Y Dyn Tu ol i'r Llun O'r Galon

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-Gareth Parry

-is one of Wales's leading artists.

-Tonight is a special night for him.

-His work is being exhibited

-at London's Thackeray Gallery.

-It's the opening night...

-..and an early chance to meet Gareth

-and to purchase his work.

-Hello. Pleased to meet you.

-Gareth is a genius with paint.

-He has a special gift...

-..and an ability to convey a unique

-and complex atmosphere on canvas.

-His life has been just as complex.

-Due to a sickly childhood...

-..he spent a lot of time alone.

-I've always wanted to escape.

-He rebelled at school.

-I didn't fit in, so I went away.

-He ran away to London

-to escape school.

-I opened the train window

-and threw my black blazer out.

-It flew into the air and fell

-to earth like a crow being shot.

-He took drugs as a teenager.

-People used to take amphetamine.

-For a time,

-he was homeless and drank heavily.

-Things went rapidly downhill

-from then on.

-Gareth's experiences

-are as rich as his palette.

-Gareth Parry was born in Manod,

-Blaenau Ffestiniog.

-He was a child of the 1950s,

-in the slate industry's heyday.

-This is Bryn Glas,

-just outside Manod.

-I remember coming here

-as a seven-year-old boy...

-..after being told by my parents

-that we were leaving Manod...

-..and moving to Llan.

-I came here with my friends

-and they pointed Llan out to me.

-They told me that there were holes

-in the road, and I believed them!

-After moving to Llan Ffestiniog...

-..he longed to go back to Manod.

-Both sets of grandparents

-lived there.

-His daughter, Nia, and her family

-live there now.

-Hi, Dad. Come in.

-Are the children OK?

-Are the children OK?

-

-Yes, they're here.

-Are you going to help Taid?

-Put them all in the bus.

-Do these go in the bus?

-Well done, Awen,

-for rolling that up.

-Thank you, Awen.

-These belong to the children.

-They're of people watching

-a crockery salesman at Llan fair.

-Are you there among them?

-Are you there among them?

-

-No.

-No, they're far too ugly!

-I was born in this house

-and it goes back a long way.

-My great-great-grandparents

-lived here, my great-grandparents...

-..my grandparents,

-my parents, my brother and I...

-..and now Nia and her daughters,

-so that's several generations.

-We were a happy and loving family.

-I paint a red door

-in some of my paintings...

-..to remind myself of the warmth

-and comfort I received...

-..from my grandparents.

-Gareth became ill while at primary

-school in Llan Ffestiniog.

-When I was nine years old...

-..I started suffering badly

-from asthma.

-I also suffered

-from what was called brain fever.

-When I had brain fever...

-..I literally had delusions.

-Every now and then, I thought

-that I was dying or being chased.

-I also had childhood depression,

-something people are unaware of.

-There were no asthma pumps

-available back then.

-It meant that I was in bed

-for days at a time.

-The plus side to this

-is that I became an avid reader.

-I could sit in bed

-and read whatever we had at home...

-..such as my great-grandfather's

-general knowledge books.

-I'd read them and see sculptures

-by Michelangelo...

-..and paintings by Turner

-and Velasquez.

-I soon realized that a painting

-says much more than a photograph.

-I think it's the contrast

-between light and dark.

-Due to his illness, he discovered

-his great interest at a young age.

-But despite the wealth

-of knowledge that he acquired...

-..it amounted to nothing

-at secondary school.

-Ysgol Y Moelwyn now is very different

-to the county school of the 1960s.

-I came here as a boy

-who also went to Sunday school.

-I remember

-my very first scripture lesson.

-I had forgotten my Bible.

-My scripture teacher,

-who later became a minister...

-..said, "I'll make sure

-you remember your Bible in future."

-He caught hold of the nearest Bible

-and struck me with it.

-He shoved a heavy Bible

-right in my face.

-I could almost feel religion

-leaving my head.

-Gareth detested every moment

-he spent at school.

-It was a place to avoid

-at all costs.

-When the bus pulled up at the gates,

-my heart would sink.

-Some days,

-I wouldn't go to school at all.

-I'd walk in through the gates,

-pass the boys' toilets...

-..jump over the wall and spend

-the rest of the day in the woods.

-There was nothing for it

-but to escape from school.

-I said to some of my mates,

-"I'm not coming to school next week.

-"I'm running away to London.

-Are you coming with me or what?"

-One or two of them said,

-"OK, we'll come with you."

-I remember having big plans.

-The night before I left...

-..I went to my father's shop...

-..and stole a bag of shillings

-and pennies.

-I hid them in my bag,

-got on the bus...

-..met up with my friend...

-..and caught the train

-to Llandudno Junction.

-I took out the shillings and said

-to the man, "One way to London."

-Off we both went

-to London on the train.

-I had no idea

-where we were going to stay.

-I didn't know whether London

-only had one station, like Blaenau.

-Imagine that.

-I knew nothing about London.

-All I knew of London was Dixon

-Of Dock Green and Top Of The Pops.

-It was great.

-Here's my train.

-It all stemmed from being unhappy

-at home 43 years ago.

