Clyde Holmes At The MOMA Machynlleth

Clyde Holmes was a London born artist, but his heart lay in the heart of Wales. In 1970 he moved with his family to a remote Shepherd cottage near Bala, in the heart of the beautiful Snowdonia National Park, For the next 30+ years it was this area that inspired his work in painting and poetry. He said:-

My painting was concerned with expressing the mystery and the power of the wilder aspects of welsh landscapes which we’re all part of – there’s no difference between nature outside us and nature inside us.

In my painting I’ve been attempting to express the silent dialogue between light and dark. We all live somewhere between lightness and darkness.”

I am a great believer in serendipity. I’m currently in Wales myself, and. on Tuesday, we had taken a trip the the wonderful Betsw-y-coed, another wonderful town in Snowdonia. On the way back the hubby and I were chatting away and missed a turn on the Satnav. We followed the rerouted roads and ended up high in the mountains of Snowdonia on roads that were little more than single lane tracks, seemingly traveling higher and higher with each turn. I was a little scared – at times the drops seemed very steep, but was also enchanted by the miles of almost barren beauty that stretched out. As I normally do, I reached for my camera, snapping away at the views below.

When we got back from our adventure I started planning the next days jaunt, and decided to look up art exhibitions in Wales to see what was showing at MOMA Machynlleth, one of my favourite modern art galleries. When I saw it was the Clyde Holmes exhibition, and particularly saw the painting below, it felt like serendipity. Why? Check out my third photograph.

I’m pretty sure my photograph is the same view as the Clyde Holmes untitled painting, and that meant I had to go and see the rest. It was just fated to be. The exhibition is called Uplandscapes and it is full of the most beautiful landscapes of Snowdonia, in all their bleak magnificent glory. You can totally see why Clyde was so inspired by the land around him. The lakes, the mountains, the endless peaks and troughs, the valley and unusual flora and fauna, it’s all there to love and admire.