Lisvane Art Workshop

It was originally thought that the Art Workshop started sometime in the mid 1980s as we have an exhibition programme dated 1985, in which there is a section for ‘The Monday Workshop’. We now know from an old diary found by Jean Sheppard that the Old School in Lisvane was booked in September 1983 for the Art Workshop from 9am to 5pm on Mondays for the sum of £6 per year! The hall fees were raised to £15 a year in 1986. Jean remembers some of the members from those days included Tim Harper, Wyn Davies, Nance Hall, Nita Crispin, Olive Lewis and Percy Harvey. Exhibitions were held in the Old School.

Our History

(left) This photo was taken in the Old School on 3rd May 1988. I gather that this is Ann Lee’s leaving party. Left to right - Percy Harvey, Barbara Davies, Roy Roderick, Ann Lee, Paul Chaundy, Ted Martin, David Bartlett, Wyn Davies, unknown, unknown, David Ash, unknown, Cynthia Walker, Dini Woodworth.

We have been fortunate in having a large photographic archive in the form of five albums of photographs taken by the late Granville Thomas, which show the activities of the Art Workshop and the earlier Lisvane Art Society.

Peter Taylor stood down as chairman of the Art Workshop in July 1995, and became our President. Peter was succeeded as chairman by Moira Lloyd, who handed over to me, Ian Philpot, in July 2002 - so we have only had three chairmen in the whole of our existence. Unfortunately, in November 2011, Peter felt unable to continue as our President and relinquished both this office and his membership. He was made an honorary life member in recognition of his service to the Workshop. Sadly, Peter died in September 2014.

We moved from the Old School to the Memorial Hall in 2000, our first meeting there being on 5th September. Our Annual Exhibition has traditionally been in November, though it has sometimes strayed into October or December and even March. We have also held exhibitions in Rhiwbina, Whitchurch and in the Norwegian Church. This year’s exhibition will be back to November.

Peter Taylor, our first Chairman and later President, who died in September 2014, aged 91.

I understand that the main instigator of the Art Workshop was Percy Harvey, the first chairman being Peter Taylor, later our President until 2011. The original title was simply the ‘Monday Workshop’, the title ‘workshop’ being intended to denote that no formal or regular tuition is given, the only function of the meetings being ‘to paint’ in company with like-minded others.