Lan a lawr a llithro intentionally slip to the rhythm of I dream in semi-circles don’t you worry about me!

Esyllt Angharad Lewis (@esylltesylit) is an artist, editor and translator from Craig-Cefn-Parc, Wales. She returned to GSA in May 2022 to finish the final part of her drawing Mlitt after pausing due to the pandemic. Her practice deals with tensions of language and communication from the perspective of a minority language speaker.

During her two month return to GSA, she framed her practice around the following question: Can translation be viewed as an arch?

Using the arch as a basis to question the nature of translation; a visually appealing, effortless shape which also holds within it a tension and complexity, allowed her to learn about process through its recurring motif. Where one thing moves across time and space to another point. Where there is a gap between two things, like a portal or opening, where language is bent, shifted, tensed, undone, before reaching the other side. Where the arch may or may not hold the weight above it. This question has provided a frame to move between and through printmaking, drawing, sculpture, painting, casting and performance. The arch has been an anchor point to translate herself and others over and over again – and through this process to discover new ways of considering what is at stake in and through translation.