The Coal Face is a study of the Welsh coal industry seen through the physiognomies of the workforce.
The 3-d portrait installation was commisioned by ffotogallery part of Diffusion 2019 – “Sound & Vision”.
Exhibited in the Senedd, Welsh Assembly, Cardiff, and Shift, Cardiff, April 2019.
Wales was once a world leader in coal production with over 600 collieries in South Wales alone. Today, all but a few traces of our recent history have been wiped away. The coal dust is gone. The mines demolished. Liquorice rivers run clear and the valleys are green. Scattered throughout the valley towns the workforce are in the shadows; older, wiser and growing infirm. The faces of these men are the key to our industrial past. Colliers from The Rymney, The Taff and Ebbw valleys sat for the intense studio sessions required to create the full 3-d portraits, accompanied by recordings of their voices and a soundscape of environmental sounds and a composition by BAFTA winning composer John Rea.
A short article by Lucy John for the Cardiffian.
Another from the Guardian
And from Walesonline
Portraits of Welsh miners, part of the Coal Face exhibit, all photographed in 3-d. The installation is accompanied by interviews and sound and a composition by BAFTA winning musician John Rea.
All images ©Richard Jones and not to be used without permission