Between 19 June and 3 July 2024, Carreg Fawr on Ynys Enlli opened its doors to the public for a very special exhibition of drawings, paintings and murals. The show, titled Visions of Bardsey, brought together works by three generations of artists all inspired by the island: Brenda Chamberlain, Amelia Shaw-Hastings and Jon Hastings. 

Brenda Chamberlain lived full-time on Bardsey from 1947 until 1962, and made her home in Carreg Fawr. She was not only a painter but also a writer and poet. During her time on the island she produced powerful works that combined her response to island life with a vivid personal vision. Her legacy on Bardsey remains visible, particularly through the murals she painted on the internal walls of Carreg Fawr. 

Brenda Chamberlain’s time on the island deeply shaped her work. Her paintings, drawings and writing often reflect the rhythms of island life, the sea, the cliffs and the light. Her presence on Bardsey helped establish a tradition of artistic engagement with the island that has continued across generations. 

Amelia Shaw-Hastings often visited Bardsey regularly during the summer months in the 1960s and early 1970s, staying first in Tŷ Bach (her sister Marjory’s house) and later in Tŷ Nesaf. 

From a young age she had studied art, attending Junior Art School from age 13. After several years working as a commercial artist during and after the war, she moved into sculpture and portraiture, which became the focus of her professional career. 

Although sculpture and portraiture were her main professional pursuits, Amelia never lost her love of drawing. During her visits to Bardsey she made quick sketches and watercolours of the landscape, shoreline, people and animals she observed. These drawings capture everyday life and the quiet beauty of the island during a particular period of its history, when family holidays, farming and fishing shaped its rhythm. 

The pieces by Amelia in the 2024 exhibition offered a poetic, intimate and personal view of Bardsey. They acted as a counterpoint to the monumental murals of Brenda Chamberlain, and as a bridge between the island’s past and future through the eyes of a younger generation. 

The third artist in the exhibition, Jon Hastings, is Amelia’s son. His first visit to Bardsey was as a six-year-old in 1960, travelling with his aunt Marjory. Subsequent childhood visits, and then his regular returns as an adult, sometimes with his own children and more recently his grandchildren, forged in him a deep emotional bond with the island. 

Although Jon did not begin making art until later in life, he has developed an artistic practice over the past 25 years that includes painting, drawing and immersive installations using sound and moving image. In the two years leading up to the exhibition he worked on a series of expressive semi-abstract paintings of Bardsey, works born directly from memories, atmosphere and emotional resonance shaped by repeated visits to the island. The 2024 exhibition was his way of returning these works to the landscape that inspired them. 

Visions of Bardsey brought together three generations of artists, each connected to the island in different ways as resident, visitor, child, parent and grandparent. The dialogue between their works showed how Bardsey has continued to inspire changing artistic responses across decades. 

For the Bardsey Island Trust the exhibition reinforced the importance of nurturing and preserving Enlli’s artistic heritage, and of supporting artists, past and present, who continue to keep the island’s spirit alive through their work.