After a year (2024) of creating incredible St Fagan’s inspired textile and mixed media art Cutting Edge members gathered at the Gweithdy Gallery, St Fagans National Museum of History on 25th & 26th April to exhibit their work and to provide craft and sewing activities for visitors in celebration of Global Intergenerational Week. And what an awesome two days it was!

Visitors were delighted to be able to view the exhibits close up and to read the workbooks describing how the project developed over time. They were also delighted that they could join in the various activities and we received lots of feedback over the two days, both in conversation and the Visitors Book. Here's a taste of what people said:

“As a fellow quilter and textile artist it is lovely to go out and see everyone’s work. Congratulations." Lesley , Higham Quilters, Gloucester
“Very impressive to see such a stunning piece of local inspiration and imaginative work” Byron family
“Fabulous exhibition. Well done all. Thank you for making us feel so welcome“ Sue & Vicki
 
The children tried out most things from colouring to stamping and sewing, which seemed to be a crowd pleaser. After colouring a picture on fabric many were eager to have a go at sewing and soon became hooked!
One little girl drew a large letter E on a textile square and began sewing it. She was disappointed to be dragged away half way though, but took some threads to finish it at home. However, later in the day she reappeared to pick up some more thread as she had run out of one of the colours. She must have found a little corner on her travels around the grounds to continue her sewing!
The adults enjoyed the sewing too!
The group from Pontadawe stitch group thoroughly enjoyed making brooches and owls:
“What a wonderful exhibition, so inspiring. Thank you for my owl/penguin. I love him! You are all a lovely bunch. Diolch yn fawr I chi gyd“!" Glenda , Stitch Pontadawe. 
“What a lovely event. Thanks for the brooch kit. I really enjoyed making it. All lovely friendly people” Dawn

Plenty of owls appeared thanks to Carol. They were so popular that she had to go home on Friday evening to prepare more!
“Thank you Carol for helping me make my owl!.

There was some great colouring and sketching going on. Pat's little leather bound sketch books were as popular as Carol’s owls. Not surprising as they were a fabulous little gift to take home.
“Lovely day out with lots of great crafts, the children really enjoyed themselves. Thank you so much"

The Cutting Edge members weren’t shy of immersing themselves in the activities either. They thoroughly enjoyed chatting to visitors too as it was an opportunity to pass on tips, advise and direct them to resources. One visitor was planning to repair altar cloths and was delighted to be introduced to another visitor who could help her find the braids that she needed.
Some feedback from the Cutting Edge group members: 
“I enjoyed the afternoon. A lovely way to spend it. I loved looking at the exhibits again and had fun stamping!” Sally
“It was a fun day with so much interest and appreciation… met some lovely people, some commenting that they were inspired to try something creative themselves and very polite children who all said thank you for helping them. Loved it” Ella.
“What a lovely time spent today meeting visitors who were so interested in our groups work. So many were amazed at the range of different textile / art skills exhibited.  My favourite moment though is the young boy in the photo above who was determined to stitch around his daffodils before leaving . So good to have had the opportunity to encourage the youngsters."  Liz
“Such a great couple of days and so many people leaving inspired to carry on stitching." Eleri

The Monopoly quilt was popular and a number of suggestions were made for a permanent home for it, though many were of the view that it should stay at St Fagans.
“Fantastic range of work and skills. Really enjoyed the whole exhibition especially the Monopoly quilt." Lesley, Rhoose
Carol’s stitched family tree project was also popular. Carol was overwhelmed by the repose she received. As a result the seeds of a workshop are now forming!

Over the two days we welcomed over 650 visitors who came from near and far, some as far as the Netherlands!
Two Dutch ladies who visited wanted to buy pieces of our art work. When we asked what they were interested in they pointed to Dianne’s postcard and Monica’s Thomas the Taylor post card. The cards were gifted to the ladies and addresses were swapped with a promise from Monica and Dianne that they would post them a fabric postcard too!
A brilliant two days enjoyed by both visitors and Cutting Edge members alike. 

