Alfred Siseley Byd o Liw

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-The River Severn can change

-its colour in a magical way.

-At the end of the 19th century...

-..Alfred Sisley

-travelled from Paris...

-..to Wales

-to search for inspiration.

-Sisley, like Monet and Pissarro,

-was a famous Impressionist.

-He visited this spot.

-He painted this scene, in Penarth,

-near Cardiff, in 1897.

-Sisley's painting

-was painted late in the day.

-The sun is setting, people

-are walking along the path...

-..and the beach.

-The tide is going out

-and the cliffs are exposed.

-Sisley's painting is similar

-to others in the National Museum.

-It shows the way the Impressionists

-used extreme colours...

-..like this one, of Rouen Harbour,

-by Pissarro.

-The chocolate box colours weren't

-created by the artist's imagination.

-They were created

-by industrial pollution...

-..which is apparent

-throughout the painting.

-The smoke and the steam that rises

-from the chimneys and ships...

-..create strange colours as they

-mix with the sky and the light.

-The Impressionists

-took advantage of these effects.

-Artist Therese Urbanska

-is collecting driftwood.

-Modern pollution inspires

-contemporary artists...

-..in a different way.

-Therese's work includes figurative,

-landscapes and abstract images.

-I was mesmerised by the shape

-and colours of the pieces she chose.

-What attracted you

-to the objects you've collected?

-It's all about colour

-at the moment...

-..and different textures.

-Especially this.

-I do like this shape.

-I also like the blue in the middle.

-I want to use that.

-I like the way the blue

-and the rust colour combine so well.

-I want to include this colour

-in the work.

-It could be anything.

-I've found a dead battery here.

-Look at its colour.

-That combines well with this.

-It helps me when I'm

-choosing objects on the beach...

-..instead of looking

-at the whole landscape.

-I can focus on specific objects.

-Are you looking for objects

-with a history behind them?

-I like objects that have been

-discarded - bottle pieces.

-I can see the beauty in them.

-Further down the beach, Mary Lloyd

-Jones, like Sisley before her...

-..has been attracted

-by the colourful cliffs.

-The striking feature about her

-paintings are the vibrant colours.

-A recent visit to India provided

-further inspiration for her.

-Contrary to Sisley's viewpoint,

-Mary's decided to face the cliffs...

-..instead of the sea.

-These cliffs were created when

-creatures first roamed the land.

-This is an excellent subject

-for an artist. Observe the colours.

-Sisley sat up there when he painted

-his painting of Penarth.

-Why have you come down here?

-Why have you come down here?

-

-I like the layers in the cliff.

-Every stripe represents

-thousands and thousands of years.

-There's an abundance of fossils

-on the beach and the cliffs.

-The colours in your drawing

-are stronger...

-..than the colours in the cliff.

-These are just notes to remind me.

-I'll be working in a more...

-Will you be using your imagination?

-Well, no. I want the colours

-to combine well.

-I'll use my memory

-and the notes I've made.

-I feel it's important

-to make notes...

-..with something

-as old-fashioned as a pencil.

-You make marks with a pencil,

-you make marks with paint.

-Markings are the language I use.

-Art can be deceptive.

-This looks like a simple seascape.

-But it's not.

-Look at the painting's composition.

-He's broken the painting up

-in a very interesting way.

-There are different areas and

-different themes in the painting.

-Look at his use of colour - the

-way he's used small spots of red.

-They enhance the green colour...

-..and help make the image

-more powerful.

-The same is true of the figures.

-There's just enough information.

-The sun reflects on the sea.

-Lavernock Point is in the distance.

-When you look closely at the

-painting, the image is very strong.

-When you stand back,

-everything slots into place.

-It's an incredible painting.

-It conveys the tranquillity

-of the day coming to an end.

-Everything is calm. The way Sisley

-used colours in this painting...

-..highlights the main aim

-of the Impressionists.

-Therese uses a combination

-of black ink and charcoal...

-..to create a version

-of Sisley's painting.

-What are her aims

-with this painting?

-I'm just painting a quick sketch.

-I'm just trying to get a feel

-of the location and the atmosphere.

-Can you see any connection between

-your painting and Sisley's painting?

-I've copied Sisley in some ways.

-I've moved the island.

-Sisley did exactly the same.

-It's made the composition

-more interesting.

-The composition

-is almost exactly the same.

-I don't want to use exactly

-the same colours in my painting.

-I've used black and white

-to get the tone right.

-I like the way she's dealt

-with the beach in the foreground.

-Artists today work differently

-from the way Sisley worked.

-Sisley's work was based

-on what he could see.

-Artists today combine

-different methods.

-They work with different objects.

-What is the importance

-of these objects...

