Iwan Bala (born Richard Iwan Ellis Roberts) is a Welsh artist, born May 1956 in Sarnau,

Merionethshire , HQ= Dolgellau , Government= Merionethshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= , Status= , Start= 1284 , End= , Code= MER , CodeName= ...

, near Bala.Iwan Bala profile
BBC Wales North west, last updated September 2009.

Biography

Iwan Bala was raised in Gwyddelwern, near Corwen, Denbighshire, and attended

Ysgol y Berwyn Ysgol y Berwyn is a high-school situated in the town of Bala, in Gwynedd, north Wales. According to the 2013 Estyn report, 79% of pupils are from Welsh-speaking homes. In 2017, 80% of pupils achieved 5 or more GCSEs at grades A*-C. In Septembe ...

comprehensive school in Bala. He studied geography and politics at the

University of Aberystwyth , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

from 1974, then from 1975 until 1977 he studied fine art at Cardiff College of Art. He gained an MA in fine art from the University of Wales Institute Cardiff in 1993.http://www.gomer.co.uk/gomer/cy/gomer.ViewAuthor/authorBio/1292 Curriculum Vitae
, Iwanbala.com Bala is Welsh-speaking. In 1990 he became artist in residence at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe.Iwan Bala
'Byd o Liw', S4C, 2006. In 1993 he presented the S4C arts programme ''Delweddau Zimbabwe'' (). From 2007 to 2015 Bala was senior lecturer at the School of Creative Arts and Humanities at

University of Wales, Trinity Saint David , image = Crest of TSD.png , image_size = 200px , caption = Coat of armsUniversity of Wales Trinity Saint David , established = 2010 (Saint David's College, Lampeter founded 1822 and opened 1827; royal charter 1828) , ...

, Carmarthen.Biography
, Iwanbala.com Bala creates his art-work using memorised and imagined maps and landscapes, commenting on Welsh culture. He has won many prizes including the Gold Medal in Fine Art at the National Eisteddfod of Wales in 1997 (and a prize winner in 1988, 1989 and 1993). He won the Glyndŵr Award in 1998, "for outstanding contributions to the arts in Wales". He has also been recipient of grants from the Arts Council of Wales, including a travel grant to visit

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

in 1990, research funding for "Certain Welsh Artists", a collection of essays published by

Seren Books Seren Books is the trading name of Poetry Wales Press, a small independent publisher based in Bridgend, Wales, specialising in English-language writing from WalesFelicity Wood (23 August 2013). Rhyme and reason: The poetry market is a notoriously ...

in 1999 and a Career Development Grant ( printmaking) 2001. He was also awarded a Wales Art International travel grant to Galicia in 2004 and

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

in 2007. Bala's work is held in many public and private collections including the

National Museum Wales National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

(Derek Williams Trust), the Museum of Modern Art Wales, the Imperial War Museum, the Contemporary Art Society for Wales, Newport Museum and Art Gallery,

Y Gaer Y Gaer () is a Roman fort situated near modern-day Brecon in Mid Wales, United Kingdom. Y Gaer is located at (Landranger 160). History Y Gaer was built around AD 75 and sits on a crossroads of Roman roads in the valley of the River Usk at a ...

, A Fundacion Casa Museo "A Solaina" de Pilono, Galicia, The

University of Glamorgan , image_name = University of Glamorgan arms.png , image_size = 220px , caption = University of Glamorgan coat of arms , motto = Success Through Endeavour , established = , closed = , administrative_staff = , chancellor = John Morris ...

and The National Library of Wales. In 2012 Bala collaborated with poet, and fellow lecturer at Trinity Saint David's,

Menna Elfyn Menna Elfyn FLSW (born 1952) is a Welsh poet, playwright, columnist, and editor who writes in Welsh. She has been widely commended and translated. She was imprisoned for her campaigning as a Welsh-language activist. Background During the 1970s ...

for an exhibition called ''Field-notes''.Polly March
"Fieldnotes – an exhibition by Iwan Bala and Menna Elfyn"
BBC Wales blog, 28 December 2011.

Publications

* ''Intimate Portraits'', 1995 ( Seren)Iwan Bala: Books by this author
Seren Books. * ''Welsh Art Goes International'', 1996 (

Planet A planet is a large, rounded astronomical body that is neither a star nor its remnant. The best available theory of planet formation is the nebular hypothesis, which posits that an interstellar cloud collapses out of a nebula to create a you ...

)http://www.planetmagazine.org.uk/html/newsite/index.htm * ''Welsh Painters Talking'', 1997 (Seren) * ''Appropriate Behaviour'', 1997 (Planet) * ''Darllen Delweddau'' (), 2000 (

Gwasg Carreg Gwalch Gwasg Carreg Gwalch () is a publishing company based in Llanrwst, Wales. They specialise in publishing works in the Welsh language, but also publish English-language books of Welsh interest. The company was founded by Myrddin ap Dafydd in 1980, ...

) * ''Certain Welsh Artists'', 1999 (Seren) * ''here+now'', 2004 (Seren) * ''Groundbreaking – The Artist in the Changing Landscape'', 2005 (Seren) * ''Hon, Ynys y Galon'' (), 2007 (

Gwasg Gomer Gomer Press (Welsh: ''Gwasg Gomer'') is a family printing (and formerly publishing) company based in Llandysul, west Wales. It was the largest publishing house in Wales. History The company was first established in 1892 and began as a general sto ...

)

References

External links

Iwan Bala's websiteBBC: Places and pictures
*
BBC: Report on Iwan Bala's exhibition with poet Mena Elfyn by Polly March
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20130725130316/http://www.trinitysaintdavid.ac.uk/en/news/newsarchives/trinityuniversitycollege/name,1029,en.html Trinity Saint David: Overview of Iwan Balabr>British Council: Overview of Iwan BalaWales Arts International: Overview of Iwan Bala
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bala, Iwan 1956 births 20th-century Welsh painters 20th-century Welsh male artists 21st-century Welsh painters 21st-century Welsh male artists Living people Gwyddelwern Alumni of Cardiff School of Art and Design Alumni of Aberystwyth University Welsh Eisteddfod Gold Medal winners Welsh male painters