A huge thank you to:
St Fagan’s staff member Loveday who went above and beyond to make sure that we had everything we needed. She even joined in and helped when we were very busy, which was really appreciated!
Jan’s husband Alan for taking photos for us. They are a fabulous addition to our album!
And an enormous thank you to all our amazing Cutting Edge members for their inspired pieces of work and dedication to make the two day event at St Fagans such a memorable occasion. You are all stars!

We held the event during Global Intergenerational Week which fell at the end of the Easter holiday. It certainly ticked all the boxes for intergenerational engagement as both children and adults went away happy and more confident with the new skills they had acquired.

“Fabulous exhibition and lovely to see the skills on show. Lovely initiative and great for children of all ages to experience”!
"Fantastisch!" Lia, the Netherlands
“Superb inspiring exhibition. I enjoyed the diversity too – patterns, stitch, water colours. Also enjoyed the hands-on activities. Relaxing and fun.” Gwynedd
“Such an excellent event, with wonderful pieces of work to admire and inspire! So kind and generous to supply everything for the intergenerational projects we did” Caroline
“Excellent exhibition. Lovely talented ladies”

Following the event, we were delighted to receive the image of the event sent by Mike who is a member of the St Fagans Sketching Group. He visited on the Saturday and sat quietly in the corner sketching the scene before him. He thought our work, like his, was amazing:
“I had the opportunity to visit the exhibition of members work from the Cutting Edge Textile Group at St Fagans. It was a beautiful day, and the event was very popular with families enjoying the last of the Easter holidays. There were lots of fun activities for children and adults. I was encouraged to visit the Cutting Edge Textile group exhibition to see what they do by a member of the CE group who attends the St Fagans Sketching Group. The answer is a lot and to a very high standard too! Everyone was so kind in sharing their work. I have got loads of ideas and tried to capture the event in my sketchbook” Instagram @mikelinewalker

End note:
Monica posted a fabric postcard to one of the Dutch women who visited our exhibition and surprisingly it arrived before she returned home to the Netherlands! This is the email Monica received from Thea:
“Dear Monica,
It was a surprise to find that the card you sent me has arrived already when I came home from my holiday tour through Wales. 
It was very nice to meet you at the exhibition and that I was allowed to make a choice out of the cards you had made. All in all it was a very inspiring exhibition and I enjoyed it very much.
The cards I will show tomorrow to the members of the quilt club I join and I am sure they will love them as well. I still have to find a nice place to put them. It will be in my house or in my school where I will enjoy looking at them, but I am not sure yet.
Best wishes, also to the other members of the Cutting Edge Textile Group
Thea“

To find out more about the Cutting Edge Group please visit: Cutting Edge | Sharing textiles knowledge, ideas and skills

Celebrating positive mental wellbeing through engaging with heritage, creativity and community on Diwrnod Santes Dwynwen:

On 25^th January 2025 Amgueddfa Cymru marked Diwrnod Santes Dwynwen, the day for the Welsh Patron Saint of Love, with a festival to celebrate positive mental wellbeing supported by creativity, heritage and community. Across various of our seven museums, different activities and performances took place, designed to eliminate stress, improve mood and help people deal with everyday challenges. These included collections-inspired creative arts workshops, music recitals, choir performances, blacksmithing taster sessions and poetry workshops. In addition to this, we also hosted information marketplaces at St Fagans and Big Pit where organisations offering services to support peoples’ wellbeing could engage with the public and share information and advice.

St Fagans

At St Fagans we welcomed the Sally’s Angels Community Choir to St Fagans who sang on the Community Stage in the entrance hall of the museum as visitors arrived in the morning. This was followed by further performances on site at Penrhiw Chapel and the Oakdale Workmen’s Institute later in the day. The choir performed a range of songs in Welsh and English, including a stirring rendition of the ever-popular Calon Lan. Visitors responded really positively to the joyful and uplifting atmosphere the choir created throughout the day. Thank you to all the wonderful choir members who helped to make it such a special event.