-..to your process?

-Some people might not see the

-relationship between the objects.

-I know that when I'm at home

-in the studio...

-..I'll be using the objects

-and adding them to the work.

-I won't be using

-this painting again.

-I'll make an abstract image

-of the landscape...

-..and I'll use the colour and shape

-of these objects in the painting.

-I'll be incorporating this shape

-in the landscape somewhere.

-In some ways, I'm returning them to

-the landscape after removing them.

-Will you take them back

-to the studio?

-Yes. I'll feel as if I've taken

-a part of Penarth home with me.

-Before visiting Penarth, Sisley

-had exhibited over 100 paintings...

-..in Paris.

-He failed to sell any of them.

-Under the instructions

-of his loyal sponsor in France...

-..Sisley visited south Wales.

-However, he also had

-a personal motive for coming here.

-Eugene, his partner of 30 years,

-travelled with him.

-His family

-had never acknowledged her.

-When Sisley arrived in Penarth,

-this is where he stayed.

-They stayed in south Wales

-for two months.

-Eugene wasn't well at the time.

-Art students from the local school

-were drawing on the pier...

-..when we were there.

-Wonderful. Observe closely

-everything that you draw.

-Don't make it up.

-It was a pleasure to see these

-budding Sisleys enjoying themselves.

-There are plenty of subjects

-around Penarth.

-The shapes and colours

-of these objects...

-..have started appearing

-in this painting.

-The turquoise and the blue...

-..and the different shapes.

-This is the shape of the stone

-but it also represents the sea.

-What do you think of the colours

-in your painting...

-..when you compare them

-to Sisley's painting?

-I've tried to use similar colours.

-They are the same colours

-we can see out there.

-The only colour I haven't included

-is green - I don't like green!

-I wanted to concentrate on the

-pinks, the blues and the turquoise.

-When you're painting a landscape,

-you rearrange the objects.

-I like working in a way

-where I can move things around.

-I didn't want to create a painting

-like he did.

-I wanted something more personal

-that I could relate to.

-It's the way I've responded

-to the scenery...

-..without losing sight

-of the original painting.

-It's a contemporary version.

-In the meantime, I retraced

-Sisley's steps along the cliff top.

-Do you think Sisley's painting

-is a success?

-I think it's a fresh

-and lively painting.

-What strikes you immediately

-when you see that painting...

-..is the colour.

-It's very lively and clear.

-When the Impressionists

-painted in the open air...

-..they noted the colours honestly,

-as they saw them.

-There was a lot of theory

-involved with colour...

-..and how to get colours

-to counteract each other.

-The colours are brighter.

-In some ways,

-the colours are unnatural.

-What the Impressionists also did

-while working in the open air...

-..was notice that shadows...

-During Constable's time, for

-example, the shadows were dark.

-The Impressionists noticed that

-the shadows were full of colour.

-Their shadows were purple and blue.

-I can see a lot of colour here.

-The shadows are grey and purple

-in this painting.

-On August 5th, ten days

-after arriving in south Wales...

-..Alfred and Eugene

-were married in Cardiff.

-To safeguard the inheritance

-of their children...

-..they married

-in a registry office...

-..far from the gaze

-of the intrusive public in France.

-After the wedding, Sisley and Eugene

-spent their honeymoon on the Gower.

-This is his painting

-of Langland Bay.

-These paintings are full of light

-and reflect his personal happiness.

-But Sisley was about

-to bid farewell to his art.

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-I was looking forward to seeing

-how Mary had dealt with the cliffs.

-I visited her in her studio in the

-attic of her house in Aberystwyth.

-Has she developed the original

-sketches she drew on the beach?

-These have developed

-from looking at the cliff face.

-The most striking feature

-about the cliffs is the red colour.

-The old Devonian red.

-That's part

-of the location's character.

-I do like using red in my paintings

-- red and purple.

-I can see a lot of blue

-in the rocks.

-It appears far stronger

-when combined with red.

-There's a contrast between both.

-It's very dramatic.

-The composition of your painting

-is very interesting.

-Sisley painted a normal horizon.

-In your painting,

-the horizon stretches to the top...

-..and further beyond the top.

-That's why I was so interested

-in the cliff.

-I'm so used to looking up.

-If you live in a valley,

-you're constantly looking up.

-I painted this when I was on top

-of the cliff talking to you.

-That's more traditional.

-It's the same scenery

-that Sisley painted.

-There were a lot of wild flowers

-in the scenery.

-Tell me more about the colour.

-You have to respect this colour -

-it's Bengal rose.

-It's a strong colour.

-When I'm trying to work out

-how things are developing...

-..I place a frame around it.

-I can see the rhythm

-of the painting developing.

