Framed Works of Art

Introduction

The National Library of Wales has an important and varied collection of framed works of art. Spanning several centuries, they include excellent examples of landscape, portraiture and genre pictures.

The Library specialises in images relating to Wales and the other Celtic nations; this online catalogue reflects that emphasis with the majority of pictures illustrating some aspect of Welsh life, places in Wales or people associated with this country. The variety in this collection is impressive. It contains the superb paintings of masters such as J M W Turner, Richard Wilson, Thomas Gainsborough, Paul Sandby and James Ward in addition to works reflecting the native Welsh artistic tradition such as William Roos, Hugh Hughes and the Revd. Evan Williams. It also has modern masters including Sir Kyffin Williams, Will Roberts and Evan Walters. All who are interested in the art of Wales will find the collection a pleasure to browse.

This project opens a window onto the collections of the Library, enabling internet enquirers to access material, which has only been available on site at Aberystwyth. It contains nearly 5000 digitised images together with a description of the object.

It is hoped that this facility will prove useful to a wide audience, enhancing the already extensive information available online from the Library. Those who are looking for good illustrations of Wales and Welsh life will find a rich resource of authentic pictures many of which have never been published.

Copies may be purchased, in accordance with Library policy and users can refer to the details given on the 'How to obtain copies' page for advice.

This collection is growing constantly and it will be an increasingly valuable reference source for the history of Wales and Welsh art.

Related links

• How to obtain copies of items in the Framed Works of Art Collection