The information stand marketplace also took place in the main entrance hall, with several organisations hosting drop-in craft activities such as decorating cardboard heart-shaped frames. These activities were very popular with children and adults alike and enabled the partner organisations to talk with visitors about their services in more detail as people spent time at the stands engaging in the crafts on offer. There was a total of eight stands, which included Velindre Cancer Centre, Oasis Cardiff, the Hapus Project (Public Health Wales), Memory Jar dementia support group, Mydiad Mythrin/Cymraeg i Blant, the Wales Ambulance Service and Platform  - the mental health charity, as well as a Museum stand promoting the Amgueddfa Cymru Health and Wellbeing programme, in particular the Museums Inspiring Memories Project. 

We estimate that in total the marketplace engaged with approximately 165 people throughout the course of the day. 

Across the day various activities took place at St Fagans which aimed to provide a stress-free environment to enjoy and engage with the museum's collections in a creative way. These included wool craft and weaving workshops using our replica Iron Aged handlooms, mindful nature walks exploring the outside spaces, flora and fauna at the museum, and a make your own paper Love Spoon workshop inspired by the Love Spoon collection in the Gwiethdy gallery, run by artist Nia Skyrme. 

The weaving workshops where participants were able to make their own woolen bookmark to take home proved very popular.  The feedback was very positive with many people sharing how relaxing and mindful they found the activity and how lovely it was to do something for themselves whilst spending time with family and friends. Many parents who took part in the session told us how lovely it was to do something they could have a go at themselves, alongside their children, learning a new skill and enjoying the creative process together. The children who took part appeared to be very engaged, enjoying the workshops and leaving very pleased with their woolly bookmarks! 

Participants on the mindful nature walks reported how relaxing and peaceful they found the experiences, whilst also being interesting and informative. Ian Daniel, who led the walks, was able to share mindfulness techniques which participants could take away with them and build into their daily lives, as well as sharing interesting facts about the flora and fauna they encountered on their walk. 

Artist Nia Skyrme, who led the drop-in Love Spoon activity in Gweithdy, had a very busy afternoon with at least 95 people dropping in throughout the session to take part. Participants made beautiful paper love spoons representing what they held important, inspired by the lovely display in the Gweithdy gallery next door to the workshop space. 

Families with older children were able to engage in this accessible art activity together, whilst giving those parents of very young children an opportunity to peacefully enjoy a creative activity whilst their little ones slept. It was a lovely way to encourage visitors to connect with the collections in a different way; the feedback was very positive.

The weather on 25^th January was absolutely beautiful. The sun shone all day, attracting lots of visitors to St. Fagans - far more than we might usually expected on a late January day. This gave the festival such a boost and allowed us to promote ‘museums for wellbeing’ to a wide audience.

Big Pit

At Big Pit a range of drop-in and bookable activities were on offer. 

Throughout the day, Len Howell, who has over 50 years experience of working as a colliery blacksmith, led smithing sessions in the forge at Big Pit. These were pitched at helping men deal with stress by participating in physical activity and ‘hitting the anvil hard’. With guidance, participants were able to work with hot steel and make a mini heart to take home. 

Poet Patrick Jones led ‘Writing for Wellbeing’ workshops designed to beat the January blues. Through a fun and light workshop of reading, listening and discussing poems, participants also took part in writing exercises designed to lift the spirits. Participants all reported that their level of contentedness and happiness had risen by the end of the workshop, and everyone was happy to share their thoughts and feelings in a short film that was made on the day.

Families took part in a ‘Make a Love Spoon’ activity, and found out about the various symbols and meanings, before designing and making their own. This engaging activity gave people the chance to relax and chat to workshop leaders, and many people also took the opportunity to dress up in mining costumes against a historic backdrop, whilst exploring the theme of ‘Cynefin’ (Belonging.) 

A number of organisations who can help with positive mental wellbeing and signpost to further information attended the marketplace on the day. 

Andy’s Man Club, Torfaen Take a Stroll walking group, Sport in Mind, Torfaen Talks CIC, Alzheimer’s Society Cymru & Public Health Wales all had opportunities to engage with the public and promote the support, advice and guidance they provide. Visitors enjoyed having a play (or the odd more serious tournament) on the table tennis table supplied by Sport in Mind. Public Health Wales were able to encourage organisations to sign up as Hapus supporters.

