Tyisha
Introducing Tyisha: A New Collaborative Project by Huw Alden Davies
We are delighted to announce Tyisha, a major new collaborative project by Huw Alden Davies, presented as part of Ffoto Cymru and curated by Kathryn Campbell Dodd.
Rooted in the village of Tumble and the wider Gwendraeth Valley, Tyisha is a socially engaged art project that explores the life and legacy of Tumble man Jac Ty-isha (John Hughes), a central figure in the Rebecca Riots and the Merched Becca (Rebecca’s Daughters). Their story has become an enduring symbol of Welsh resistance and solidarity.
In 1843, following an attempt to demolish the Bolgoed toll gate on the outskirts of Pontarddulais, Jac Ty-isha was exiled to Tasmania and never returned to his native Cymru. Tyisha brings this history into the present through a living, collective artwork: an act of remembrance that reconnects communities with their past while exploring ideas of place, identity and belonging.
At the heart of the project is a community procession held during the inaugural Gŵyl Tyisha Festival, when hundreds of participants dressed as Merched Becca walked through the village of Tumble. The resulting body of work brings together photography, film, performance and creative technologies by:
Huw Alden Davies, Amanda Savinelli & Renata Ostiak
Paul Cabuts
Peter Finnemore
Kathryn Campbell Dodd
Kate Suiter
Mohamed Hassan
Dan Staveley
Karl Sedgwick
Lucas Davies
Students at Carmarthen School of Art
Together, these works form a vibrant, multidisciplinary archive connecting artists, students and local communities with the history and landscape of the Gwendraeth Valley.
Rather than simply looking back, Tyisha invites participants to become co-creators of a living cultural history — honouring those who shaped the valley while creating new connections between place, memory and contemporary life.
Tyisha
5 October – 6 November 2026 Preview Evening: 15 October
Part of Ffoto Cymru Curated by Kathryn Campbell Dodd
Oriel Henry Thomas,
Carmarthen School of Art
SA31 3HY
Merched by Paul Cabuts. Tyisha. 2026
Carmarthen School of Art - Job's Well, Job's Well Rd, Carmarthen
SA31 3HY
Huw Alden Davies
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