A brand-new exhibition at the Riverside Gallery, Haverfordwest, is offering visitors the chance to discover a lesser-known side of the work of one of Wales’ most celebrated artists, Sir Kyffin Williams.

The Kyffin Williams: Face to Face exhibition, brings together some of his most striking portraits, revealing that the human face was as great a source of inspiration to him as the landscape.

Although best known for his iconic landscapes, throughout his career, he also painted portraits of all kinds of people. Taken together, these works reveal an artist fascinated by faces and the stories behind them, showing how Kyffin sought to capture more than a simple likeness.

As well as portraits of various individuals, some of them notable figures in Welsh history, the exhibition also includes several self-portraits painted at different times in his career, including the last self-portrait he painted before his death.

Mari Elin Jones, Interpretation Officer at the National Library of Wales said: “We tend to think of Kyffin first and foremost as a landscape painter, but portraiture was a constant throughout his career. Bringing these works together reveals just how fascinated he was by people, and how much character and emotion he could find in the human face.”

Alongside the paintings, visitors can also explore works on paper and a selection of archival film footage which offers an opportunity to hear Kyffin himself reflect on his work and his approach to portraiture.

Showing alongside the Kyffin Williams: Face to Face exhibition is the permanent exhibition Pembrokeshire: Past and Present, focusing on the history, culture and landscape of Pembrokeshire, which will display a selection of new items this season.

Both exhibitions will run until Saturday 3 April, 2027.

This exhibition is the beginning of a season celebrating the life and work of the artist Kyffin Williams, during the year that marks 20 years since his death.

On 18 November, the Profiad Kyffin Experience will open to the public at the National Library, Aberystwyth, with tickets available from 2 November.

The Way to the Cottages by Kyffin Williams
The Way to the Cottages by Kyffin Williams (National Library of Wales)

The Profiad Kyffin Experience fuses cutting-edge visual technology, more commonly associated with blockbuster immersive shows featuring Van Gogh and Cézanne experiences, with original works and items from Kyffin’s archive.

Applied for the first time to a much-loved Welsh artist, this is a brand-new, free, 30-minute immersive journey invites visitors to step into Kyffin's world, which is digitally mapped, reconstructed and projected around visitors in art, sound and light.

In May 2027, the Library's prestigious Gregynog Gallery will host a major exhibition on the artist, the first since his centenary year in 2018.

Sir Kyffin Williams is widely regarded as the defining Welsh artist of the 20th century. Born in Llangefni, he trained at the Slade School of Art before returning to Wales, where he spent his career painting its landscape and people, often outdoors and with a palette knife.

His subjects ranged from the mountains and sea of Anglesey to the sheepdogs of Welsh hill farms. On his death in 2006 he left his estate to the National Library of Wales