Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- [1900s]-1985 (Creation)
Level of description
Fonds
Extent and medium
10 volumes.
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Ceri Giraldus Richards (1903-1971), artist, was born at Dunvant near Swansea. He studied at Swansea School of Art from 1920 to 1924 and from there won a scholarship to the Royal College of Art, which he attended from 1924 to 1927. It was here that he met Frances Clayton (1901-1985) from Stoke-on-Trent; they married in 1929 and Frances herself became a distinguished painter, graphic artist, draughtswoman and illustrator. Ceri Richards continued to live in London after graduating and became a leading contributor amongst the small group of artists who were interested in the international modern movement. In 1934 Richards began to make pictorial relief constructions assembled from pieces of wood, which were highly influenced by the work of Picasso and Hans Arp; later, he would use an eclectic variety of materials in the construction of reliefs which reflected the nature of the subjects. In 1939 Ceri and Frances Richards moved to Cardiff, where Ceri taught graphic art at Cardiff School of Art. He was also at this time commissioned by the Ministry of Information to record the South Wales tin-plate workers, which he did in a series of black and white ink drawings. During the post-war years, Richards was heavily influenced in his art by the poetical works of Dylan Thomas and, from the 1950s, he also worked for much of the time in lithograph and screen print. In 1964-5 he designed stained glass for Derby Cathedral and in 1965 was commissioned to design the Blessed Sacrament Chapel at Liverpool Roman Catholic Cathedral. Richards was appointed CBE in 1960 and awarded an honourary DLitt by the University of Wales the following year. He also won the Gold Medal at the Dyffryn Maelor National Eisteddfod of 1961 and the Einaudi prize for painting at the Venice Biennale of 1962-3. Ceri Richards died in London.
Name of creator
Biographical history
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Mrs Rhiannon Gooding, daughter of Ceri and Frances Richards; London; Purchase; 1991.
Mrs Rachel Patterson, daughter of Ceri and Frances Richards; London; Donation; 1991.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Papers, [1900s]-1985, of artists Ceri and Frances Richards, comprising correspondence, 1928-1985; sketchbooks and drawings, [c. 1930]-[1970s], together with a catalogue, 1968-1971, of their works; notes on paintings, [1960s], by Ceri Richards; and family photographs, [1900s]-[1960s].
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Arranged according to NLW MSS reference numbers: NLW MSS 23005-23014.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Readers consulting modern papers in the National Library of Wales are required to abide by the conditions noted on the 'Modern papers - data protection' form issued with their Readers' Tickets.
Conditions governing reproduction
Usual copyright laws apply.
Language of material
- English
- Welsh
Script of material
Language and script notes
English, some Welsh.
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
The contents are indexed in greater detail in Handlist of Manuscripts in the National Library of Wales, vol. 9 (Aberystwyth, 2003).
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
Note
Title based on contents of fonds.
Alternative identifier(s)
Virtua system control number
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Description follows NLW guidelines based on ISAD(G) 2nd ed.; AACR2; and LCSH
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
March 2009.
Language(s)
- English
Script(s)
Sources
The following sources were used in the compilation of this description: Handlist of Manuscripts in the National Library of Wales, Volume IX (Aberystwyth, 2003); Oxford Dictionary of National Biography WWW site; Cydymaith i Lenyddiaeth Cymru (Llandysul, 1986)
Archivist's note
Description compiled by Bethan Ifans for the retrospective conversion project of NLW MSS.