about John Meirion Morris
1936 – 2020
John Meirion Morris 1936-2020
Following his upbringing in the village of Llanuwchllyn North Wales John attended the Liverpool College of Art where he was given a grounding in the classical tradition of sculpting, soon afterwards it was probably his appointment as a lecturer at Kumasi University in Ghana which affected his work most profoundly. The experience of seeing symbolic and religious carvings and the raw movements of dance which express the feelings and longings of ordinary people had a profound influence on him. He returned to Wales to take up a post as lecturer in sculpture and art education at the University in Aberystwyth. According to John this is when his style began to change dramatically; he became conscious of images in his mind, seeing them in metaphorical, imaginative and religious terms.
In 1984, he collaborated with other artists and craftsmen to establish the association known as GWELED and he was also a huge influence on the National Eisteddfod in persuading them to appoint a full-time Artistic Officer. Following a period in Bangor, John and Gwawr returned to live in Llanuwchllyn where he continued to sculpt untill 2018.
Born: 14th of March, 1936
1956 – 1960 Liverpool College of Art
1960 – 1961 Post Graduate Year in Sculpture at Liverpool College of Art
1961 – 1962 A.T.D. Liverpool University.
1989 M.Phil. University of Bangor, Wales.
2001 MOMA , ‘Owain Glyndwr award’ – for outstanding contribution to the Arts in Wales.
Lecturer at University of Aberystwyth, Bangor and Kumasi, Ghana, Africa.
1995 Professional Sculptor.
2016 Awarded an Honorary Fellowship by Bangor University for Services to the Arts.
Died 18/09/2020
Exhibitions
1993 Joint exhibition by John and Aneurin Jones, ‘Meditation of Two Welsh Men’ in three locations.
1993 October 7th Oriel Bangor.
1993 October 11th Oriel Myrddin, Carmarthen.
1993 November 27th – December 18th Canolfan Y Tabernacl, Machynlleth.
1994 May7th – 26 Joint exhibition by John and Aneurin Canolfan Y Plase, Bala.
1996 Presented a Hallstatt Lecture in The Tabernacl Machynlleth ‘The Celtic Way of Seeing and Thinking’.
1999 Solo exhibition at MOMA, Tabernacle, Machynlleth, Wales.
2000 Y Tabernacl, Machynlleth. ‘Presence ‘.
2000 Exhibited two sculptures & video at an exhibition ‘Certain Welsh Artists’ at the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff.
2001 Oriel Bangor. ‘Presence’.
2003 Canolfan Rhiannon, Tregaron.
2004 Unique exhibition at the Anglican Chaplaincy, University of Bangor. ‘Inner vision as a source in art & religion’.
2004 – 2007 A maquette of the ‘Tryweryn Monument’ exhibited at the British Embassy, New York, America.
2005 Solo exhibition at the Royal Cambrian Academy Gallery, Conwy, Wales. Made an Honourable Member of the Cambrian Academy in Conwy.
2008 Oriel Plas Glyn y Weddw – joint exhibition with Iwan Bala and Clive Burnell.
2009 Retrospective exhibition at the Gregynog Gallery, National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth Wales.
2010 A joint exhibition at Oriel Mon Gallery, Anglesey, Wales.
2010 Cantref, Bala, ‘The Inner Presence’.
2012 Y Tabernacl, Machynlleth.
2017 Storiel, Bangor.
Publications and Articles
1 ‘The Celtic Vision’ by John Meirion Morris, published by Lolfa 2002.
2 John Meirion Morris ‘artist’ by Professor Gwyn Thomas 2011.
3 Iwan Bala ‘Certain Welsh Artist’ – an article written by John Meirion Morris. called ‘Imagination and the Magic of tradition’, Seren Books, 1999.
4 Patrick Hannay, ‘Touchstone’ architecture magazine – editorial article, October 1999.
5 John Lane @ Satis Kumar, ‘ Images of Earth & Spirit’ ( John Meirion Morris A Sculptor of Spirit, article by Professor Peter Abbs ), 2003.
6 Peter Abbs, ‘Against the Flow’, Routledge Falmer, London, 2003.
7 ‘Urthona’ a Buddist journal of cultural renewal, Art, Poetry, Ideas, Visions, article: ‘The Inner Kingdom’ by John Meirion Morris, Cambridge, Issue25, 2008.
