@btinternet.com

The Arts Council of Wales has modified its logo.

You can download the new logo and the revised brand guidelines from the Arts Council of Wales’s website:http://www.artswales.org/page.asp?id=168

As always there’s a great range of Christmas arts events taking place across Wales. Sherman Cymru, for example, will be retelling one of the greatest fairytales of all time with the enchanting Cinders for the under 6s.

Based on the story of Cinderella, Cinders will use music and puppetry to bring this well loved tale to life. Children will transported into a magical world where they will meet four charming mischievous fairy folk, the Crimbils, who live at the bottom of the Cinder’s garden. The Crimbils must rescue Cinders from her evil Sept Mother and nasty Ugly Sisters and get her to the ball on time to meet the Prince.

Cinders is written and directed by Louise Osborn, who has previously written for Channel 4’s Hollyoaks and is currently Associate Director with Cardiff’s Hijinx Theatre.

Sherman Cymru is also presenting The Snow Queen directed by Anna Linstrum, who comes straight from working as Associate Director alongside Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber on The Sound of Music on the West End.

The Snow Queen, originally written by Hans Christian Andersen, has been adapted for the stage by Charles Way, who wrote Sherman’s 2007 Christmas show, Beauty and the Beast.

The Snow Queen

The Snow Queen rules her magical kingdom with a heart of ice. When her enchanted mirror shatters and shards fall into a Cei’s eye, he falls under her evil spell. Only Gerda, Cei’s friend believes he can be rescued and sets out on a life-changing journey to save Cei.

Cinders is currently touring Wales before returning to the Sherman for Christmas from 2 December – 27 December. The Snow Queen can be seen at the Sherman from 28 November – 10 January.

Tickets for the ‘Cinders’ performance at Sherman are £7.50 and £6 and from £10 for ‘The Snow Queen’ and can be booked from the Box Office on 029 2064 6900 or online athttp://www.shermancymru.co.uk Oriel Ynys Môn in Angelsey will be hosting its annual Christmas Craft Fair again this year.  In addition to the 40 craft workers selling a range of quality handmade gifts in the Art Gallery - the Gallery shop, Jac Do, also boasts a range of innovative crafts from around 40 different craft workers, as well as unique gifts that will appeal to those of you looking for that something a little bit different.
You can also visit the gallery after work during its late night openings on Friday 28 November and Thursday, 4 and 11 of December.

Over 60 of Wales' crafts makers also descended on St Donats Arts Centre and Castle on Sunday, November 23 for the centre's annual Christmas Crafts Fayre.

 The highly popular event regularly attracts over 2,000 attenders from all over from south Wales tempted by the high quality of the hand-crafted items that can't be found in shops, the live music and local food stalls.

This year, crafts people from mid to west Wales and the Valleys exhibited innovative Christmas present ideas ranging from small items of finely-made jewellery to large pieces of bespoke furniture, exclusive hand-bag designs to beautiful and unusual hand-made silks, scarves and soft furnishings.

For more information, please click on:http://www.stdonats.com

Mission Gallery Swansea, also has an abundance of Christmas Crafts and Jewellery for you to choose from, so remember to pay them a visit!  For more information, please click on: http://www.missiongallery.co.uk

International Ceramics Festival 2009

Bookings opened on the 1st November 2008 for the 2009 International Ceramics Festival - one of the world's most prestigious events for professional and amateur potters.

The festival will run from Friday 3 - Sunday 5 July 2009 in Aberystwyth Arts Centre. Amongst the highlights there will be demonstrations and a lecture by the highly influential American ceramicist, Don Reitz, spectacular kilns from Nina Hole and Tom Barnett, plus demonstrations of thrown, slab built and sculptural ceramics.

For further information about the 2009 festival please contact Louise Amery on (01970) 622889 or email lla@aber.ac.uk

Get your work on the BBC’s Big Screens!

The LONDON ORGANISING COMMITTEE of the OLYMPIC GAMES (LOCOG) has put a big screen “LIVE SITES” programme at the heart of its offering to the UK public in the four year build up from Beijing (2008) to London (2012). In Wales, big screens are located at the Hayes, Cardiff; and at Swansea’s Castle Square.

As well as being content providers the BBC editorially manage the screens. In addition to a schedule of regularly updated news, weather and sports loops there’s an opportunity for you to showcase community content.

Each screen is in operation daily between 7am and 11pm and customised to reflect life in its host community. For much of the time, the screen is split via a number of dynamic templates. Although video runs on most of the screen there is also a text box which supports localised information such as a City Diary.

To enable the right mix of content to be screened within an hour there are set time limits to film content. During peak hours all film content needs to be between 2 minutes and 2 minutes 30 seconds. During the off peak hours (Mon to Fri 0915 to 1200, 1430 to 1700, 1900 to 0000, Weekends 0700 to 0000) content can be between 30 seconds and 7 minutes 30 seconds.

However, there will be occasions where the screens will be showing set film programmes on a weekend, or other occasion, and this will be an opportunity for longer pieces of content to be included within the schedule.

The BBC can only accept pre-watershed material and all work submitted must have full clearances for rights including music and other talent rights covered.

For further information or to submit content please get in touch with Stephen Morgan, BBC Wales Screen Manager onm 02920 322026 or email:
stephen.morgan@bbc.co.ukhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/bigscreens

The Crafts Council’s new funding initiative, ‘The Fifty:Fifty Programme’

The Crafts Council is launching its major new initiative, The Fifty:Fifty Programme.

This new collaborative exhibition scheme seeks organisations to work with the Crafts Council to develop ambitious and challenging exhibitions.

The Crafts Council wishes to work with UK based galleries and venues to co-curate and deliver partnership exhibitions. Funds, ideas and resources will be joined and shared equally on a fifty:fifty basis. This new initiative seeks to develop projects that are match funded by the Crafts Council, with the equal contribution being a maximum of £50,000 (across two financial years.)
The Crafts Council are looking for a partner that can offer:

• a project team
  
• match funding
  
• a venue/display location
  
• a learning and support programme

Different approaches to partnership will be dictated by the selection of the partner and the resources they have in place.
Interested organisations are required to apply by sending a proposal to the Crafts Council by 16 February 2009. The successful project will be announce by March/April 2009.

Proposal application forms are available from the website: www.craftscouncil.org.uk/ or by emailing Charlotte Dew, Exhibitions Project Officer:

c_dew@craftscouncil.org.uk