This is Cefyns first video on YoueTube and is an interview talking about Cefyns “Expressions of a culture” exhibition at the Wales Millennium Centre from the 11 April – 31 May | Glanfa Level 1 & 2.

Cefyn also talks about his involvement on Project 21. The project tells the story of 7 Welsh communities using textiles as a medium to tell a story about their community as a narrative quilt which records what is special about them.

Click here to view the embedded video.

You can also watch the interview on Cefyns YouTube channel http://www.youtube.com/cefynburgess

The National Wool Museum is exhibiting some of Cefyn’s work in an exhibition Warp & Warp 2: from hand loom to production, an exhibition that will showcase some of the very best weavers who have developed their craft with collaboration with weaving mills.

Visitors will be able to follow how a weaver develops a design from the hand loom through to the finished product. This often unseen process of exploring colour ways, yarn selections and finishing processes will show you the creative process of woven fabrics that form part of our everyday life. This exhibition will be demonstrating the expertise of the “short run” designer and of the many local Welsh mills.

The exhibition opens on the 4th September 2010 and will be running until the week beginning the 10th January 2011.

Venue:
National Wool Museum
Dre-Fach Felindre,
near Newcastle Emlyn
Llandysul
Camartenshire SA44 5UP

This Friday the 3^rd September 2010 Cefyn has an exhibition at the Galeri artspace in Caernarfon and you can get an exclusive Patron invitation to this private viewing for you and a guest.

All you have to do is fill in the form opposite –>

Join Cefyn’s Patrons email newsletter

You will be sent a personal copy of the invitation.

Migration is the result of two decades of research – a study of the Welsh in exile and what they took with them to the new worlds.

Following his fine textile studies of Welsh chapels, Cefyn Burgess turned to the history of the Welsh men and women who emigrated from rural north Wales to cities such as Liverpool, then on across the Atlantic to north east America.

The resulting body of work is a portrait of the journey itself as well as a journal of their cultural infiltration and how these people integrated themselves into their new homes.

It’s true in fact it was Cefyn who told me he was doing this and he even supplied the photos and I have got to say that there’s not just one pole involved, he tells me that there are two and that it all takes place in his shop… In broad daylight!

When Cefyn told me how much room he needs to do this I thought there is no way he could possibly do it the shop, but he proved me wrong. The site of Cefyn whizzing around on his new Long Arm Quilter is a site to be seen (what else did you think I was talking about?) “It’s the quilter’s equivalent of pole dancing” said Cefyn and I can see why.

This quilter has two poles on it (told you so) which allows Cefyn to role fabric up to 120” (10 feet) wide under tension whilst Cefyn moves (dances) his quilting machine which is now suspended over the fabric which allows Cefyn to work on even larger quilts.

Not only will this new quilter allow Cefyn to design and produce an even greater range of work but it will no doubt keep him fit as he dances up and down the wide expanse of fabric on the tension poles.

So when you visit Cefyn in his studio and you hear “Ministry of Sound” music blasting out and strange sounds coming from the studio its only Cefyn creating a new quilt on his new long arm quilter… he is NOT really pole dancing.

Not only are the new Carthen Welsh blankets (Inspired by Welsh nursing blankets) now available but also there are 5 NEW “Clapper board” tapestry blanket colour designs available as well.

Carthen Welsh Blankets…

Having seen these new blankets for myself I have to say they are truly beautiful in there simplicity which I believe makes them truly unique because the true genius in any design is what you leave out which keeps them pure and turns something in to a modern icon. These new Welsh blanket designs from Cefyn Burgess are truly on the way to becoming a new Welsh icon.

The Carthen Welsh blankets come in these beautiful designs…

• Crimson Red
• Ultra Marine Blue
• Olive Green
• Nut Brown

And the cost of each blanket is £150

New Clapper Board tapestry blanket designs also now available…

These ever popular designs from Cefyn Burgess now come in 5 new and exciting colours…

• Gold and Sandalwood
• Slate blue fleck and Ultra marine blue
• Red fleck and Gold
• Olive green and Sandalwood
• Egg shell blue and Sandalwood

The cost of the blankes are £175 for small and £200 for large.

The “Red Flower” Welsh quilt by Cefyn Burgess has been bought by St Fagans National History Museum in Cardiff. The museum is Wales’s most popular heritage attractions and has been keen to add Cefyn’s work to its collection for some time.

It will not come as a surprise to many of Cefyn’s patrons to discover that the quilt in question was chosen by the museum because not only was it the main feature of Cefyn’s recent “Migration” exhibition but it was because of the cultural heritage and story behind it.

This third exhibition from Cefyn focused on telling the story of the migration of the peoples of North Wales as they were drawn to new opportunities in America and how they took with them the treasured possessions and images of home which they cherished such as quilts, blankets, cushions embroidered pictures and table linen.

The exhibition is the story of how the indigenises Welsh culture was carried by hand across countries, continents and even time within these textiles.

It was in the Welsh quilts (the largest of all the artworks) that people truly expressed themselves because it was within the quilts that they incorporated personal meanings, family events and deeply held personal beliefs into them.

“Quilts like the Red Flower quilt where not just a practical domestic textile they had personal messages woven into them and could draw people back to family they have left behind or even comfort people in times of need”.

