Creating a new cultural movement in Wales and beyond.
She was a voice.
The Margaret Watts Hughes Foundation of Culture, established in 2023, upholds the enduring values championed by Margaret (Megan) Watts Hughes: art, music and foster care. Born in 1842 in Dowlais, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, Watts Hughes was an acclaimed singer whose musical talents were nurtured through a scholarship funded by the collective efforts of her working-class community, enabling her to study at the prestigious Royal Academy of Music in London. In the 1890s, Watts Hughes created a groundbreaking series of artworks, known as Voice Figures, in which she "painted" her voice onto glass and ceramics. Though these works - approximately 57 in total - were largely forgotten and stored away for decades, they have recently been rediscovered and stand as a unique testament to her artistic innovation. Equally remarkable is her legacy of social compassion, having provided a home to over 200 children throughout her lifetime. Today, her life’s work serves as a lasting inspiration, connecting the voices of past, present, and future generations of artists and philanthropists in Wales and beyond.
With the valued support of CWMPAS, Cyfarthfa Museum & Art Gallery - the custodians of the Voice Figures collection, National Lottery Community Fund UK, Social Enterprise Academy, Voluntary Action Merthyr Tydfil (VAMT), and the Social Enterprise and Tourism Department of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council, the Foundation is dedicated to nurturing Welsh artists whose work is deeply inspired by the values embodied by Watts Hughes. The Foundation recognises that culture and the arts play a transformative role in national development, fostering improved quality of life, healing social divisions, and raising self-esteem. We firmly believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to create something meaningful, and the life of Margaret Watts Hughes is a powerful testament to that belief.
Today, the Margaret Watts Hughes Foundation of Culture continues to champion her legacy through the Margaret Watts Hughes Foundation Collection of Contemporary Art, which is showcased in our virtual gallery. In addition, we are leading efforts to internationalise Voice Figures by establishing connections with renowned art institutions worldwide, ensuring that Watts Hughes’ visionary works and values are recognised and celebrated on the global stage.
Image Above: Voice Figures at Glynn Vivian Gallery, Swansea, Wales. Curated by artist, Heather Phillipson with support from the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund.
"Her great musical and scientific gifts were wholly devoted to the service of God. In her the poor found a friend and the orphan a mother." - Inscription on Margaret Watts Hughes' gravestone at Abney Park Cemetery, London, UK
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