The Art of Piety: The Visual Culture of Welsh Nonconformity
By John Harvey
University of Wales Press. 102 pages. £10.95
ISBN 0 7083 1298 5
Why was it 93 years before the celebrated statue of Daniel Rowlands at Llangeitho was erected? Was it theological objections to images? Lack of money? Lack of talent? Concentration on musical gifts? Or the thought that the same money could build another chapel? All these implied questions are dealt with in Professor's Harvey's book.
He challenges the widely held belief that Nonconformity stifled the visual arts in Wales. He presents the difference between what Calvin wrote and what was popularly believed. Reformation teaching prohibited the use of images in worship, but Calvin insisted that while pictorial art was inappropriate inside a church building art was a gift of God to be used to his glory. What use then did Welsh Nonconformity make of art in the service of religion?
The author, who is Professor of Art and Head of the School of Art at Aberystwyth, examines the many religious artefacts used in chapels and homes, ranging from commemorative plaques, banners, Sunday school picture cards, stained glass and scrolled texts to the chapel buildings themselves, and maintains that these are a true expression of Welsh Culture.
This is not high art but the author makes a good case for the suggestion that factors other than nonconformity are to blame for its absence.
Thus in a relatively poor, largely agricultural country there were few rich patrons to encourage and sponsor the arts. The onset of mechanical mass production affected craftsmanship and discouraged creativity. After the Great Exhibition of 1851, when the chapels needed artefacts they could be chosen from a catalogue. In addition the lack of good art teaching meant that talented students went to England.
However the author points out that it was from within Nonconformity that efforts were made towards the end of the 19th C to remedy the situation. In due course, galleries were established, paintings bequeathed, artistic works commissioned and art education improved.
The book is well illustrated and documented and provides thoughtful perspectives on the subject, and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in the arts and Welsh culture.
