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Martin Crampin
Martin Crampin is currently part-time Research Fellow on the Cult of Saints in Wales Project at the Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies, Aberystwyth.
Martin is a visual artist and has exhibited across Wales and internationally. He recently completed his practice-based PhD at the Centre, focusing on medievalism in Welsh visual culture, producing images and installation based on medieval patterns from churches in Wales.
As an art historian Martin has particular expertise in Welsh church architecture and art and in 2014, Martin published his first major monograph, Stained Glass from Welsh Churches. He also works independently as a photographer and as a designer for a variety of media.
Previous research projects include ‘The Visual Culture of Wales’ (1999–2004), ‘Imaging the Bible in Wales’ (2005–8), and ‘Stained Glass in Wales’ (2009–11)
Selected Publications
‘Artists and Workshops in the Sixteenth-Century Low Countries: Further Thoughts on the Neave Glass at Llanwenllwyfo’, Vidimus, Feature for issue 104, November 2016.
(with John Hammond) Stained Glass at the Church of St Peter, Lampeter (Aberystwyth, 2017).
‘Neave Glass at Llanwenllwyfo: dating and attribution’, in J.O. Hughes, Hidden Gems: Stained Glass at the Church of St Gwenllwyfo, Dulas, Anglesey (Aberystwyth, 2016).
The Medieval Tiles of Strata Florida (Aberystwyth, 2014).
Stained Glass at the Church of St Mary the Virgin, Tenby (Aberystwyth, 2014).
The Medieval Grotesques of Gresford (Aberystwyth, 2014).
Stained Glass from Welsh Churches (Talybont, 2014).
‘Belgian Glass in a Corner of Britain’, Vidimus, Feature for issue 79, April 2014.
'Stained Glass in Wales', Vidimus, Feature for Issue 57, February 2012.
‘Biblical Art from Wales: the Mediaeval Influence’, in Martin O’Kane and John Morgan-Guy (eds.), Biblical Art from Wales (Sheffield, 2010).
(with John Morgan-Guy), Imaging the Bible in Wales (DVD-ROM) (Sheffield, 2010).
‘Interpreting Welsh Medieval Narratives: Exploring Parallel Traditions and Historical Process through Contemporary Art’, Studi Celtici, III (2004), 295–324.
Online Resources
'Stained Glass in Wales', online catalogue (launched 2011), <http://stainedglass.llgc.org.uk>
(with John Morgan-Guy), 'Imaging the Bible in Wales', online database (launched 2008), <http://imagingthebible.org/wales>
Selected Recent Exhibitions:
'Curious Travellers: Movement, Landscape, Art’, 2016–17, Oriel Sycharth, Wrexham: Oriel Brondanw, Llanfrothen; Old College, Aberystwyth.
‘Art on the Faith Trail’, 16 June – 31 July 2017, churches at Llanwnda, Llanychaer and Pontfaen, and St Davids Cathedral.
‘Beneath the Surface’, 8–24 April 2015, Diverse Manners Group Exhibition, Newport Riverfront Arts Centre.
‘Medieval Patterns’, 13 October 2014 – 9 March 2015, Canolfan Rhiannon, Tregaron.
‘Patterns, Monsters and Mysteries’, 2 August – 6 September 2014, Oriel Q, Queen's Hall, Narberth.
‘Teiliau Ystrad Fflur / Strata Florida Tiles’, 28 February – 10 March 2014, Cloister Gallery, St Davids Cathedral.
Selected Recent Lectures
'Mystery Makers: Identifying the artists responsible for the stained glass at the Church of St Peter, Lampeter’, Annual Lampeter Society Lecture, Lampeter, October 2017.
'A Change in Direction: Modernism in the stained glass of the diocese of Llandaff in the 1950s and 60s’, 'In glass thy story' Art and Christianity Enquiry (ACE) Symposium, University of Cambridge, September 2017.
'From the Celtic Revival to Abstract Expressionism and Back Again: Medievalism in twentieth-century Welsh art’, 'The Middle Ages in the Modern World' Conference, University of Manchester June 2017.
'King Lucius, St Elfan, Pope Eleutherius, Baron Merthyr, and the coming of Christianity to Wales’, 'Stories of the Saints' conference, National Library of Wales, June 2017.
'Finding Welsh Saints in Welsh Churches’, National Library of Wales, May 2017.
'Medievalism in Victorian ecclesiastical stained glass: a defining concept?’, 'Reframing Stained Glass in Nineteenth-Century Britain: Culture, Aesthetics, Contexts', University of Cambridge, May 2017.
‘Saints and stained glass at Llanbadarn Fawr’, Church of St Padarn, Llanbadarn Fawr, April 2017.
‘Ecclesiastical Stained Glass in Bangor’, The Art Fund, Storiel, Bangor, November 2016.
‘David Evans of Shrewsbury and the Revival of Gothic Stained Glass’, Shrewsbury Museum and Art Gallery, November 2016.
‘ "The church is extremely handsome": Art and History at Gresford’, Oriel Sycharth, Wrexham, October 2016.
‘Appreciating Stained Glass in the Diocese of Llandaff’, St Michael's College, Llandaff, September 2016.
'Medievalism and Modernity in Twentieth-century Ecclesiastical Stained Glass’, History and Heritage Seminar, Society of Glass Technology Annual Conference, University of Sheffield, September 2016.
'The Imaging of Saints in Medieval Stained Glass’, International Medieval Congress, University of Leeds, July 2016.
‘The Appreciation of Stained Glass: where are we now and why are we here?’, Swansea College of Art, University of Wales Trinity St David, March 2016.
