³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

Gary Raymond and guest critics review the Welsh arts and popular culture scene. This month Gary is joined by poet and critic Paul Chambers and playwright and critic Dr Emily Garside.

The panel explore The Rules of Art?, an exhibition at the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff that takes the framing of the critical hierarchy of painting established in the 18th century - that put portraiture at the top and still life at the bottom - to explore the evolution of the visual art, from Botticelli to Bedwyr Williams.

They discuss the new collection from one of Wales’ most admired poets, Paul Henry. As If To Sing, covers some familiar preoccupations for those familiar with Henry’s work, but throws up more of its fair share of surprises.

A series of short stories by contemporary Welsh writers, from Joe Dunthorne to Jane Fraser, written for Radio 4 and showcasing a wide variety of subjects as well as talents, is also reviewed by the panel.

And they hear the latest album from veteran Carmarthenshire indie band The Hepburns. The band had a busy lockdown period, recording first the Electric Lleidi Land album in the deepest days of isolation. That led to a connection with Estella Rose, an artist, musician, and writer based in the Netherlands which eventually produced a collaboration with Rose as vocalist and the album Architecture of the Ages.