-I couldn't style my hair

-and dress like other boys.

-This caused all kinds of problems.

-And that awful school, Ffestiniog

-County School, as it was then.

-The teachers were Dickensian

-and cruel.

-I called it Alcatraz.

-# Freedom - Jimi Hendrix #

-What I remember most

-from my trip to London...

-..was the feeling of freedom

-and excitement.

-I had these Procol Harum

-and Jimi Hendrix songs in my head.

-I took off my school blazer

-before getting to Chester...

-..opened the window...

-..and threw out this black blazer.

-It flew into the air and fell

-to earth like a crow being shot.

-It was then that I thought,

-that's it, I've escaped.

-I've left that awful place.

-I'm going to be on Top Of The Pops.

-I'm going to be a famous actor...

-..wear fabulous clothes

-and be my own man.

-# Whiter Shade Of Pale

-- Procol Harum #

-This is Edgware Road,

-and it was here...

-..that we found somewhere to stay.

-It was only the third place

-we tried.

-Unbelievably,

-at the second place we tried...

-..a boy from the same village as me

-opened the door.

-Interestingly,

-the boy who opened the door...

-..then heard from his parents...

-..that the police

-were searching for us.

-So he phoned home, the creep.

-I wasn't happy at the time.

-Within a few days, a policeman

-turned up looking for us.

-That was the end

-of our big adventure...

-..and put paid to us

-becoming world-famous for something.

-We had no idea what!

-After returning from London

-to sit my O Levels...

-..I ran away again

-before my A Levels.

-This time,

-I got no further than Wrexham.

-I had a scooter at home

-but I didn't take that...

-..otherwise I'd have gone further.

-It was the age of the mods.

-Being a mod in Blaenau Ffestiniog

-was really radical.

-There were only five of us...

-..and 500 of the other lads.

-Most of them

-didn't care what you were.

-But there was another gang,

-the Hell's Angels, the rockers.

-I became friends with them

-years later...

-..but there was a great rivalry

-between us at the time.

-We often had stones or bricks

-thrown at us in the street.

-They went to the Easy Rider cafe

-in Blaenau.

-They won't like me for saying this,

-but they only had two motorbikes...

-..between 20 of them,

-whereas we all had scooters.

-Mine was better than that.

-I had an SX, that's an LI.

-Snobbery existed in all gangs,

-especially between the mods.

-We were such heroes.

-I was still a mod...

-..when I finally left school...

-..and went

-to the Manchester College of Art.

-Because I was a mod,

-I didn't fit in there either.

-Everybody had long hair

-and they were arty types.

-Art college

-was no different from school.

-There was still a bell

-between classes!

-This time, Gareth wasn't restricted

-by his education.

-I soon discovered

-that the mods held all-nighters.

-Dances that would last all night.

-MOD MUSIC

-People would take amphetamine.

-They broke into chemists. I didn't

-because I was afraid of prison.

-They hid the drugs

-in old bomb sites in Stockport.

-I knew these lads.

-I came up with this idea...

-..of stealing the drugs

-from the lads who stole them.

-It was a dangerous thing to do.

-They thought

-I wouldn't remember where I was.

-But I had a photographic memory.

-I remembered exactly where drugs

-had been stashed in various houses.

-I sold the drugs back to them...

-..before going to the all-nighters.

-I'd tell them I got them

-from Liverpool or Bolton.

-I'd take 10-15 capsules myself

-and dance all night.

-I'd be depressed

-for two or three days afterwards...

-..and not go to college.

-The best cure for the depression

-was to smoke marijuana.

-So I'd sit at home smoking

-instead of going to college.

-Things went rapidly downhill

-from then on.

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-Gareth Parry's

-decadent college lifestyle...

-..led to him leaving Manchester.

-With his interest in art slowly

-vanishing in a haze of drugs...

-..the only answer was to return

-to Blaenau Ffestiniog.

-With no job

-and no money in his pocket...

-..he decided to find work

-at the quarry.

-Many family members

-were quarrymen...

-..so he carried on the tradition

-and worked among the locals.

-I walked out of the mill

-and sat opposite...

-..to make sure I remembered

-the sound of the quarry.

-The tapping of chisels...

-..the whirr of engines and saws

-and the occasional shout or laugh.

-Today, it's completely silent.

-I can see Tony Starr's

-sharpening tool over there.

-He was called the Walking Jukebox

-because he was always singing.

-And this small engine.

-I'm sure this was Wil's.

-One fateful day...

-..I went to unhook the wagons

-without Wil noticing...

-..and he started the engine.

-I heard the snap of my shoulder

-being broken...

-..but little did I know that I'd

-also broken two ribs when I fell.

-Gareth sustained a relatively

-minor injury and quickly recovered...

-..with the help of his workmates.

-It gave me greater respect...

-..for the workers...

-..and the older generation.

-There was no envy

-within the community.

-I started drawing again.

-I drew pictures of these characters

-for them to keep.

-Maybe one of them

-has kept a drawing.

-Though I had great respect

-for the quarrymen...

-..I was still a young man of 20.

-There were many reasons

-why I became homeless.

-I wasn't willing to go home

-and live with Mam and Dad.

