Iwan Bala Curriculum Vitae
Born 1956 Sarnau near Y Bala, North Wales
1974 - 75 University of Wales, Aberystwyth
1975 - 77 Howard Gardens, Cardiff College of Art
1990 Artist in Residence, National Gallery of Zimbabwe
1992 - 93 MA Fine Art, University of Wales Institute, Cardiff
1997 Winner of Gold Medal for Fine Art, National Eisteddfod of Wales
 
Member of Grwp BECA and Ysbryd/Spirit Wales. Co founder of the Artists' Project/Prosaic Artisiaid, an artist led organisation dedicated to international events.
2002 - 07 Special Projects Manager (part time) with Cywaith Cymru . Artworks Wales
2003 - 04 Lead Artist, Galeri, Caernarfon
2004 - 07 Consultant Curator, Galeri Caernarfon
2007 - today Senior Lecturer, School of Humanities and Creative Arts, Trinity College, Carmarthen
 
Awards
 
Recipient of grants from the Arts Council of Wales, in particular a travel grant to visit Zimbabwe in 1990 to work as Artist in Residence at the National Gallery in Harare. Also aided by a British Council Special Award.
Prizewinner at the National Eisteddfod of Wales, 1988,89,93, and a selector in 1995, Gold Medal Winner in 1997.
Recipient of the Owain Glyndwr Award for contribution to the arts in Wales, 1998.
Arts Council of Wales research funding for "Certain Welsh Artists", a collection of essays published by Seren Books in 1999.
Arts Council of Wales, Career Development Grant (printmaking) 2001.
Wales Art International travel grant to Galicia 2004, Brittany 2007.
 
Selected One Person Exhibitions
 
2008 Field Notes Interceltique Festival, L’Orient, Brittany
2008 Hon, Oriel Plas Glyn-y-Weddw, Gwynedd
2008 Island of the Heart Rhondda Heritage Centre
2008 Maps & Vessels Oriel Q, Narberth,Pems
2007 Hon, Ynys y Galon Kooywood Gallery, Cardiff
2006 Mappa Mundi Llantarnam Grange Art Centre, Cwmbran
2005 Agoriad Inaugural exhibition. Galeri Caernarfon
2004 Hon; The Shape of my Country, Cynon Valley Museum, Aberdare
2003 Gwales, Queens Hall, Narberth Pembrokeshire
2002 Hannes/History, Le Moyne College, Syracuse, USA
2000 - 01 Offerings + Reinventions, Oriel 31, Newtown and touring
1999 Flags for the Assembly, Wales Museum of Modern Art, Machynlleth
1992 - 93 Hiraeth Oriel, Cardiff and touring
1991 Flowers of the Dead Red Sea, Tramway, Glasgow. Chapter, Cardiff. Brentford Art Centre, London.
1990 National Gallery of Zimbabwe
 
Group Exhibitions
 
2008 Bossa Nova Tactile Bosch, Cardiff
2007 Gair o Gelf Milennium Centre, Cardiff
2006 In Arcadia Tactile Bosch, Cardiff
2006 The Painted Pot Newport Museum & Art Gallery, Newport, Wales
2006 others came by sea Coedhills Rural Artspace, Wales
2006 StrataSite specific installation, Strata Florida, Wales and Kells, Ireland
2006 Wales Modern The Gate Arts Centre, Cardiff
2005 VII Xuntanza Exhibition, Lalin,Galicia, Spain
2005 Identidades Morelia, Michoacån, Mexico
2004 VII Xuntanza Obradoiro, International das Artes Plasticas Museo A Solaina Galicia, Spain
2004 Horizon, Haagse Kunstkring, Den Haag, Holland
2004 Welsh Contemporaries, Paddington, London
2002 A Propos, National Museum and Gallery of Wales, Cardiff
2002 Ysbryd/Spirit, Le Salle Aragon, Trelaze, Le Centre Culturel, Tir Ar Vro, Carhaix
2001 Festival Interceltique de L'Orient, Britanny
2001 Dreaming Awake, Touring Exhibition, Czech Republic
2001 Wales, Unauthorised Version, House of Croation Artists, Zagreb
2001 Ysbryd/Spirit, Mall Galeries, London
2001 Wales European Office, Brussels
2000 Locws International, Swansea
2000 Painting the Dragon, National Museum and Gallery of Wales
1999 Clean Slate, Wales Arts International/Arists' Project, Cardiff
1998 Landmarks, Art in Wales Gallery, National Museum and Gallery of Wales
1997 Myth and Modernity, Rotunda Gallery, Hong Kong
1997 Borders, Museum of Modern Art, Zagreb. National Museum and Gallery of Wales
1996 Transformations, The Artists Museum, Lodz, Poland
1994 Site-ations, Artist' Project International Event, Cardiff
 