-The way you move when you paint.

-The grass was swaying in the wind.

-It seems to have a creative link

-when it comes together.

-I've done a lot of studies

-like this.

-I like to work towards a point...

-..where the painting tells me

-what's needed next.

-You communicate with your paintings.

-They're your family!

-They are my children!

-What's the next step? Which

-painting will you develop further?

-I think there's

-a strong possibility with this one.

-When I move on...

-..I'll pin up some of

-the smaller pictures and those two.

-That will be my starting point.

-This painting is starting

-to adopt its own personality.

-If you choose to develop this one...

-..what kind of scale will you use?

-I don't like making

-small oil paintings.

-I'll be looking to make something

-that's three feet by four feet.

-That's the smallest scale.

-I enjoy making large oil paintings.

-I travelled to Rhydyclafdy,

-where Therese's family lives.

-She paints in the cellar.

-Sisley painted another painting of

-Penarth in the opposite direction.

-We rarely see this painting.

-It is currently kept

-in a gallery in Hanover...

-..under the title

-'The English Coast'.

-A painting of this scenery hangs in

-the Musee des Beaux-Arts in Reims.

-Sisley painted many versions

-of this scenery.

-His version in pastel colours

-is in Ohio, USA.

-Our picture in Cardiff

-has far warmer colours.

-Sisley didn't finish his paintings

-in Wales.

-He took them back to France

-to finish them.

-That year,

-Eugene died at their home in Moret.

-Sisley died the following year.

-They both died of cancer.

-They were in their 50s.

-Can you explain your painting?

-I'll try my best.

-Many people will look at it

-and ask, "Where is Penarth?"

-Sisley took

-a traditional viewpoint...

-..and painted

-what was in front of him.

-I've tried to take

-a different viewpoint...

-..using everything I've found there.

-There are different elements

-of Penarth in the painting.

-There are objects I found

-on the beach.

-You can see an interpretation

-of Steep Holm here.

-I found a lot of burnt objects

-on the beach.

-There were many different textures.

-These are the colours I observed

-in the sea.

-I've tried to include the tankers

-in the painting.

-The boats were constantly

-sailing past when I was painting.

-I've included them in the painting.

-I want to show you some of these.

-It'll help explain how I've tried

-to fit them into the painting.

-Do you remember this plastic piece?

-I've tried to incorporate it there

-in an abstract way. It is there.

-I've fitted this shape here.

-I've included

-this plastic piece here.

-I found a lot of fishing wire.

-I found a lot of fishing wire.

-

-Gut.

-I've included some of it here.

-Did you cut some of it up?

-No. When I work,

-I rip pieces of the canvas.

-Bits of the material fall off.

-I've used some of it here.

-I don't like using

-the original objects.

-I don't know why.

-That's very interesting for me.

-I thought you were going to use

-what you found in the painting.

-You don't - you create something

-different to represent the object.

-It's important for me to create

-everything in the painting.

-I like the way the painting moves.

-Parts of the painting

-have settled down...

-..while other parts

-want to move with the tide.

-It's very different

-from Sisley's painting.

-I think it's been a great success.

-Mary's in the art college

-in Aberystwyth.

-The college was built

-by the Davies sisters...

-..who gave their Impressionist

-collection to the National Museum.

-I think the structure

-is very successful - it's strong.

-That's the first thing I noticed.

-I can see different brush stokes

-in different parts of the painting.

-This section is very different

-from this section.

-This is a far more determined

-section - it's a lot wilder.

-I try and keep

-my brush strokes fresh.

-I want it to look instinctive

-and almost accidental.

-That happens, but then, I want

-to include some other features.

-I've tried to include

-the fossils in the painting.

-The shapes are very similar

-to early forms of language.

-I like the way

-some of them are disappearing.

-They appear and disappear

-in the painting.

-I like the uncertainty,

-in some ways.

-I can see it here, too.

-It's part

-of the painting's geography.

-That's what I tried to do.

-I like to include

-a sense of mystery...

-..where you can't

-quite see everything.

-Did you think about Sisley's work

-when you painted this?

-What stands out in Sisley's painting

-is the way he uses colour.

-That's what I've tried to do

-here and there.

-The colours are dancing around

-the painting.

-There are different notes across

-the painting. # Ping, ping... #

-That's what I've tried to convey.

-The ping is the rich qualities

-you can find in the cliffs.

-Mary has some lyrical qualities

-in her painting.

-Water lilies are important features

-for Impressionists.

-They have beautiful qualities.

-Therese has discovered

-another source of beauty.

-During his brief stay in Penarth...

-..Sisley reached the climax

-of his emotional and creative life.

-S4C subtitles by Rh Sion Morgan