‘The Celtic Revival in the Visual Culture of Wales’, ‘Celtic Revival: authenticity and identity’ conference, British Museum, January 2016.
‘Modern and medieval: tradition and change in twentieth-century stained glass’, Swansea College of Art, November 2015.
‘From “The Last Bard” to the Gothic Revival: Artists’ Responses to the Middle Ages in Wales’, National Waterfront Museum, Swansea, September 2015.
‘Kings, saints and popes: Ancient Britain in stained glass during the Welsh revival’, 15th International Congress of Celtic Studies, University of Glasgow, July 2015.
‘National and religious identities reflected in the imaging of medieval saints in Wales’, ‘Middle Ages in the Modern World Conference’, University of Lincoln, July 2015.
‘Wood, Stone and Glass in the March: Craft workshops and church furnishing in the late medieval period’, ‘Contest and Collaboration: Chester Conference on the March of Wales’, University of Chester, April 2015.
‘Colour, Creativity, Glass: The Story of Welsh Stained Glass’, Theology and Religious Studies Research Seminar Series, University of Wales Trinity St David, Lampeter, January 2015.
‘Stained Glass in the Churches of John Prichard and John Pollard Seddon', The Victorian Society, Llandaff, November 2014.
‘Stained Glass: Wales and Penarth’, Trinity Methodist Church, Penarth (Penarth Book Festival), October 2014.
‘Images of Saints in Welsh churches’, ‘The Cult of Saints in Wales’ conference, University of Wales Trinity St David, Carmarthen, September 2014.
‘Internal and external links: mapping the visual culture of Wales online’, ‘Matching Digital Humanities and Academic Users: The Challenges of Effectively Advancing, Disseminating and User-Adapting Digital Resources for the Humanities’ networking event, National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, September 2014.
‘The Visual Culture of the Celtic Revival in Wales’, The Celtic Revival in Scotland (1860–1930), University of Edinburgh, May 2014.
'What’s Welsh about the Visual Culture of Welsh Churches? Artists, Patronage and Subject Matter in Ecclesiastical Art in Wales', ‘Wales Iâl Yale’ (Graduate Student Symposium), Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, CT, April 2014.
‘Hidden Messages: symbolism and meaning in Welsh ecclesiastical stained glass’, Carmarthenshire Antiquarian Society, Carmarthen, February 2014.
‘Medieval Stained Glass in Wales after the Middle Ages: Survival, Loss, and Reinvention’, International Medieval Congress, University of Leeds, July 2013.
‘Biblical Art: Stained Glass in Welsh Churches’ North Powys Decorative and Fine Art Society, Welshpool, April 2013.
‘Pedeir Keinc y Mabinogi: the medieval mind, the construction of the past and the mythic landscape’, 'Celtic Myth and Landscape' conference, University of Wales Trinity St David, October 2012.
‘Stained Glass – the Revival of a Medieval Art’, 'Medievalism in Wales' conference, Sketty Hall, Swansea, October 2012.
‘Fifteenth-Century Stained Glass in North Wales’, 'Guto’r Glyn and Fifteenth-century Wales' conference, Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies, Aberystwyth, September 2012.
‘Stained Glass in Wales’ History and Heritage Seminar, Society of Glass Technology Annual Conference, University of Cambridge, September 2012.
'Discovering the Visual Culture of Welsh Parish Churches in the Modern Age', ‘Parish Studies Today’ Tenth Warwick Symposium on Parish Research, University of Warwick, May 2012.
'Imaging Welsh saints in Welsh churches', 14th International Congress of Celtic Studies, Maynooth, August 2011.
'Stained glass from Welsh churches: a new online catalogue', Stained Glass in Wales one-day forum, Swansea, June 2011.
'Looking for Welsh Art in the Churches of Wales', 'Theorising Wales' conference, Gregynog, July 2010.
'New Light on Old Stone: Recording and Reinventing Visual Culture', Electronic Visualisation and the Arts Conference, London, July 2010.
Martin was a named researcher on the successful AHRC projects ‘Interpreting the Bible and its Visual Expression Within the Cultural Landscape of Wales 1825-1975’ (2005–8), ‘The Cult of Saints in Wales: medieval Welsh-language sources and their transmission (2013–17) and ‘Vitae Sanctorum Cambriae’ (The Latin Lives of the Welsh Saints). He also secured small grants from the University of Wales Welsh Industries Fund, the Pilgrim Trust, the Garfield Weston Foundation and the Friends of Friendless Churches to develop the online ‘Stained Glass in Wales’ catalogue (2009–11). In 2016 Martin received a further small grant from the Glaziers Trust to add further material to the catalogue.
Martin was a named researcher on the successful AHRC projects ‘Interpreting the Bible and its Visual Expression Within the Cultural Landscape of Wales 1825-1975’ (2005–8) and ‘The Cult of Saints in Wales: medieval Welsh-language sources and their transmission (2013–17). He also secured small grants from the University of Wales Welsh Industries Fund, the Pilgrim Trust, the Garfield Weston Foundation and the Friends of Friendless Churches to develop the online ‘Stained Glass in Wales’ catalogue (2009–11). In 2016 Martin received a further small grant from the Glaziers Trust to add further material to the catalogue.
Advisor for stained glass to the Llandaf Diocesan Advisory Committee.
Member of the Stained Glass Committee of the Church Building Council (Church of England).
Martin’s work on the ‘The Visual Culture of Wales’ project (1999–2004), and the AHRC–funded projects ‘Imaging the Bible in Wales’ (2005–8) and ‘The Cult of Saints in Wales’ (2014–17), has been in collaboration with colleagues in both the Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies and in Lampeter at the University of Wales Trinity St David.
University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies, Aberystwyth.
