A painter and textile artist is holding a locally sourced art project at Llanfyllin Library.

Liz Neal, whose work has been nationally exhibited throughout the UK, has put together a collection of local character portraits, capturing profiles of people from throughout the Llanfyllin areas, as part of an exhibition currently on display in the town’s library.

Ms Neal put the piece together in the hopes that it would reflect a sense of community and empathy felt in the wake of the Covid-19 Pandemic, as well as serve as a time capsule of a specific moment in Llanfyllin’s history.

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She also says that she is hoping to make the project an annual feature, with plenty of other faces from around Llanfyllin open to be portraited.

She said: “I’d love to expand it to include even more people and for the concept itself to become a workshop of sorts for schools and local art groups, as it’s a good way to think about portraiture as an art form, looking at the people around you, the community and the individuals who make it up.

“The collection began with a series of self-portraits I did while I was re-learning how to paint after taking a break from it while I was occupied with other projects.

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“It was two years ago that I first started looking for new faces to portray, but it gained more traction as a collection I could exhibit over the past 12 months.

“You see local people have responded well to the work and that is so important because I want I want us as the community to recognise ourselves as special , diverse, industrious, heroic and creative.

“In times that have been incredibly challenging, post pandemic with uncertain times ahead we need to bond together support each other and give thanks to those who maintain our very infrastructure.

“Llanfyllin is a place of continuous growth in creativity and the Arts,  with this project I’m adding an affirming time capsule to this end

“This ongoing project is, in my mind, a collaboration with my community I’m hoping it will inspire other artists and other communities to recognise the value in those around us.”

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