The first 'stiletto' ship comes to Galeri, Caernarfon!

This striking Sculpture, 'Ship Shape', by artist, Megan Broadmeadow, had its maiden voyage earlier this year as part of the 'Locws 4' exhibition in Swansea and from August 7 can be seen afloat near Galeri, Caernarfon.

8 artists took part in the exhibition, and each artist's project was made in response to a place or context specific to Swansea, with a broad variety of unique locations being transformed into art spaces.

Megan's inspiration for her work was derived from Swanseas maritime history and the nautical world, which she initially perceived to be very masculine - noting the roles throughout the whole of the sailing industry to be male roles. In her further investigations she discovered that the nautical tradition holds reverence to the female form. The boat is a 'she' vessel, cradling the lives of men in her hull.

To address the balance between the male sailing world and the underlying female influence Megan took logic to its extreme and created the ultimate female ship, with a stiletto as a hull and light netting for sails.

The high-heeled shoe represents the femininity issues surrounding the nautical world and the rise of the contemporary shopping phenomenon. The work also links to the Swansea cockle women who traditionally only wore shoes to enter the market, and mainly lived and worked barefoot. Their simple life is now almost a million miles away from the highly groomed lifestyles of today.

Although the work was created in response to the city of Swansea, Megan feels that because the work embodies the transformation of a crucial part of Welsh culture, it is as relevant in Caernarfon as it was in its previous port.

Megan Broadmeadow is an inter-disciplinary artist working predominantly in sculpture, installation and performance. Megan is directly influenced by a place, or objects which appear to be 'of' that place, and can admittedly become obsessed by an object, especially if she perceives that object to be unloved or overlooked.

Megan studied Sculpture at the Slade School of Art, and graduated in 2002. Since then she has exhibited and performed in Wales and England and is also a director of Theatr Cynefin.

Locws International and Galeri are both supported by Arts Council of Wales.