Collaborative research project explores the salt marsh landscapes of the Gower and County Kerry

26 October 2026

An exhibition highlighting the importance of saltmarshes of Cwm Ivy, on the Gower and Derrymore, Co Kerry in Ireland has opened at UWTSD’s Swansea College of Art.

Time and Tide - Cwm Ivy Gower, Derrymore Co Kerry

The exhibition, time and tide, features the work of Grace Cott, Alex Duncan, Eliza Fairchild and Ragna Hoogenboom and is the result of a collaborative research project between UWTSD and wetland ecologists at University College Dublin (UCD) funded via the EU’s Catalyst programme and the UCD Earth Institute.

This exhibition highlights the importance of saltmarshes by exploring the climate change research underway in Derrymore Island saltmarsh on the southwest coast of Ireland and the changing landscape at the Cwm Ivy Marsh on the Gower Peninsula, Wales. It explores themes of climate, sea defences, and letting nature take its course and offers a chance to visualise our landscape vertically – deep soil cores, broken sea walls. In addition, it features a collection of essays based on the two saltmarshes which have been translated into Welsh and Irish.

Alex Duncan, lecturer and researcher at UWTSD’s Swansea College of Art said:

“Saltmarsh ecosystems lie on the interface between the marine and terrestrial environments and share characteristics of both.

These ecosystems provide critical functions such as coastal protection, habitat for wildlife and can sequester and store carbon from the atmosphere.

“Long seen as areas to be reclaimed, these ecosystems have become increasingly important for mitigating climate change and adapting our coastlines to rising seas.”

The research team also delivered an open lecture at Swansea College Art alongside the exhibition opening which will run until 12th December 2026.

The group plan to take the exhibition to Dublin in 2027 to further this collaboration between science and visual art.

Time and Tide - Cwm Ivy Gower and Derrymore Co Kerry

time and tide, An exhibition highlighting the importance of saltmarshes of Cwm Ivy, on the Gower and Derrymore, Co Kerry in Ireland has opened at UWTSD’s Swansea College of Art and will run until 12 December.