Private printing presses in Wales have produced Artists' Books and Portfolios for a long time, involving the combination of poetry and (on the whole) fine-art prints. David Bell describes this in his book "The Artist in Wales" (1957). He explains that the interest in the private press in Wales goes back to 1803, with the establishment of the Hafod Press. Its founder was interested in the visual arts as were all those that followed, which distinguished them from their commercial cousins. One of the best known was the Gregynog Press in Newtown followed by John Pett's Caseg Press. Now-a-days, the main representatives of this art form are 'The Red Hen Press' of Shirley Jones who has been active for over 30 years, 'The Old Stile Press' of Nicolas McDowall and the 'Swansea Print Workshop'. Below are some examples of their work although not in full detail.



"Soft Ground Hard Ground" 1989
aqua&mezzotints by Shirley Jones
Red Hen Press

"The Landscape Within" 1991
wood/linocuts by Bert Isaac
The Old Stile Press

"Sonnetts" 2001
two-colour images by Clive Hicks-Jenkins
The Old Stile Press




"The Mare's Tale" 2001
line images by Clive Hicks-Jenkins
The Old Stile Press

"White Voices" 2001
woodcuts by Keith Bayliss
The Old Stile Press

"The Laugharne Poems" 2003
woodcuts by John Petts
The Old Stile Press




"Where Many Shipwrack" 2004
linocuts by Robert Macdonald
The Old Stile Press

"Taliesin & the Mockers" 2004
b/w collages by Glenys Cour
The Old Stile Press

"Black Marigolds" 2007
b/w collages by Glenys Cour
The Old Stile Press




"Dal Dy Dir"
20 portfolios of 5 prints each
digital colour-prints by Mary Lloyd-Jones
V-6 Group, Cardiff.

"Especially when the October Wind"
portfolio of 12 poems&prints, 2003
in commemoration of Dylan Thomas
Swansea Print Workshop



...
"Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam", illustrated by Ivor Davies in 1982
an English language translation from the original by Edward Fitzgerald 1809-83
published by Holsworthy Publishing Ltd.