The opening reception for WSWNE member Margaret Lloyd’s SLATEWORKS art exhibition was held on December 6, 2018 in the Burnett Gallery of the Jones Library in Amherst, MA. Margaret emigrated with her family to a Welsh community in upstate New York at a young age, and still maintains close ties to Wales.
Margaret engraves and paints on specially prepared roofing slate, which is quarried either in Wales, New York, or Vermont. The artwork includes landscapes inspired by Wales, slate fences and cromlechs found in Wales, and even an engraving of a pair of 1930’s hobnail boots worn by a Welsh slate quarryman.
In the mid 1800’s, a large slate mining industry developed around Fairhaven, VT and Granville, NY.
Many hundreds of Northwest Wales slate miners settled there, and the area became a hub of Welsh immigration. Though demand for roofing slate has fallen off, the stone is still quarried for architectural, landscaping, and decorative uses, and active slate quarries continue to operate in both the USA and Wales.
Margaret Lloyd welcomed everyone to the exhibit, and then discussed her work and answered questions. Refreshments were available, including Welsh cakes baked by the artist, and Celtic harpist Sarah McKee played several Welsh songs. The reception was well-attended, and several members of WSWNE were present to support the artist. All pieces in the exhibit are for sale.
Margaret’s book, Travelling on My Own Errands: Voices of Women from The Mabinogi is her fourth collection of original poetry, excerpts from which she delightfully read at a recent WSWNE luncheon.
Additional information about the artist can be found at margaretlloyd.net.
from the WSWNE 2019 Spring Newsletter; to read more newsletter articles visit Our Newsletters Page in the Past Events + News menu.