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This summer, Glynn Vivian Art Gallery invites visitors to look up as Art In the Sky, the UK's first major exhibition dedicated to contemporary art kites, takes flight in Swansea.

Curated by Isabel Griffin, the exhibition brings together leading international artists whose work transforms the ancient tradition of kite flying into bold, experimental art. From monumental sculptural forms suspended in the gallery's Atrium to exquisitely crafted kites from around the world, Art In the Sky celebrates the unique moment when art leaves the ground and enters the air.

Large-scale installations, rare loans and works from private collections sit alongside a selection of photographs from Amgueddfa Cymru, presented as part of CELF (National Contemporary Art Gallery Wales). Featuring internationally renowned kite artists including Frances Anderson (UK), Kadek Armika (Bali), Anna Rubin (Austria) and Yoh Yasuda (Japan), the exhibition also brings together contemporary artists whose work explores our relationship with the sky, movement and the natural world. These include Abby Poulson, Cy Kuckenbacker, Steve Brockett, Nida Sinnokrot, alongside previously unseen kites from private collections.

For more than 2,000 years, kites have held cultural, spiritual and practical significance across continents. They have been tools for communication, ritual, measurement and play — simple objects capable of creating moments of wonder. Art In the Sky explores how today's artists build on this shared history, transforming kites into kinetic sculptures that only fully exist when they are in the sky. At the heart of kite flying is a fleeting moment of balance — holding the line while simultaneously letting go. Contemporary art kite makers embrace this collaboration with nature, combining engineering, craftsmanship and imagination to create works that move, shift and respond to their environment.

Many artists work with traditional and sustainable materials, using time-honoured techniques while pushing the limits of scale, form and flight. The exhibition draws inspiration from the Art Volant Manifesto, written during the First Symposium of Art Volant (Flying Art) organised by the Miró Foundation in Mallorca in 1995. The manifesto described the kite as a poetic meeting point between the physical and the spiritual, offering artists, 'unmatched opportunity to play, to explore, to experiment, manipulating scale and distance, making an immense space visible, unlocking the imagination.' Art In the Sky brings that vision into the present, showcasing a new generation of artists reimagining what kites can be — and where art can happen.

Isabel Griffin, curator, says "For centuries, the making and flying of kites has captured the imagination. Art In the Sky builds on this rich heritage and reveals the remarkable potential of kites as a medium for artistic expression and as works of art in their own right." Alongside the exhibition, Glynn Vivian Art Gallery will present a programme of talks, events and workshops, offering opportunities for audiences of all ages to engage with the art of kite making and flying, including a panel discussion with curator Isabel Griffin, and artists Kadek Arnika, Anna Rubin, Yoh Yasuda and Frances Anderson on Friday 19 June at 2pm. Art In the Sky is supported by the Arts Council of Wales, the Henry Moore Foundation, and CELF, national contemporary art gallery for Wales.