National Library of Wales exhibit brings Kyffin Williams' work 'to life'

For the first time, the paintings of Sir Kyffin Williams have been brought to life in a new immersive experience at the National Library of Wales.

Technology similar to that used for exhibitions of Van Gogh, Cézanne and LS Lowry will immerse visitors in the mountain landscapes, hillfarms and stormy seas created by the painter, who is considered the defining Welsh artist of the 20th Century.

Images from Williams's oil paintings such as the hill farmer and sheepdog are animated in a 360-degree centrepiece and Sir Kyffin's life story is narrated by Sir Bryn Terfel in a bilingual presentation, with original paintings illuminated on the walls.

The National Library, which received grants of £500,000 to fund the project, said it hoped it will introduce a new audience to Sir Kyffin's work.

There are also interactive installations including a recreation of a self-portrait which can be touched, giving visitors a sense of the texture of Sir Kyffin's oil paintings.

He painted using an impasto technique - where paint is applied so thickly on to a canvas that it stands out in three dimensions.

Sir Kyffin, who was born on Anglesey in 1918, had a long relationship with the National Library, in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, which has about 2,000 pieces of his work in its collection.

In 1950 the library bought its first two pieces from the young artist soon after he left the Slade School of Fine Art in London.

Morfudd Bevan, art curator at the National Library of Wales, said the library paid £15 for an oil painting of Cader Idris and £7.10 for an ink and wash drawing of Tre'r Ceiri on the Llŷn Peninsula.

Today, original work by Sir Kyffin sells for tens of thousands of pounds.

Bevan added: "The library saw the potential of this young artist.

"It was really important that we were encouraging and supporting young artists at the beginning of their careers, when Kyffin was trying to establish himself as a professional artist."

It was the start of a close bond with the artist.

When he died in September 2006, he left a substantial part of his estate to the library, more than 1,200 works on paper, about 200 oil paintings, more than 300 original prints and his personal archive.

The national library holds the largest collection of Sir Kyffin's work in the world.

The library hopes the new attraction will introduce more people to his work.

Director of experience Carys Ifan said: "It's by no means a traditional exhibition.

"You go on a journey, literally moving through three rooms that used to be old offices. They've been repurposed because we are so keen to open up more and more to the public."

Profiad Kyffin Experience was made possible by technology invented by Focal Studios, an immersive experience company and the main designers of the exhibition.

Chief executive Dennis Outten said working on the project had been a "labour of love" and an "incredible journey for everyone involved".

Focal Studios worked with another company, leo&hyde, to animate Sir Kyffin's paintings in a 360-degree immersive experience so they come alive in projections on the walls and floor.

"It's like you're in one of his paintings, I love it," Outten said.

"It's not like virtual reality, because you can hold the hand of your child, you can sit there with your grandmother or your friend and you experience it together. I think that's incredibly powerful."

Inside the "projection cave", visitors see scenes painted by Sir Kyffin come alive as the cattle, waterfalls, the farmer and his sheepdog move around them.

Outten said high fidelity scans of Sir Kyffin's original work and creative techniques helped bring the paintings to life.

"We actually created a 3D model of Kyffin's farmer and dog, and then using animation techniques, puppeteering them essentially to move."

Rhodri Llwyd Morgan, the library's chief executive, said the new experience is part of a strategy "to be more popular, more appealing and that's our aim".

The experience was formally launched on Thursday and opens to the public from 18 November.

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