The two exhibitions – Ancient Landscape by Mary Lloyd Jones and Heather and Hillforts – will be opened on Friday, 30 July at 6pm by the Welsh Assembly’s Presiding Officer Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas, and will be open until 18 September.

Mary Lloyd Jones: Ancient Landscape

Ancient landscapes and archaeology have inspired the artist in new and earlier work, which is on display here. Mary Lloyd Jones is known for her use of colour, lines and ancient text in her work and she has been inspired by her visits to several important archaeological sites in North Wales and beyond. Among them are Barcloriad y Gawres and Bryn Celli Ddu on Anglesey; Moel Fenlli, Moel y Gaer and Caer Derwyn within the Clwydian hillforts.

Mary Lloyd Jones said: “The world of archaeologists has always been a source of ideas for painting, so my initial explorations of these special places with their traces of earlier peoples, colour patterns and network of pathways will result in many future visits.”

Images from the Heather and Hillforts project

The aim of the Heather and Hillforts project is to protect the heritage of the hillforts and moorland of the Clwydian Range, and to encourage local people to recognise their importance through educational schemes and special events.

Here is an opportunity to see an analysis of this special landscape, with the work focusing on Iron Age remains. During the research, students from Bangor University took part in a dig at Moel y Gaer, Llanbedr and reflections on the hillforts are to be seen in the paintings of Bill Kneale, archelogical drawings by Tim Morgan and areal photographs by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales.

The Gwynedd Museum and Gallery is open Tuesday-Friday, 12.30-4.30pm; Saturday 10.30am-4.30pm. Admission free.

For more information about this exhibition, and all other activities in Gwynedd’s museums, visit the website www.gwynedd.gov.uk/museums