The Coal Face

The Coal Face is a study of the Welsh coal industry seen through the physiognomies of the workforce. Wales was once a world leader in coal production with over 600 collieries in South Wales alone. Today, all but a few traces of our recent history have been wiped away. The coal dust is gone. The mines demolished. Liquorice rivers run clear and the valleys are green. Scattered throughout the valley towns the workforce are in the shadows; older, wiser and growing infirm. The faces of these men are the key to our industrial past. Colliers from the Rhondda, The Rymney, The Taff and the Ebbw sat for the intense studio sessions required to create the full 3-d portraits, which are accompanied by composer John Rea’s soundscape featuring Jones' recordings of the miners' voices and sounds of the region.

Each 3D image requires the subject to sit motionless while they are scanned (photographed) by high resolution cameras mounted on a rail. The 200 or so images are then fed into photogrammetry software that calculates relative distances and reference points to create a three dimensional “dense cloud” made up of several million of points. A high-density mesh is created and a photographic sheath is laid over the top. The final 3D image is a cloud of measurements that resembles the original images.

About Artist

Richard Jones

Growing up in Bedwas and Machen, Rhymney Valley, Richard Jones photographs “everyday people” and how they’ve been affected by society and the communities in which they live. The artist is especially drawn to industry, industrial landscapes and physiognomies. His work has recently moved from print media to digital audio-visual projects. He is currently working on projects that involve converting still photographs into digital installations using time-lapse, 2.5-d parallax and full 3-d scanning of objects, faces and places. Imagery and visuals are accompanied by voice recordings, environmental sounds and music scores.
Jones’ work has been widely published by newspapers and magazines worldwide including: Stern, Focus, Marian, Paris Match, Le Figaro, Le Point, L’Express, Courier Int, New York Times, L.A. Times, Boston Globe, Time, Newsweek, BusinessWeek, The Economist, The Sunday Times, The Guardian, The South China Morning Post, The Independent Magazine, Marie Claire Magazine (UK, USA, France), El mundo, Life Magazine (Observer), Weekend (Guardian)

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