“From a modern perspective, we celebrate the lives, stories or be it myths, of the individual. This mural was a chance to celebrate and give dignity to the forgotten worker. It was important to me to challenge pre-feminist depictions of the laundry / dairy maid archetype, whose real stories can become casualties of history. I wanted to present the physical and mental strength needed for these gruelling, ceaseless processes, by casting my imagination into the past. I hope this point is heightened by contrast with the view of Evan Morgan and Olga Dolgorouky walking in the garden, whose lives are much better remembered, due largely to inherited wealth and status.”

“The realism of the female protagonists came from drawing my close friends in preparation, who’s own strength and camaraderie whispered their influence into the resulting painting. I hope this authenticity plants narrative seeds into the minds of visitors.

Finally the route leads into a chapel space, a nod to St Josephs Catholic School who were the last group to make use of the building before its current renovation.”

“Painted in oil on five adjoining wood panels, the mural was completed in ten days in my studio in Cardiff. The long format beckons the eye to travel between spaces as if a panning camera and with this, perhaps more subtly present, is the transition of time. Above all, I hope the work serves as a window into another world; carving out a space for visitors to connect with the past through the experience and perspective of the present.”