-I started taking drugs

-like LSD, acid.

-That was a proper drug.

-It took you to another world

-for a few hours...

-..where you had no concept of time.

-I later found out

-how dangerous it was.

-It opens up your mind,

-as marijuana can do.

-It affects the brain

-by expanding your mind.

-But it opens up some minds

-that should remain closed.

-He needed help to see the error

-of his ways and change his life.

-This happened when he heard

-about his grandmother's brother...

-..who was killed on the Somme

-during the First World War.

-I thought, this lad hasn't had

-a chance to do anything...

-..while I've had numerous chances

-in my life and thrown them all away.

-At the time, going out for a pint

-became more regular...

-..and I only worked if I had to.

-But hearing about this boy

-had a profound effect on me.

-The quarry had affected me...

-..and finding out about Wil

-some years later...

-..sobered me up, literally.

-Gareth now lives

-in Gellilydan, Meirionnydd.

-He works from his studio

-in a garden shed opposite his home.

-The sky moves.

-It's not dead. Nature isn't dead.

-I'm not interested

-in creating a still painting...

-..of the Moelwyn or Snowdon

-or Moel Siabod.

-I want to convey the feeling

-of sitting down for 20 minutes...

-..and watching the scene change.

-It's a painting of a few minutes

-watching the same scene.

-It's the mood

-that I'm trying to convey.

-It needs a bit more colour.

-When he's not working,

-Gareth escapes to remote places.

-Fishing in Llyn Morwynion

-on the Migneint is a favourite hobby.

-It's a hobby that he has enjoyed

-since childhood.

-I like being by myself.

-I've always been the same.

-Even as a child,

-I'd leave the other children...

-..and head to the mountains.

-There's a big difference between

-being lonely and being alone.

-I don't feel lonely

-with my thoughts and nature.

-I've felt far lonelier

-in people's company.

-I have bouts of depression.

-It starts out as loneliness.

-It's as if the light

-is fading away.

-During times like these,

-I feel as if I'm out of the sun.

-Imagine swimming in a lake...

-..just beneath the surface

-so that the sun isn't shining on me.

-I'm afraid of the darkness

-beneath me.

-I suppose I'm afraid of loneliness

-rather than solitude.

-I've been depressed at times,

-and that's quite understandable.

-What's interesting is that

-when the depression lifts...

-..or when you sink into it,

-that's when you do your best work.

-The work has more substance

-and more thought goes into it.

-The colours darken too.

-I use more black and dark green

-without realizing.

-And flashes of light here and there.

-It's what happens

-when I'm feeling low.

-It's dark with hints of light.

-Gareth's paintings are exhibited

-in several galleries in Wales.

-He has a special relationship with

-Oriel Plas Glyn-y-Weddw, Llanbedrog.

-Today, he discusses

-his next collection...

-..with Gwyn Jones,

-the gallery's director.

-It'll be more of this kind of thing.

-Some will be at night.

-Some will be at night.

-

-You're using a different palette.

-You spent time in Cyprus, so I think

-there's more warmth in it.

-When you go abroad and come back,

-the light in Wales...

-..is a silvery green.

-It's a warmer orange colour abroad.

-You're reluctant

-to go back to the old colours.

-It makes a difference.

-It's important

-that people come up to it...

-..and see how the paint

-has been used...

-..and the image created.

-Another red door.

-Another red door.

-

-Yes, the door of comfort.

-Nain's door.

-Nain's door.

-

-You can choose your own door.

-Sometimes you want to return

-to somewhere comforting.

-Open the door and in you go.

-In this painting, that's the way in.

-I'm sorry, am I in the way?

-The Thackeray Gallery, London.

-It's the opening night

-for six Welsh artists...

-..one of whom is Gareth.

-How long would a painting

-like that take?

-Do you start it...?

-It's an opportunity to exhibit

-and sell his work outside Wales.

-A painting isn't just a picture.

-It's a picture made with paint,

-so why not show the paint?

-Let people see it...

-..and see the brush strokes

-and the knife marks.

-When a good guitarist plays,

-you sometimes hear his fingers...

-..slide along the strings.

-It's not part of the music itself

-but it's there.

-That's a mark of his work

-and this is a mark of mine.

-I've never considered myself

-an artist.

-It's something personal...

-..that belongs

-to this other person...

-..after being in company...

-..who insists on being alone...

-..to sit, watch...

-..and listen to the sounds,

-watching the world go by.

-I've never been conscious

-of wanting to be different...

-..but I've always wanted

-to experience things.

-I wanted the freedom to spread

-my wings more than anything.

-That's something I felt

-I could never do.

-What's a hawk without wings?

-It's no more than a hen.

-I didn't want to live like a hen.

-I'm not the same person I was,

-and thank goodness for that.

-I wouldn't want to be

-the same Gareth Parry...

-..as I was 20 or 30 years ago,

-not at all.

-I prefer this Gareth Parry.

-The old Gareth Parry

-is a different person.

-Sometimes, I'd like to go back

-to being him because he had fun.

-# Hey Joe - Jimi Hendrix #

-S4C Subtitles by Adnod Cyf.

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