IWAN BALA HEL MEDDYLIAU | COLLECTING THOUGHTS 17.04 – 17.05.26

TEN presents a major solo exhibition by Iwan Bala, one of Cymru’s most influential contemporary artists, marking his 70th birthday with a powerful new body of work.

A defining voice in the exploration of cultural identity and the cultural cartography of Cymru, Bala creates work that is both visceral and intellectually charged. His practice navigates the terrain of memory, language, and heritage, balancing the political with the deeply personal, the ancient with the contemporary.

This exhibition brings together new and recent works that revisit the enduring themes of Bala’s career: the preservation, evolution, and decolonisation of Welsh culture. Language—Cymraeg, English, Catalan—threads through the pieces, with fragments of poetry and prose acting as anchors for the imagery. Bala’s political engagement remains uncompromising; his satirical lens frequently turns toward global injustices and the leaders who shape them.

Motifs from Welsh lore pulse through the collection: Y Fari Lwyd, Tafod y Ddraig, figures from the Mabinogi such as Ysbadadden, and Pair y Dadeni. Bala’s iconic topographical maps—where the outline of Cymru becomes a female form—reappear as intimate embodiments of nationhood. Mother, sister, lover: these shifting identities reflect Bala’s lifelong dialogue with place, forming a vast, ongoing love letter to Cymru.

Working in drawing, painting, and collage, Bala uses handmade Indian Khadi paper—tactile, resilient, and capable of holding dense layers of ink and paint. The material has taken on new resonance since Bala discovered that cotton garments in 19th- and 20th‑century India were worn as an act of anti‑English resistance. This historical echo deepens the political charge already embedded in his work.

Iwan Bala’s practice stands as a vital bridge between Cymru’s mythic past and its complex present. HEL MEDDYLIAU celebrates not only the land, language, and legends that shape his vision, but also the artist’s extraordinary contribution to the cultural life of his country.

Wednesday – Saturday 10:30 – 17:00
The Coach house, R/O 143 Donald St, Cardiff
info@gallery-ten.co.uk | 02920 600 495