ABERGLASNEY has been overwhelmed by the amount of entries received for its competition to design a colourful birthday card front cover to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the gardens being open to the public.
Well-known local artist, Andrew Douglas-Forbes, kindly agreed to judge the hundreds of entries received from schools and individuals from all over the county. Andrew has a long association with the gardens and will be holding his own exhibition in the Mansion in July as part of the 25th anniversary celebrations.
Congratulations go to Rhian Craig, aged 12, a pupil at Parc y Tywyn primary school. Her realistic and detailed drawing of the mansion and cloister garden has been chosen as the competition winner.
Andrew Douglas-Forbes said, “Congratulations to Rhian. Your drawing stood out amongst all the entries for me as it looked so realistic. The standard of entries was very high. Thank you to all who entered. I can see a lot of time and effort has gone in to each piece of art.”
The winner will be able to bring a group of friends (or classmates) to have a fun-packed and informative guided tour of Aberglasney and the group will be given a birthday party lunch prepared by the Tearooms.
The standard of entries was so high that Andrew also chose second and third prize winners and each will receive a £10 voucher to be used in Aberglasney’s giftshop. Yeju Kim, aged 12 from Ysgol Coedcae in Llanelli, came second and Ioan Rossiter, aged 8, from Ysgol Gorslas, came third.
The winner was announced during Aberglasney’s birthday celebrations on Thursday, 4 July 2024 and all entries are now on display in the Mansion for visitors to enjoy until the end of July.
Aberglasney Gardens were opened to the public on 4 July 1999. It is described as one of Wales’ finest gardens with a fully restored Elizabethan Cloister Garden that is the only surviving example of its kind in the UK today. It was made famous by the BBC television series ‘A Garden Lost in Time’ which followed its restoration right up to the day it opened. The four episodes of the series will be available for everyone to watch during their visits to the gardens in June and July.
To celebrate Aberglasney’s 25th anniversary of being open to the public, visitors are invited to enjoy an exciting array of events and experiences over the coming months. Members and visitors are advised to regularly check Aberglasney’s website: www.aberglasney.org and social media pages for event details and tickets.
Andrew Douglas-Forbes will be exhibiting at Aberglasney from Friday, 19 July through to Thursday, 25 July. The Gardener’s Mug and all its connotations exhibition will be a collection of 25 pieces for 25 glorious years. Having strong ties with the gardens, Andrew Douglas Forbes heard first-hand stories of Aberglasney’s inception and its philosophy, this influence has produced what Andrew calls “Poems in paint”. Andrew, over the years, has become a highly collectible painter, exhibiting widely from Wales to America. His work can be found in the Glynn Vivian Swansea, Carmarthen council and many private collections. Andew will be holding a preview evening from 5.30pm on Friday, 19 July and all are welcome to attend. Normal entry fee to the Gardens does not apply when attending the preview event.
