Glyn Hughes 1931-2014

The Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre, Associated with the Pierides Foundation (NiMAC) and the Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education and Culture organise and present the major retrospective exhibition Glyn Hughes 1931-2014. The exhibition, which is staged in collaboration with the Glyn Hughes Foundation, is curated by Yiannis Toumazis. The exhibition will be opened by H. E. the President of the Republic of Cyprus Mr. Nicos Anastasiades, on Friday, 27 May 2016 at 19:00. An opening party will follow in the Powerhouse garden, starting at 20:00 Few artists have left such an indelible mark on Cyprus as Glyn Hughes. Though a Welshman, his continuous residence on the island for almost six decades (1956-2014) acted as a catalyst for the development of contemporary art in Cyprus and not just that. Painter, set designer, director, teacher and educator, journalist, art and film critic, writer, poet, pioneer in performance art and happenings in Cyprus, among other things, Glyn Hughes was a multifaceted personality, full of intensity, colour and light, just like his work. Through a consistent course over time, Glyn Hughes was not only always present at everything interesting taking place in the island, but was also a methodical and at the same time fervent pioneer of abstract expressionism in Cyprus. With his diverse contribution, Hughes created the conditions that encouraged the active participation of the public in many new and innovative things happening in the field of arts. Additionally, of great importance was his creative collaboration and friendship with Christoforos Savva, at a time when Cyprus had just thrown off British rule and was trying to make a new start. The foundation of the Apophasis Gallery by the two artists was a decisive move that definitely changed the island’s art scene. For the first time, the scattered thoughts and visions of a group of young and dynamic men found the appropriate space and fertile ground for expression, in an island, where, despite the newly achieved independence, strong political, social and spiritual contradictions were prevalent. Hughes and Savva were pioneers in breaking the mould of the island’s art scene and managed to introduce into Cyprus a new and exciting way of comprehending art. Through their continuous artistic research and innovative actions, these artists laid the foundations of modernism and abstraction for a conscious transition from local to global at the exact moment when art had begun to take an almost academic character. Artist Glyn Hughes passed away on 23 October 2014, leaving behind significant work, which is crucial to the understanding of the evolution of art in Cyprus over the past sixty years. This exhibition, a due tribute to this great artist, examines the various aspects of the artistic personality of Glyn Hughes from 1931, when he was born, until his death, and presents, besides important works –paintings, costumes and set designs–, an extensive archival material, as well as many accounts of people who got to know him during his rich, creative career. Hughes’ personnal art collection will also be exhibited as well as all his articles that were published both in The Cyprus Weekly and Cyprus Mail. In the framework of the exhibition, a series of parallel events will be organised surrounding the life and work of Glyn Hughes. The detailed programme will be announced soon. Furthermore, the Open Archive of Glyn Hughes will take place at the Municipal Arts Centre from September to December, giving the opportunity to all those who hold works by Glyn Hughes or other material pertinent to the artist to provide relevant information. The Archive of Glyn Hughes aims to collect as much information as possible regarding the artist’s versatile oeuvre, with the primary objective of publishing a complete and detailed catalogue of his work. Relevant information regarding the days and opening hours of the Archive will be announced in the summer. A specially designed educational programme will also be applied for the exhibition, based on the concept of the Participatory Museum. The programme, which aims at creating a pedagogical platform of dialogue with the general public, will be realised in three phases. The first two have been designed and will be implemented by Dr Elena Stylianou, Despo Pasia and Stalo Antoniou with the participation of students of the postgraduate programme Visual Arts in Education of the European University Cyprus. The third and final phase will be implemented with the collaboration of Dr Andri Savva of the Art Education Team in the Department of Education of the University of Cyprus, and Dr Elena Stylianou. The first phase is an educational art workshop for students. The second phase aims at the cooperation of students and educators of all levels for the production of interactive activities that will encourage the creative involvement of the general public, so that the latter can produce their own interpretations of the current exhibition held at the Municipal Arts Centre. In the third phase, the material that will be produced by the previous two workshops will be used for the design and implementation of museum and art activities for a group of teenagers, who will participate in the summer school of the University of Cyprus (27 June – 2 July 2016). Opening hours: Daily except Sundays and Mondays, 10:00-21:00 27 May 2016 – 23 July 2016 6 September 2016 – 17 December 2016