"Paul Davies and Beca: Transforming Art Practice in Wales, 1966 -1999"

"This CDA project will research the work and supporting archive of artist Paul Davies (1947-1993) to explore the emergence of a consciously political and socially-engaged art practice in Wales. The project will centre around the loosely defined group or movement known as Beca which Davies established in the 1970s with his brother Peter Davies (b.1944). Beca became a focus for an activist practice, directly engaging with language and cultural identity at a time when these issues were increasingly being discussed with reference to greater political self-determination for Wales.
Davies' practice has had an important but under-researched influence and legacy on the visual arts in Wales. His Welsh Not performance at the National Eisteddfod in 1977 has increasingly been recognised as a key turning point in the history of art in Wales. The work has been widely discussed in writing on Welsh art and has featured in recent exhibitions notably Ni allaf ddianc rhag hon - the opening displays of National Museum Cardiff's new contemporary galleries in 2011. One aim of this research project is to ensure that Davies' diverse and varied artistic practice is not solely defined by this important but singular action. This CDA will seek to address this imbalance by exploring three decades of work, placing his artistic practice within a wider social and political context of Wales.
Davies' work defies easy categorisation: it incorporates painting, drawing, sculpture, installation, performance, and ambitious (often unrealised) proposals to work in the public realm. There is a strong community-based, pedological approach to his work that together with his environmental and political activism, underlines a socially-engaged practice decades ahead of its time. Davies' work often happened outside of a traditional museum or gallery environmental, and often did not produce a 'finished' work of art. So to understand the impact and influence of his practice this CDA will have exclusive access to the artists substantial archive still being looked after by the artist's family in Bangor. This archive includes works of art in diverse media, correspondence with individuals and institutions, project proposals, press coverage, photographs of works now destroyed, notebooks, and sketchbooks.
The student will be based for at least part of their studies in north Wales and will have a proficiency in the Welsh language. They will be well placed to develop a research network across Wales, mirroring Paul Davies's pan-Wales practice. Amgueddfa Cymru is currently giving very focused attention to how Paul Davies' and other Beca artists' work is represented in the national collection. This CDA has potential to inform future collecting in this area, as well as develop further research and insights into work already in the national collection. How can Paul Davies and Beca be most effectively displayed and interpreted for audiences across Wales? Does the work have different resonances in different parts of Wales? How can a practice that often depended on community engagement and bringing people together be adequately represented in a Museum?
This research could only be delivered through a Collaborative Doctoral Award - it depends on access to material held by Amgueddfa Cymru, other public collections in Wales and the Artist's Archive in the family collection. The CDA will benefit from a supervisory group with knowledge of art in Wales, expertise in international avant-garde, and widespread experience of working with artists and cultural organisations across Wales. It is also received enormous encouragement, insights and expertise from the artist's family and has only been possible through their commitment to give the project their full support to ensure Paul Davies and Beca are researched to secure knowledge of this important aspect of visual culture in Wales is secured for future generations."