National Wool Museum 

At the National Wool Museum, visitors were invited to grab a cuppa, pick up a heart shaped Welsh cake and listen to the soothing melodies of harpist Delyth Jenkins. Delyth performed throughout the day, and gave the Museum a sense of peace and calm, which was very much appreciated by visitors. 

National Museum Cardiff

At National Museum Cardiff we took the opportunity to trial our newly developed Mindful Art Trail. Louise Rogers, one of our facilitators in the Learning team has spent time over the past year developing the resources for what will become a self-led trail and invitation to experience the art galleries in a mindful way. On the day, Louise led 2 guided mindful trails, encouraging participants to look at art purely from a mindful perspective, without any pressure, and to enjoy the simple art of ‘looking’.

According to research, most people view a work of art for approximately seven seconds, but the session encouraged people to take longer to look and absorb what they were seeing, instead of rushing though the galleries. This opened up discovery of more detail in each work, and using the senses and imagination allowed people to visualise potential stories about the artworks. This was a new experience for all participants, and everyone relaxed into their own way of interacting with the art. We hope that resources like these will encourage people to view the galleries as a safe and non-judgmental space to take a break from busy daily routines, and to enjoy moments of calm.

Diolch to all our fantastic partner organisations, the members of the wonderful Sally’s Angels Choir, the brilliant workshop leaders and all those who came and took part. We couldn’t have done it without you. 

People who attended the events at the different museums shared that they appreciated being able to drop into sessions free of charge, taking away the stress of entertaining children during difficult financial times.

A special thanks to the Public Health Wales Hapus Project for supporting the festival with funding, enabling us to offer more opportunities and work with the freelance creatives who helped make the event such a success. Follow the link to find out more about the Hapus Project and sign up as a supporter. 

Thanks also to all the museum staff who supported the event, led sessions and helped with the logistics on the day. 

As a legacy of the festival, we have produced a series of short films which are launching during Mental Health Awareness Week. Thank you to Glyn Roberts and Tom Maloney for working to capture all the wonderful activities and beautiful moments shared during the day. We’re excited to share the results! 

We will also be working on developing mindfulness resources in collaboration with Mindfulness Wales for our museums as well as welcoming freelance creatives to deliver dementia friendly wellbeing workshops inspired by our collections. Watch this space for further details. 

National Slate Museum Slate Quarrymen swap Industrial workshops for Castle splendour!  

For the first time in history slate quarrymen are working at Penrhyn Castle – the home of one of the wealthiest Slate Quarry owners in North Wales.  

Our demonstrating Slate Quarrymen, who usually hold demonstrations at the Museum in Llanberis, are instead demonstrating their skills and craftsmanship at the Castle.  

This astounding turning point comes as we are temporarily close to the public for redevelopment but we didn't want to stop telling our story so decided to take our story to other locations important to the story of slate and which are part of the World Heritage designation for the Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales.  

Penrhyn Slate Quarry established by the Pennant family, dominated the Welsh slate industry for almost 150 years and was notorious for its harsh working conditions. In 1900, over 2000 workers went on strike for better wages and working conditions - a culmination of several years of dissatisfaction and unrest. 

Known locally as the Penrhyn Lockout, the strike lasted for over three years and was one of the longest and most bitter industrial disputes in British history. It caused incredible hardship for the Quarrymen and their families and ripped apart a community, dividing it into strike ‘faithful’s’ who remained on strike or left to find other work elsewhere, and ‘bradwrs’ (traitors) who returned to work. 

Many in the local community still regard the Castle as a symbol of wealth and oppression. Historically, Quarrymen would not have crossed the threshold to the Castle and many of their families have struggled to do so since then. 

Now managed by National Trust Cymru, Penrhyn Castle and Garden have been working with artists and the local community for over a decade to share more about this history and re-engage with its local community as Ceri Williams, General Manager at Penrhyn Castle explained: 

“Over the last decade and more we’ve been working to re-address the way we share our industrial and colonial connections at Penrhyn Castle. Each year, we've achieved new milestones, but welcoming the Quarrymen into the castle marks a significant leap forward in reconnecting the community with this historic site. 

