A work by one of Wales’ most respected international artists is in danger of being destroyed after the school on which it was erected was closed by the local authority in 2019.

Catrin Howell was commissioned to design and create three individual murals for Ysgol Beulah in Ceredigion to mark the Millennium. The commission was jointly funded by Ceredigion County Council and the Welsh Arts Council.

Following consultation with the pupils, Catrin Howell based her design on the popular Mabinogion tale of Branwen and created it, together with the children, using tiles.

But in the four years since the school’s closure in September 2019, Beulah residents have watched the building fall into a state of disrepair.  

Now they are requesting that the mural be professionally removed from the exterior wall and re-positioned in a new location where it can be admired and preserved for future generations.

“We don’t want this beautiful piece of art to disappear just because of apathy,” said former Beulah resident Dafydd Ladd.

“To this day our son remembers placing his little tile in the mural and it naturally meant a great deal to him, plus all the other students at the school, to help create such a beautiful piece of work.

“Catrin Howell is a highly regarded artist who exhibits internationally and it’s extremely disappointing to think that this magnificent work of hers has just been left behind.”

It is understood that the school, which is owned by Ceredigion County Council, is currently used for storing furniture.

“We’ve asked Ceredigion whether it’s possible to remove the mural but we’ve been told that it’s too difficult," continued Dafydd Ladd.

"Yet this has been done to countless other pieces of art, so why can’t it be done here?

“It just seems that there’s a total lack of concern about it."

Carin Howell is a ceramicist who grew up on a farm in Ceredigion.

After taking a Foundation Course in Art and Design at Carmarthenshire College of Technology and Art (1988-1989) she obtained a BA Hons Ceramics (1st Class) from the University of Wolverhampton (1989-1992) specialising in three dimensional design.

During her degree course, she took part in a student exchange programme and spent a term at Alfred University, New York.

This proved to be a turning point for her work and she began focusing on animals and Welsh myths, especially those from the Mabinogion.

Her work has since been shown in the Victoria & Albert Museum, London and she has received the Craft Masterpiece Gold Medal for Craft and Design at the Welsh National Eisteddfod as well as an Award of Merit from the Fletcher Challenge Ceramics Award, New Zealand.

Ceredigion County Council has been asked to comment on the situation.