Patagonia - 150 years on

On the 28th of July 1865, one hundred and fifty three Welsh settlers arrived in Patagonia, in what would become southern Argentina on a converted tea clipper, the Mimosa. They had gone to set up a Welsh speaking community at the behest of the Argentinian government and under the inspirational leadership of Captain Love Jones Parry and Lewis Jones. Unfortunately, few of the settlers were farmers and they landed in an arid semi-desert with little food and only one colonist who had rudimentary medical skills. However, they persevered and set up the towns of Rawson and Puerto Madryn and founded a distinct Welsh speaking community which persists to this day.

Plas Glyn y Weddw in Llanbedrog is now celebrating these 150 years with an inspiring new exhibition which is now on until the 12th of July.

The highlight of the exhibition is retrospective work by the artist Delyth Llwyd Evans de Jones, a direct descendant of some of the first Welsh settlers, and recognised as the most important painter from Welsh Patagonia. This is a self portrait.

One of many landscapes by Delyth.

There is a specially commissioned box set of 19 prints depicting the founding of the Welsh colony and drawn by Delyth.

Tomas Duncombe Love Jones-Parry of the Madryn family who owned Plas Glyn y Weddw. He was one of the leaders of the settlement.

Part of the exhibition features work by Luned Rhys Parri who went to Patagonia in 2014 and who worked with local schools both on the Llŷn and in Patagonia.

This is a big exhibition and beatifully set up by the staff at Plas.

The most famous Welsh artist to visit Patagonia was Kyffin Williams, and there is some of his work on display here. This is a portrait of Kyffin by Delyth.