Already, crowds have been gathering to catch a glimpse of the live slate-splitting demonstration that not only celebrates local craftmanship but provides authentic experiences that resonates with the castle’s industrial history. As we continue to work with the National Slate Museum over coming months, we look forward to combining our offers and providing visitors with a unique and memorable visit to Penrhyn Castle.”

For us, the opportunity to have our Quarrymen demonstrating at Penrhyn Castle is a key feature of our redevelopment programme - in particular our Museum on the Move campaign in 2025 as Elen Roberts, Head of the National Slate Museum explained: 

“We’re very grateful to the team at Penrhyn Castle and to National Trust Cymru, for giving us this unique opportunity to work with them as part of our redevelopment programme for the National Slate Museum.  We’ve worked closely with the Trust over the years to share the story of slate and this opportunity to share our Quarrymen’s skills and stories is an enormous thing from both sides. Relocating here – and to other sites around the World Heritage designation during our Museum’s redevelopment - will allow us to engage with new audiences and ensure our story continues beyond the walls of the museum. 

Our staff will benefit from continuing to interact with the public which will enhance their knowledge of the slate story, and hopefully visitors will benefit from encountering Museum staff in new locations – which, alongside the National Trust’s existing offer to visitors at Penrhyn Castle, will offer a fresh perspective on the story of slate”

Both attractions are key parts of the World Heritage Site for the Slate Landscape of North West Wales. Lord Dafydd Wigley, Chair of the Llechi Cymru Partnership welcomed the development:

“Cyngor Gwynedd and its partners have worked together over many years to develop a strong partnership to deliver the Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales World Heritage nomination and subsequent inscription. The results of this strong and active partnership is now bearing fruit as we not only see significant investment of over £30m through the Llewyrch o’r Llechi programme of activities - such as those at Amgueddfa Lechi Cymru and others across the Slate Landscape; but we are also seeing new and innovative ways of working together to reach new audiences, provide new experiences and to share our monumental and global story of how north Wales roofed the world.”

The Quarrymen are at Penrhyn Castle on a daily basis during 2025.                                         

For more information about the history of Penrhyn Castle visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/penrhyn-castle-and-garden

Every year on the 22 April, Earth Day is celebrated across the globe.  The aim of Earth Day is simple: “to diversify, educate and activate the environmental movement worldwide”.  2025 marks the 55^th anniversary of Earth Day and the theme is “Our Power, Our Planet”. 

Amgueddfa Cymru declared a climate emergency and a nature emergency in 2019.  We have long taken our commitment to protecting the environment seriously, but since this important milestone, we’ve increased our efforts and provided inspiration for others to follow.  Amgueddfa Cymru is uniquely placed to be a centre of learning and discovery for the Welsh public and for visitors from further afield.  We are committed to preserving historic items, maintaining beautiful buildings, keeping traditional skills alive and reducing our negative impact on the environment – all so that future generations can enjoy and be inspired by the same things that we have been fortunate enough to experience.

This blog explores some areas where Amgueddfa Cymru has been active.  Whether at home or work, how might you contribute to the Earth Day philosophy?

Biodiversity and Nature

Amgueddfa Cymru boasts a variety of outdoor spaces – from the dramatic landscapes surrounding the National Slate Museum in Llanberis, to the sweeping moorland of Big Pit in Blaenavon, to the tranquil marshy meadow of the National Wool Museum in Drefach Felindre.  There is a wide variety of species living in these special habitats.

Amgueddfa Cymru is fortunate to have a team of dedicated Natural Sciences curators with specialisms in Botany and Zoology.  As well as caring for the Museum’s sizeable collection (c. 5 million objects), the curators are actively involved in fieldwork and research.  The curators carry out surveys at of our 8 sites and recommend actions to maintain and enhance the habitats, so as to maximise the chances of increasing biodiversity.  Over time, it will be interesting to see how climate change impacts the species living at sites.

