Film screening to close Yr Wyddfa exhibition in Chester

A free film screening at Chester’s Grosvenor Museum will mark the closing weekend of Retracing Footsteps – The Changing Landscape of Yr Wyddfa/Snowdon, an exhibition dedicated to Wales’ highest peak. The event will feature Creigiau Geirwon (Rugged Rocks), a filmed theatre performance that explores the lives of early mountain guides and explorers of Eryri/Snowdonia.

The screening, scheduled for Saturday, September 14, at 2 pm, will be followed by a Q&A with the show’s writer and director, Wyn Bowen Harries.

The event, open to audiences aged seven and above, offers a unique chance to discover the historic figures who trekked Yr Wyddfa’s rugged terrain, including botanists, geologists, artists, and poets.

Creigiau Geirwon was previously staged at Pontio in Bangor and features live music and vertical dance.

The exhibition, running since June 15, has been a popular attraction, focusing on the enduring allure of Yr Wyddfa, which attracts around 650,000 visitors each year.

The project is co-led by University of Chester academics Dr Cian Quayle and Dr Daniel Bos, who have combined art, geography, and history to examine the mountain’s role in shaping both Welsh culture and the natural landscape.

Dr Daniel Bos, a Senior Lecturer in Human Geography, spearheaded the research, delving into 19th-century visitor books from Snowdon’s summit hotels.

Tourists from the period chronicled their ascent through poetry, prose, and sketches, revealing a rich historical tapestry of personal experiences. These accounts form the heart of the exhibition, offering modern audiences a glimpse into the past.

Alongside these records, the exhibition includes paintings, prints, and drawings from the Grosvenor Museum’s art collection, curated by Dr Cian Quayle. Photography by recent University of Chester graduates Emma Petruzzelli and Jane Evans is also showcased.

Dr Bos highlighted the project’s collaborative nature: “Thank you to everyone who has worked with us on this exhibition and to all who have visited. There is still more than a week left to visit and engage with our Contemporary Visitor Book experience, with the added opportunity of combining a visit with the film screening.”

The Contemporary Visitor Book, created by BA Graphic Design student Eleanor O’Grady, encourages visitors to respond to the mountain and exhibition through their own anecdotes, poetry, or sketches. The resulting material will feed into ongoing research by the University.

The final weekend offers a last chance for visitors to immerse themselves in the artistic and historical representations of Yr Wyddfa, as well as to engage with the exhibition’s innovative approach to the mountain’s enduring appeal.

• To book free tickets, please visit: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/westcheshiremuseums/t-vvdyemg.
• The Grosvenor Museum is at Grosvenor Street, Chester, CH1 2DD, and is open Tuesday to Saturday, 10.30am to 5pm, Sundays from 1pm to 4pm, and closed on Mondays apart from bank holidays.