The multi media welsh artist Christine Mills is an artist that responds to location and life within a particular space, this undoubtedly dictates the media in which she works.Although she spent some years in London while training in London Art colleges, she returned to Wales to set up her studio, where she is a full time professional Artist.
The work which has references to her cultural welsh roots is represented in many major collections in Wales, she has recently had an exhibition in south America, Patagonia, and in June will be representing Wales in the Smithsonian Folk-life festival in Washington, America. In August 2009 her latest commission is opening in the National Eisteddfod of Wales where she has worked on an installation piece with a contemporary composer, and a poet.
Born: 1961 Llangadfan, Montgomeryshire
College: 1979 Foundation Course Central School of Art and Design, London
1980/84 BA Hons. Degree Goldsmiths College, University College, London
Employment:
1985 Rowley House Museum and Art Gallery, Shrewsbury
1985/87 Bangor Museum and Art Gallery. University College North Wales Bangor. Assistant Curator’
Exhibition organiser for Theatr Gwynedd
1987/88 Wrexham Library Art Centre – Exhibitions Officer
1989/95 Oriel 31/Oriel Davies, Newton, Powys – Education Officer
Teaching: 1995/2005Coleg Meirion Dwyfor, Dolgellau – part time lecturer in Art and Design
2005 Manchester Metropolitan University Art College. Associate Lecturer.
Residencies:
1989 Banw Primary School (6 weeks)
2001 Montgomeryshire primary and high schools
2003 Meifod National Eisteddfod of Wales – Cywaith Cymru and National Museum of Wales. (6 months)
2005 Bala primary schools and community (9 months)
2005 ‘Shropshire Hills’ Craven Arms, Shropshire (6 months)
2006 National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth – Cywaith Cymru. (12 months).
2007 Glanrafon primary School,Mold Clwyd ( 8 weeks)
Exhibitions:
2006 National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth.
National Library Pavilion at National Urdd Eisteddfod, Rhuthun
Contemporary Welsh Arts Society at National Library of Wales
2005 Kells, Ireland – Strata. Ystrad Fflur – Strata. Curator Tim Davies
2005 Bala – Plase. ‘Communicating in Wool’
2004 100th Anniversary of Royal Welsh Show. Toured to National Library of Wales. Curator Jill Piercy
2003 National Eisteddfod of Wales, Meifod, Arts and Crafts Pavilion. Residency exhibition selection travelled to National Museum.
2002/03 National Eisteddfod – Arts and Crafts Pavilion
2001/05 ‘Wales Drawing Bienale’ Aberystwyth Arts Centre. Travelled to Wrexham Library Arts Centre.
2002 ‘Farmers Daughters’. Rhuthun Craft Centre. Curator Philip Hughes
Public collections include:
1. National Library of Wales
2. National Museum of Wales, Cardiff
3. Contemporary Art Society of Wales
4. University Wales Bangor
5. Gregynog Collection, University of Wales
6. MOMA Wales, Tabernacl, Machynlleth
7. National welsh film Archive
Publications:
2000 ‘Farmers Daughters’. Exhibition catalogue
2003 Planet. No. 161
2005 Planet. No. 173
2005 Ground Breaking. The Artist in the Changing Landscape, Cywaith Cymru. Edited Iwan Bala
Lectures:
2003 National Eisteddfod, Meifod
2004 Bodelwyddan Castle
2004 Oriel Davies, Newtown
2004 Cywaith Cymru, Cardiff
2005 MAC, Birmingham
2005 Oxford University
2005 Swansea Institute, part of UCW
2006 Drwm, National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth
Media:
2003 HTV Wales
2003 a 2006S4C – Sioe Gelf
2003/05/06 Radio Cymru
2005 Radio 4
2007 Reviewed the Turner prize for S4C television.
‘Creu Synnwyr’ (Making sense)
This work is collaboration by Welsh artist Christine Mills, and Carlos Pinatti, an Argentinean artist based in Wales. The multi media project was a six month residency, supported by the National Eisteddfod of Wales (an annual cultural festival), the National Museum of Wales and Cywaith Cymru (a public arts funding body). The project involved the artists working with the community to create a piece of work for the Art Pavilion at the National Eisteddfod 2003, located in rural mid Wales, and hosted by Christine Mills’s home county of Maldwyn. The county of Maldwyn is rich in both culture and agriculture and the artists wished to celebrate the beauty of the land and life on the land. They worked with the theme of ‘identity’ and the change of identity within agriculture and society in that part of the world. The collection of work includes an eight minute film plus sculpture and a photograph.
DVD
The film tells the story as a sketch book. It begins with the beauty of the land and how the farmers mark their sheep with ‘identity’ mark codes. These marks include spray marking of letters and numbers, plus the cutting into the lambs ears. Where open ground allows sheep to wander, each hill farm has a code of ‘identity’- the printing of a farmer’s initials on the newly shorn sheep using iron ‘pitch’ marks.
