Books
This reading list encompasses key texts that have informed my artistic practice, covering landscape theory, industrial photography, collage, Welsh culture, and phenomenology.
Key Texts
Landscape and Photography
Andrews, Malcolm. (1999) Landscape and Western Art Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Liesbrook, Heinz. (2010) Bernd & Hilla Becher: Coal Mines and Steel Mills Schirmer/Mosel, Munich.
Becher, Bernhard and Becher, Hilla. (2005) Basic Forms of Industrial Buildings Schirmer/Mosel, Munich.
Becher, Bernhard and Becher, Hilla Anonymous Sculptures
Artists and Contemporary Practice
Ruscha, Edward and Crow, Thomas E. (2008) Ed Ruscha: Industrial Strength The Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia.
Ruscha, Edward. (1963) 26 Gasoline Stations Self-published, US.
Ruscha, Edward. (1964) Various Small Fires and Milk Self-published, US.
Gopnik, Blake. (2020) Warhol: A Life as Art Allen Lane, UK.
Morrill, Rebecca. (2023) Vitamin C+: collage in contemporary art Phaidon Press, London.
Becher, B., Liesbrock, H., Becher, H. and Josef-Albers-Museum. (2010) Bernd and Hilla Becher Schirmer/Mosel, Munich.
Richards, C. and Tate Gallery. (1981) Ceri Richards Tate Gallery, London.
Welsh Culture and History
Miskell, Louise. (2019) New Perspectives on Welsh Industrial History Gwasg Prifysgol Cymru, Wales.
Herman, Josef and Curtis, Tony. (2002) Related twilights: notes from an artist’s diary Seren, Bridgend, Wales.
Jones, Jen. (1997) Welsh Quilts: A Towy Guide Towy Publishing, Camarthen, Wales.
Jones, Thomas and Jones, Gwyn. (2000) The Mabinogion (translated) Everymans Library, New York.
Firman, Rob. (2012) *The Theatres and Performance buildings of South Wales Author House UK publishing, UK
Ormond, John. (2015) John Ormond: Collected Poems Wales, Seven Press
Tinplate Industry in Wales
The tinplate industry played a crucial role in Welsh industrial history, particularly in the Swansea Valley region. Wales became the world center of tinplate production in the 19th and early 20th centuries, with the Llanelli area being especially significant. The industry combined coal mining, iron production, and skilled metalworking, creating tight-knit working communities. The decline of the tinplate industry from the 1920s onwards paralleled broader deindustrialization trends that affected Welsh valleys communities. This industrial heritage directly informs my practice, as I document the continuation and transformation of metalworking traditions in contemporary Welsh manufacturing sites.
Richards, AJ. (2008) Tinplate in Wales Pwllheli, Gwynedd, Llygad Gwalch.
Theory and Philosophy
Barthes, Roland. (1977) Image—Music—Text Fontana Press, London. Discusses sound and image phenomena.
Merleau-Ponty, Maurice. (1945) Phenomenology of Perception Librairie Gallimard, Paris.
Palmer, Katrina. (2015) End Matter Artangel, London.
Perec, Georges. (1988) Life: A User’s Manual Collins/Harvill, London.
Kracauer, Siegfried. (1995) The Mass Ornament: Weimar Essays Harvard University Press, US.
Careri, Francesco. (2002) Walkscapes: Walking as an Aesthetic Practice Editorial Gustavo Gili, Barcelona.
Meredith, Christopher. (2013) The Book of Idiots Seren, Bridgend, Wales.
Raymond Williams Reader Raymond Williams Society, UK.
Evans, Martin W. (Ed.). (2010) The Good Old Cause: Essays in Honour of Christopher Hill Lawrence and Wishart, London.
Davies, Russell T. (2005) Queer as Folk: The Scripts Channel 4 Books, London.
Art and Colour
Jarman, Derek. (1994) Chroma: a book of colour Century, London.
Artists’ Books
Desjardin, A. (Ed.) (2013) The Book on Books on Artists Books The Everyday Press.
Drucker, Johanna. (2004) The Century of Artists’ Books Granary Books.
Herschend, J. (2014) The Thing The Book: A Monument to the Book as Object Chronicle Books.
Working Class Writing
Key Words Preview: Raymond Williams and Working Class Writing (2020)
Jacobs, Jane. (1961) The Death and Life of Great American Cities
Orwell, George. (1937) The Road to Wigan Pier Gollancz Publishing, London.
Fukuyama, Francis. (1992) The End of History and the Last Man Free Press, US.
Fasting, Mathilde (Ed.). (2021) After the End of History: Conversations with Francis Fukuyama Georgetown University Press, US.
Pitts, Johny. (2019) Afropean: Notes from Black Europe Allen Lane, UK.
Pitts, Johny and Robinson, Roger. (2022) Home is not a place William Collins, London.
Photography
Steichen, Edward. (1955) The Family of Man Museum of Modern Art, New York. A landmark photography exhibition and book curated by Edward Steichen for MoMA in 1955, featuring 503 photographs from 68 countries exploring universal human experiences.
Cotton, Charlotte. (2020) The Photograph as Contemporary Art Thames and Hudson, London.
Duley, Giles. (2017) I Can Only Tell You What My Eyes See: Photographs from the Refugee Crisis Sage Books, London.
Greenough, Sarah. (2009) Looking In: Robert Frank’s The Americans National Gallery of Art, Washington DC.
Maloof, John. (2014) Vivian Maier: A Photographer Found Harper Design, New York.
Schneidermann, Clementine and James, Charlotte. (2019) Ffasiwn Martin Parr Foundation, Bristol, England.
Taki, Koji; Nakahira, Takuma; Takahashi, Yutaka; Okada, Takahiko; Moriyama, Daido. (2018) Provoke (3 volumes) Nitesha, Japan.
Berswordt-Wallrabe, Kornelia and Tillmans, Wolfgang. (2017) Wolfgang Tillmans - Rebuilding the Future Hirmer, Germany.
Marcoci, Roxana. (2014) Wolfgang Tillmans: To look without fear MOMA, New York.
Gursky, Andreas. (2001) Andreas Gursky Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Tillmans, Wolfgang. (2002) Wolfgang Tillmans: if one thing matters, everything matters Tate Publishing, London.
Frank, Robert. (2014) The Americans Steidl, Germany.
Auster, Paul and Coetzee, J.M. (2012) Here and Now: Letters, 2008-2011 Harvill Secker, London.
Berger, John and Mohr, Jean. (1975) A Seventh Man Penguin Books, London.
Berger, John. (1972) Ways of Seeing Penguin Books, London.
Mesch, Claudia. (2016) Joseph Beuys. The Reader MIT Press, US.
Killip, Chris. (2006) Chris Killip Steidl Verlag, Germany.
Jones, Colin. (2006) The Black House Prestel, Munich, Germany.
Jones, Colin. (2002) Grafters Noorderlicht Photofestival, Holland.
Michael, John. (2015) American Photographs Independent, US.
Art and Artists
Serra, Richard. (2004) Richard Serra: Dirks Pod Steidl, Printed in Germany.
Graham-Dixon, Andrew. (2010) Caravaggio: A Life Sacred and Profane Penguin Books, London.
Materials and Techniques
Grey, Maggie and Wild, June. (2007) Paper, metal and stitch Batsford Press, London. Notes on use of “puff paint” and “glass paint”.