The “Red Flower” Welsh quilt from Cefyn Burgess will soon be on display at St Fagans and as soon as we now more you will be the first to know.

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To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Pwllglas village hall Cefyn Burgess was asked to become the artistic director and also the curator of a community art project to depict the cultural heritage of the region in an embroidered Welsh tapestry.

Cefyn wanted to involve as many people from the community as possible both young and old so he started by involving the next generation of villagers… the children from Ysgol Llanfir Dyffryn Clwyd primary school.

The children worked with Cefyn on the research by delving into the history of not just the village hall but also the village and the surrounding region. This research soon turned into creative interpretation and whilst under Cefyn’s direction the children started to turn what they had learnt into the tapestries design.

This activity soon grabbed the attention of parents as well as relatives and other villagers so once the children had completed their research and the design the parents then leant a hand by adding more detail and also started to put the composition together.

As the tapestry took shape the true size and scope of the project started to be seen. Not only in the actual size of the tapestry which was 2 meters x 3 meters (7’ x 12’) in size but also in the cultural heritage which the tapestry revealed as it literally became a woven cultural map of the area showing key landmarks such as farms, chapels, houses and fields.

Although the Pwllglas Welsh tapestry is big in size what really makes this a huge cultural event for the villagers and the surrounding area is that this was done by a community who have great pride in their culture, but… the real legacy of this tapestry is yet to come.

By celebrating their cultural heritage with this tapestry they have in turn made themselves part of the future heritage of their community and in another 50 years the children and grand children of the people who helped make the Pwllglas tapestry will look back with pride and who knows maybe be inspired to do their own version of the Pwllglas Welsh tapestry.

As you know Cefyn has been really busy over the last few weeks weaving a brand new range of Welsh blankets BUT he has also been busy re-colouring the ever popular Cefyn Burgess “Clapper board” tapestry blanket design as well.

On Monday Cefyn was in the mill doing the actual colour sampling which involved him weaving sections of the Welsh tapestry blankets to see how his 5 new colour combinations would work together.

When I asked Cefyn how the day went he said “Their lovely; I’m really excited about these new colours. In fact they work so well together we have started the weaving now!”

The new colours are:

• Gold and Sandalwood
• Slate blue fleck and Ultra marine blue
• Red fleck and Gold
• Olive green and Sandalwood
• Egg shell blue and Sandalwood

This mean that the 5 new colours for the “Clapper board” Welsh tapestry blankets will be in Cefyn’s shop in June and will be priced around £200.

Sitting down with Cefyn last night to look at the photos of the weaving I asked him what you would use a Welsh tapestry blanket for? “They are perfect for everyday use such bedding or as a throw and as we get into summer they would make a fantastic picnic blanket”.

To add my own suggestions I think a Cefyn Burgess Welsh tapestry blanket would make an original and unique wedding present and the start of a new family heirloom.

Cefyn Burgess weaving

A few days ago I wrote a very quick alert telling everyone that Cefyn had started to weave his new fabrics as well as his new Carthen Welsh nursing blankets. Well the good news is that Cefyn has just given me some photos of him weaving these new fabrics and given me some insights to what he has been doing over these past few days.

Good news… there’s NO trouble at’ mill!

When I asked Cefyn “So how did the weaving go?” I held my breath, but, before he said a word I could tell from the look on his face that it had gone well. “We had a really successful few days weaving the new blankets and I’m really pleased with the colours, they really look nice and I have some photos of them being woven for you”. Brilliant!

“What happened over the past few days?”

Well first of all I went over my designs with Frances and discussed the colours which I would like to use and then we start the colour sampling. This is where I start to be very critical because it is at this point where I start to whittle down my initial colours and make the final selection of which colours I’ll finally use in the new blankets. Once we have done this I then start the weave sampling.

“What is weave sampling?”

Cefyn's Welsh blanket on the loom

Once I have made my final decision on the colours we start to weave small sections of the blankets using all these colours to see how they will finally look and it is at this point where I make my final discussion on what gets left in. Usually the colours work so well that nothing gets dropped from the sampling and these new blanket colours work very well.

What happens now the weaving has finished?

The blankets now go to the finishing process where they are scoured to make them very soft and then the fringe gets twisted as this is a traditional characteristic of the Carthen Welsh blankets.

“When will the Cefyn Burgess Carthen Welsh blankets be available?”

They should be available in the next few weeks and will come in the following colours:

• Crimson Red
• Ultra Marine Blue
• Olive Green
• Nut Brown

Cefyn also went on to tell me that his new designs of Cefyn Burgess furnishing fabrics will be available in the next few months, but, one of the main things Cefyn wanted me to tell you was this…

Cefyn is re-weaving the VERY popular Angharad and Megan fabric designs and that they will come in NEW colours. Look out for photos and dates over the next few weeks.

If you want to talk to Cefyn about his new Carthen Welsh blankets just give him a call on 07787538234 or send him and email.

Right now Cefyn is busy weaving his new collection of Welsh fabrics and throws and over the next few days I hope to have some news for you regarding these new designs and also some photos of Cefyn weaving his magic.

In the mean time if you have not joined Cefyn’s Patrons Newsletter why not do it now by filling in the form on the right.

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