Two of Wales’ cultural organisations have come together to form a unique partnership focused specifically on the history and status of women.
The partnership will see the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth offering a programme of events on the National Eisteddfod’s virtual ‘maes’ this year as part of Eisteddfod AmGen.Included will be events about eminent women, a discussion on diversity in our national collections, evaluating how women are represented in history and archival records.
Various activities will include a Q&A session by the Welsh Music Archive with Gwenan Gibbard (Caneuon cuddiedig yn archif Mered a Phyllis – the hidden songs in the Mered and Phyllis archive), a second chance to watch some of the Curators Present series and O’r Archif (From the Archive) sessions with the Welsh Music Archive and Tŷ Gwerin.
There will also be performances and presentations by some of the artists that were recently commissioned by the Unlocking Your Sound Heritage project.
To crown it all, two special events will be broadcast during the week of the Eisteddfod. On Monday, August 3 at 6:30pm, the library’s art curator Morfudd Bevan will look at the life and work of the artist Brenda Chamberlain, winner of the first two gold medals presented by the National Eisteddfod.
Then, on Friday, August 7 at 12:30pm, a special discussion panel will be held: Where are the Women? – Rebalancing Our Historical Record, chaired by Meri Huws, library president. The panel will include Elin Jones, MS and presiding officer of Senedd Cymru, Efa Lois, Ceridwen Lloyd Morgan and Catrin Stevens.
Meri Huws said:
“The National Library of Wales is pleased to be part of this exciting partnership with the National Eisteddfod which gives us an opportunity to share information about the wealth of our collections, through the expertise of our staff and other activities, on a national stage.
“We’re also pleased to be part of the Eisteddfod’s campaign to raise the profile of women, and give them well-deserved place in our history, culture and historical records.”
Betsan Moses, the National Eisteddfod’s chief executive, added:
“We welcome this opportunity to develop the partnership. The recent lockdown period has presented an opportunity for organisations to share information about their collections and has allowed us to look at new and exciting ways to work together.
“We’re very pleased to have the chance to share the expertise of the staff at the library as part of Eisteddfod AmGen this year, and are looking forward to being able to develop the relationship further in the future.”
