Monster Chetwynd is known for tackling urgent global issues through a celebratory approach with exuberant and fun performative pieces. Featuring handmade costumes, props and sets, Chetwynd creates joyful outfits and mise-en-scène that often cross the boundaries onto gallery walls.
During her residency at Mount Stuart, Monster has been working with local school children on a performance based project that focuses on moths: a species she continues to champion and highlight in her work as well as being one which is redolent with art historical allegory.
Inside the house, Monster will continue the dialogue between her work and the neo-gothic fantasy of Mount Stuart's interiors with sculptural works and works on paper displayed in conversation with the decorative ceiling, mural and panels of the Family Bedroom. A film work, featuring local moth experts and children, and shot by artists including Margaret Salmon, will be available to view throughout the exhibition dates.
Inherent to Monster's practice is an aesthetic of recycling materials and as part of Moths she has re-purposed an existing work, Folding House (2011) into a Moth Hub. The Moth Hub will give focus to Mount Stuart’s ongoing relationship with volunteers at Bute Museum & Natural History Society, who use the grounds for regular moth counts, contributing information to the National Moth Recording Scheme.