Images of the South Wales Mines

This celebration of the South Wales Coalfield is a record of the industry during its last working days. Watercolours and black and white sketches show the life of the mines and the history of the coalfield since its beginnings in the early 19th century through the heyday of "King Coal" when South Wales was the "powerhouse of the empire" to the hardships of the Depression, the post-war rundown and finally the virtual demise of the deep pits. Landscape paintings of the great mines of the coalfield at Big Pit, Taff Merthyr and in the Rhondda are shown alongside details of pit-head gear, working underground, coal-trains and pit ponies. Pictures of the men who worked at the coal face and scenes of their cottages and of the communites above ground, and the landscapes reclaimed by nature as the pits fell silent, pay tribute to a time when the mines were a way of life for many. Captions show the sources of the paintings, and the artist also describes his techniques and working methods.