Wales showcased in Washington DC (From Tivyside Advertiser)

Wales showcased in Washington DC

11:00am Thursday 18th June 2009

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With just a week to go, a number of people from Ceredigion are gearing up to showcase their talents and represent Wales at a major American cultural festival in Washington.

Poets Gillian Clarke and Ceri Wyn Jones, harpist Robin Huw Bowen, staff from the National Library of Wales, singers Linda Griffiths and Lisa Healy, visual artist Mary Lloyd Jones, biochemist Alison Nash, food demonstrator Hazel Thomas, bookbinder Julian Thomas and Keith Rees of the National Wool Museum will be amongst the 150-strong contingent contributing to Wales’ presence as featured nation at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, this week on the National Mall in Washington DC., where they will be helping to give visitors a feel of what Wales is all about, as well as their crafts, skills and knowledge.

First Minister Rhodri Morgan said: "The Smithsonian Folklife Festival is a major event in the calendar in Washington DC. It is that big as an American cultural festival that it receives more than one million visitors each year. Because it is the featured nation this year, it gives us a unique opportunity to make our mark in the USA. These participants will be helping to bring the culture, heritage and contemporary presence and vision of our country to a huge audience on the National Mall, while a range of ancillary events will be taking place to reinforce the breadth of Wales’ capabilities and interests, including the largest ever trade mission to leave Wales, an environmental Zero Convergence conference and a range of tourism focussed activity. It is with no little effort, that so many people are joining forces to raise the profile of Wales in the United States at one time. I, like them, hope their efforts will bear a fruitful legacy, with the attraction of more people to visit or study in our beautiful country, or invest in Wales or Welsh products."

The Wales area at the festival, Wales Smithsonian Cymru, which will cover an area about the size of four football pitches, will offer visitors a flavour of the cultural life of Wales through a range of themed areas - Wales in the World; Language and Literature; Industry, Heritage and Innovation; Building and Landscapes; Ecotourism and Pastimes; Home and Community; Along the Water, and; Music and Dance - and through stages, where visitors will hear a wide range of Welsh music and poetry. The design of the Wales area has been inspired by the traditional and contemporary Welsh built landscape, referencing place names and building and fencing traditions. There will even be rugby posts set between dry stone walls to welcome visitors to the Wales area.

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