Gypsy Maker - Gypsy and Traveller artists to tour Wales
Launch at Tŷ Pawb 19th January 2024 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm
Full schedule at the bottom of the article:
The Romani Cultural & Arts Company (RCAC) is excited to announce the launch of the latest edition of their ground-breaking Gypsy Maker project. Gypsy Makers is a new touring exhibition that will feature work from artists that the RCAC has commissioned since the inception of the Gypsy Maker initiative in 2014. The Gypsy Makers touring exhibition will show new and existing artworks to mark the tenth anniversary of the Gypsy Maker programme which has been fully supported by the Arts Council of Wales.
Artworks from each of Gypsy Maker shows will be included in order to best represent the full range of voices and diverse practices that the GM programme has platformed to date. Existing artworks from the RCAC art collection, will be displayed alongside newly commissioned artworks made specially for the 2024 exhibition. The Gypsy Makers tour will be accompanied by a programme of artist-led workshops that will expand upon themes within the show and further enlighten audiences regarding each artist’s practice.
Gypsy Makers will include works by the artists Daniel Baker, Billy Kerry, Artur Conka, Corrina Eastwood, Cas Holmes, Rosamaria Kostic Cisneros, Shamus McPhee and Dan Turner and is funded by the Arts Council of Wales.
The Gypsy Maker initiative supports the development of innovative creative works by Gypsy, Roma and Traveller artists. The Gypsy Makers exhibition in 2024 expands the work of the RCAC by continuing to engage GRT communities with the wider public in an ongoing dialogue about the ways in which art continues to inform our lives today.
The Romani Cultural and Arts Company (RCAC) was formed by its Director, Isaac Blake, in September 2009 as a registered charity. Working through the arts the RCAC raises funds to take community development and arts and educational projects onto Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) sites and into wider non-GRT communities across Wales.
“We are so proud to continue our ground-breaking work with GRT artists, with support from the Arts Council of Wales. This project will strengthen the role of Gypsies, Roma and Travellers on the arts scene in Wales, the UK and beyond.” Isaac Blake; Director of the Romani Cultural & Arts Company
“The ground-breaking work of the RCAC in supporting Gypsy, Roma and Traveller artists is unparalleled. The Gypsy Maker project is unique worldwide in commissioning new bodies of work by GRT artists thus enabling the production of significant new knowledge from an underrepresented group and making a valuable contribution to international contemporary art and cultural discourse.” Dr Daniel Baker
There remain many negative pre-conceptions relating to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities. The Gypsy Maker programme has continued to challenge these pre-conceptions by significantly increasing knowledge and public awareness of the dynamic, long-standing (yet often hidden) heritage of artistic endeavour and creativity within Gypsy, Roma & Traveller communities. As an organisation the RCAC remains excited about this project and its scope for adding value to the cultural and artistic landscape of Wales and beyond.
Gypsy Makers Exhibition Tour Schedule 2024
Tŷ Pawb Market Street, Wrexham, Wales, LL13 8BY FREE ADMISSION – Monday to Saturday 10am – 4pm Exhibition: 20th January 2024 – 30th March 2024. Exhibition Launch 19th January 2024 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm
g39, Oxford St, Cardiff, CF24 3DT, FREE ADMISSION – Wednesday to Saturday 11am – 5pm Exhibition: 10th April 2024 – 25th May 2024
The Riverfront, Kingsway, Newport, NP20 1HG, FREE ADMISSION – Monday to Saturday 10am – 5pm Exhibition: 5th June 2024 – 27th June 2024
RCAC press release/TT News
(Image: Emergency Artefact (toy), 2023. Metalised polyethelene rescue blanket and cotton thread. Photo and © Daniel Baker)