At National Museum Cardiff and St Fagans National Museum of History, the Gardening Team and Volunteer Team work to develop wildflower meadows by sowing yellow rattle and taking part in “No Mow May” (and June, July etc.).  Such activities will encourage pollinators to the area.  Why not visit in Spring or Summer and see how many species you can identify?  Alternatively, visit the National Wool Museum and follow the family friendly Meadow Trail.

Upcoming Biodiversity and Nature Events

• Great Big Green Week, 7^th – 15^th June 2025
• Wales Nature Week, 5^th – 13^th July 2025
• Celebration of Nature at St Fagans, 12^th July 2025
• Spring Bulbs for Schools 20^th anniversary, starting September 2025

Sustainability, Reuse and Self-Sufficiency

Several of Amgueddfa Cymru’s sites showcase sustainable methods and ways of life from the past.  The methods and materials used to construct the historic buildings re-erected at St Fagans can provide learning points for us today.  The story of the ingenuity of Welsh minds is expressed at the National Waterfront Museum Swansea while the National Wool Museum and National Slate Museum demonstrate how key Welsh industries harnessed the power of water and displayed a remarkable level of self-sufficiency.

Moving away from a linear economy (take, make, waste) and towards a circular economy is key to preserving the planet’s resources for future generations.  A recent example of the reuse culture within Amgueddfa Cymru is the refurbishment of the shop at Big Pit.  Old coal drams were reclaimed, lovingly restored and now take pride of place as a display feature in the shop.

• Grand opening of Big Pit shop,28 April 2025

Decarbonising

Amgueddfa Cymru is on a mission to decarbonise its built estate.  Work has been on-going to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels at sites by upgrading equipment to more efficient versions and by replacing heating systems with electrically powered alternatives (e.g. air source heat pumps).  Over 5 years (2019/20 to 2023/24), the consumption of natural gas has reduced by 36%.  The National Roman Legion Museum and the National Slate Museum are already heated and powered entirely by electricity from 100% renewable sources.

A significant project took place from January to March 2025 when eight buildings at four sites had fossil fuel heating systems (natural gas, LPG an oil) replaced with air source heat pumps.  The work took place thanks to funding from the Welsh Government Energy Service and will further reduce our carbon emissions.

Hi, Nicole, tell us a bit about yourself and your role at Amgueddfa Cymru. 

I'm Dr Nicole Deufel, and I'm Head of Museum here at the National Waterfront Museum in Swansea. My role is to lead the team, and at the moment we're looking at redeveloping the museum over the next few years.

What’s really special about this museum, the Waterfront within Amgueddfa Cymru, is that we’re in partnership with Swansea Council. A big part of my role right now is focused on that partnership, shaping it, strengthening it and securing it for the future.

We're so excited to hear about the plans you have for National Waterfront Museum, what can you share with us?

They’re big plans and coming in different phases, but we’re really keen to get started this year. In fact, we already have!

One of the key things for us is re-establishing the connection between our historic warehouse and its historic surroundings. We’re using that as a starting point to interpret the story of industry, development and innovation in Wales, and the global connections through the sea. It’s a really exciting story.

Personally, I’m just so thrilled we have the warehouse as a historic asset to help tell it.

Another big focus right now is identity. When you walk into the museum, I don’t think it’s immediately obvious who we are, especially when you compare it to other Amgueddfa Cymru museums. At Big Pit, for example, its identity is clear the moment you arrive. The same goes for the Wool Museum, I was there recently, and it just radiates what it’s about.

The Waterfront isn’t quite there yet, so that’s something we want to tackle. We want visitors coming in, especially through the city side entrance, to see wow objects that not only impress but also capture the essence of the stories we tell. We want our identity to shine just as brightly as it does in our other museums. So that people walk in and immediately know - I’m at the National Waterfront Museum!

You mentioned wow pieces. What role does the collection play in this new vision, and how important is the preservation and conservation of the collection? 

If I take the idea for the Weston Hall, the collection really helps us develop and illustrate the stories, which are the stories of people. The collection isn’t just a group of objects. They represent the story of Wales and the people of Wales.

That’s how we want to use the collection more. Not just showing the objects but digging deeper into the stories behind them and helping them shine.