The film also shows how a farmer, himself, changes the ‘identity’ of a motherless lamb by skinning a dead lamb and placing the ‘adoption coat’ as it is known, onto the orphan lamb. The orphan is then introduced to the mother of the dead lamb - she recognises the scent and accepts the lamb as her own. A change of ‘identity’ with a successful adoption.
The ‘skinning’ - an ancient craft illustrated in the contemporary context using the modern craft knife - is a true skill related to a particular culture.
During this process in the film, the local school is introduced. A teacher is shown using her skills - teaching the Welsh language and culture to the new immigrant children - helping them to become accepted and be part of the land.
The school is depicted as an ‘adoption coat’ and the work is seen as a tribute to the teachers. Also a ‘thank you’ to the new comers of rural mid Wales who respect the language and culture and who introduce new blood for the future cultural health and identity of mid Wales.
The film shows challenging imagery of a particular culture in a small pocket in the world, however, the issues and questions raised are relevant to larger nations - questions of mass migration, factory farming, and cultural identity. Hopefully it is seen as an uplifting and embracing film.
Adoption coat 1
To accompany the film, Christine Mills shows a 3D artwork. The lamb’s coat, after adoption, is often hung on a farm yard cowshed door, now irrelevant, and waiting to be discarded, this being the first ‘coat’ sculpture.
Adoption coat 2
Her second ‘adoption coat’ is simply the school itself, depicted here with a row of coat pegs showing Welsh names written above the pegs, except one, that has an English name and has a green felted woollen coat hanging on it’s peg. Inside the coat is a suggestion of a slate inside with the beginnings of the Welsh alphabet.
Adoption coat 3
For her third ‘coat’ Christine Mills constructed a coat as a half coat and half blackboard, made of Welsh black wool, with the beginnings of the Welsh alphabet and words from the Welsh dialect related to that particular part of mid Wales.
Born:1961Llangadfan, Montgomeryshire
College:1979Foundation Course Central School of Art and Design, London
1980/84 BA Hons. Degree Goldsmiths College, University College, London
Employment:
1985 Rowley House Museum and Art Gallery, Shrewsbury
1985/87Bangor Museum and Art Gallery. University College North Wales Bangor. Assistant Curator’
Exhibition organiser for Theatr Gwynedd
1987/88Wrexham Library Art Centre – Exhibitions Officer
1989/95Oriel 3Davies, Newton, Powys – Education Officer
Teaching:
1995/2005Coleg Meirion Dwyfor, Dolgellau – part time
lecturer in Art and Design
2005Manchester Metropolitan University Art College. Associate Lecturer.
Residencies:
1989Banw Primary School (6 weeks)
2001Montgomeryshire primary and high schools
2003Meifod National Eisteddfod of Wales – Cywaith Cymru and National Museum of Wales. (6 months)
2005Bala primary schools and community (9 months)
2005‘Shropshire Hills’ Craven Arms, Shropshire (6 months)
2006National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth – Cywaith Cymru. (12 months).
2007Glanrafon primary School,Mold Clwyd ( 8 weeks)
Exhibitions:
2006National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth.
National Library Pavilion at National Urdd Eisteddfod, Rhuthun
Contemporary Welsh Arts Society at National Library of Wales
2005Kells, Ireland – Strata. Ystrad Fflur – Strata. Curator Tim Davies
2005Bala – Plase. ‘Communicating in Wool’
2004100th Anniversary of Royal Welsh Show. Toured to National Library of Wales. Curator Jill Piercy
2003National Eisteddfod of Wales, Meifod, Arts and Crafts Pavilion. Residency exhibition selection travelled to National Museum.
2002/03National Eisteddfod – Arts and Crafts Pavilion
2001/05‘Wales Drawing Bienale’ Aberystwyth Arts Centre. Travelled to Wrexham Library Arts Centre.
2002‘Farmers Daughters’. Rhuthun Craft Centre. Curator Philip Hughes
Amongst others
Public collections include:
1. National Library of Wales
2. National Museum of Wales, Cardiff
3. Contemporary Art Society of Wales
4.University Wales Bangor
5.Gregynog Collection, University of Wales
6.MOMA Wales, Tabernacl, Machynlleth
7.National welsh film Archive
Publications:
2000 ‘Farmers Daughters’. Exhibition catalogue
2003 Planet. No. 161~
2005 Planet. No. 173
2005 Ground Breaking. The Artist in the Changing Landscape, Cywaith Cymru. Edited Iwan Bala
Lectures:
2003 National Eisteddfod, Meifod
2004 Bodelwyddan Castle
2004 Oriel Davies, Newtown
2004 Cywaith Cymru, Cardiff
2005 MAC, Birmingham
2005 Oxford University
2005 Swansea Institute, part of UCW
2006 Drwm, National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth
Media:
2003 HTV Wales
2003 - 2006S4C – Sioe Gelf
2003/05/06 Radio Cymru
2005 Radio 4
2007 Reviewed the Turner prize for S4C television.
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