Curating
 
2005 Agoriad launch exhibition, Galeri Caernarfon
2002 Capel Celyn. Artists Response to Tryweryn, Canolfan y Plase, Y Bala
2001 Certain Welsh Artists, Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea
2000 Certain Welsh Artists, National Museum and Gallery of Wales
1999 Darllen Delweddau, St Davids Hall, Cardiff
1991 - 92 Trosi/Trasnu, Touring Exhibition, Wales and Ireland
1989 Armed of Dreams, West Wharf Gallery, Cardiff
 
Published Work
 
2007 Hon; Ynys y Galon. Monograph. Essays; Sian Melangell, Prof. Sioned Davies, Jon Gower, Iwan Llwyd. Gomer
2007 What Artists Need (ed), Cywaith Cymru. Artworks Wales.
2005 Groundbreaking. The Artist and the Changing Landscape. (ed)., Seren/Cywaith Cymru . Artworks Wales.
2004 here+now, Essays on Contemporary Art in Wales, Seren
2000 Offerings and Reinventions, Seren
2000 Darllen Delweddau, Gwasg Carreg Gwalch
1999 Certain Welsh Artists, Seren
 
Essays published regularly in Planet magazine from 1999 and;
2005 Take me somewhere good, Re imaging Wales. ed Hugh Adams. Seren
2005 Horizon Wales. Postcolonial Wales, University of Wales Press
2004 Islands of the Floating World, Artes Mundi Catalogue, Seren
2003 A Suitable Case for Study. Process, The Work of Tim Davies, Seren
 
Public collections
 
The Imperial War Museum, London.
The National Museum and Gallery of Wales, Cardiff. (Derek Williams Trust Purchase).
Y Tabernacl, The Museum of Modern Art, Wales at Machynlleth.
The Contemporary Art Society of Wales.
The University of Glamorgan, Pontypridd.
The National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Bulawayo.
Asolaina, Galicia, Spain.
Orbis Pictus Europa, Hornicke Muzeum, Pribram, Czech Republic.
Iturrienea Ostatua, Bilbao. Euskadi.
The Wales European Centre, Bruxelles. Belgium.
S4C Television.
Ysgol y Berwyn, Y Bala.
South Glamorgan County Council.
 
Catalogues and Reference
 
Imaging the Imagination. ed Chris Kinsey and Ceridwen Lloyd Morgan, essay Osi Rhys
Osmond. Gwasg Gomer 2005
Imaging Wales ed Hugh Adams. Seren 2003
A Propos (catalogue ) essay Mike Tooby NMGW 2002
Being in Water (catalogue) essay Richard Gwyn 2002
Wales Unautherised Version Alex Farquahason 2001
Painting the Dragon ed Prof Anthony Jones NMGW 2000
Flags for the Assembly (catalogue)1999
Borders   (catalogue) The Artists' Project 1997
Welsh Painters Talking ed Prof Tony Curtis. Seren 1997
Standpoints (catalogue) Wrexham Library Arts Centre/Arts Council of Wales 1995
Hiraeth (catalogue ) essay Fintan O'Toole. Oriel/Arts Council of Wales 1993
Gwenllian. Essays on Visual Culture   Peter Lord. Gomer 1994