As part of this redevelopment process, we’ll also be conserving and reinterpreting some of the objects by bringing out items that haven’t been on display for a long time and using them to tell the story here.

That’s what excites me about the collection. I was at the collection store recently, and the curator showed me the box van. That’s one of the objects we want to restore and use in an immersive exhibition space. Just by placing it in this space, it helps explain the colonnade, the warehouse, and the connections through the railways to the Welsh hinterland, and how goods travelled out into the world and back again. The collection enables us to share all of that. That’s why it’s so important.

What do you find most inspiring when you step into the Waterfront Museum, as it is today? 

We’re all just so excited to be here. I feel so lucky to come to work each day with an amazing, creative, professional team.

Together we’re looking at what works in the museum, what we can improve, and how we can place people, their stories and their experiences at the heart of everything we do. We want to connect people through their visit here and that’s what excites me.

I get to do this with a brilliant team, in a wonderful location. I absolutely love the warehouse, and so many of the objects in our collection. It’s all just so exciting. Every day, we really enjoy what we do.

Your GRAFT Garden is celebrating its seventh birthday this year, and it’s thriving, in a bustling city. How can we as Amgueddfa Cymru, or as visitors, get involved in the garden?

Everyone is welcome to visit and work in the garden.

At the moment, if you’re a general visitor, it might not be clear how the garden connects with the museum’s work. But there are so many innovative ideas and themes being explored in the garden, with people from all walks of life contributing their experiences.

We’re now looking at how we can make that more visible. We want to help people see that connection, so the garden becomes something they actively engage with and not just something they pass by.

It links so well with the themes we explore in our more traditional exhibition spaces, and it was such a brilliant idea to establish it. It’s a place where everyone can experience something meaningful, whether they’re volunteering or just popping out to have a look.

It’s a lovely contrast, this heavy industrial machinery alongside a sustainable, biodiversity-led garden. It really shows where Wales has come from and where it’s going. Sustainability is clearly at the heart of that. 

Absolutely. If we’re talking about deindustrialisation, which is one of the key themes we want to explore here, the garden is a great example.

The ground was polluted, which is why we use raised beds. Everything has grown from there. That’s what’s so exciting about it.

We hear you’ve been spending time exploring your new home, Wales. Have you had a chance to visit all of our museums yet?

Not quite. I haven’t made it to Llanberis yet, that’s top of my list. I’m going to Caerleon next week, and Big Pit on Friday. I’ve been to Big Pit before, but this time I’m really looking forward to going behind the scenes.

I’m loving it. And when it comes to our own development work here, it’s so important for us to understand our place in the wider story. That means really getting to know the other sites, beyond just the visitor experience.

Our National Slate Museum, the National Wool Museum, Roman Legion Museum and Big Pit all have such rich, recognised stories. How do you give industry and transport that same global recognition? It’s such an important part of Wales’s story, but not as synonymous as coal or slate. 

Exactly. Wales was the first industrial nation, and geography plays a big part in that. That’s something we’re really interested in.

The warehouse reflects all of it, you’ve got the railway lines coming through from the coalfields, the minerals, the docks, the people who worked here, and the connections to the sea.

But it’s not just a story of heavy industry. It’s also about geography, movement, innovation. One of my favourite pieces is the Robin Goch. It’s such a creative object, that kind of inventive spirit made industrial development possible, and it’s also central to the story of deindustrialisation and sustainability today.

We were just talking recently about community energy schemes happening now in Wales. These are stories we need to tell more strongly, and share with the world.

You mentioned the Robin Goch. Do you have a favourite object from the Amgueddfa Cymru collection?

I don’t have just one, but I absolutely adore the Robin Goch. It’s so ingenious, using everyday materials to make a flying object. It’s fantastic.

I also love the Penydarren locomotive. I probably have a soft spot for it because I worked in Wales previously, and Trevithick’s story was one of the first I came across.

To come here and see the replica is just brilliant. It’s not here at the moment it’s in Darlington, but when I saw it being moved and all the parts coming to life, it was really emotional. So yes, those two are probably my favourites.